Things that go bump in the night

We've been having trouble with Landen's sleeping habits. When he's not with us, his sleeping arrangements aren't ideal, so we have to stick to our guns that in this house, adults sleep in their bed and children sleep in their beds. For a couple weeks, Landen wouldn't go to sleep. He was afraid of the dark, so we either left his Christmas tree on all night, or if Jake fell asleep first, he was afraid to be alone.

This week, he's afraid of ghosts. Corey and I both believe in ghosts, but we tell him there's no such thing. Yesterday he swore he saw one in our bathroom. Monday night I woke up to him standing on the bed in front of me trembling because he had a nightmare. Corey returned him to his bed and laid down with him. He dreamed that a ghost was in his room about to whop him with a pillowcase.

Last night, he returned to Corey's side of the bed because the ghost had returned. I don't think Corey woke up, he just picked him up and put him in the bed. Several hours later, cramped and hot, I nudged Corey to go put Landen back in his bed. Corey crawled over him, picked him up and took him back to his room.

Lily's food bowls are right outside our bedroom door. My poor doodlebug was having herself a midnight snack, completely unexpecting her dad to come busting out of the bedroom door, unable to see her, thanks to the sleeping five year old he was carrying in his arms. He stepped on her tail, and she got tangled in his feet.

Then I hear Corey go "oof" and both of them hit the wall. I opened my eyes and looked out the door, but I didn't hop up because I figured that if Corey had fallen and landed on Landen, there would be some commotion coming from smushed Landen underneath him. I saw Landen's arm still in the air, but I heard him say "Ow." When Corey returned to the bed he told me he broke their fall with the large knot at his wrist, and he thought he broke it.

I commenced uncontrollably laughter and rolling around the bed, which he didn't appreciate. And when I got up this morning, Landen didn't remember having a bad dream or a collision.

Maybe it wasn't Lily. Maybe the ghost pushed him because he didn't believe.