Sleep....

....it's a many splendid thing (or wait, is that love?).
It's something I cherish.
I don't get enough of it as a new parent (I say new as I have this naive hope that one day my child will enjoy sleeping in or playing quietly in the morning and I can sleep straight through until 8am).

I feel like I'm missing an hour or two a night these days, and I was starting to resent it. As wonderful as my first Mother's Day was, my little one didn't give me much of a chance to catch up on the zzzz's like I'd hoped. (Guess hubby didn't get the hint either.)

It was put in perspective for me this weekend though. I guess the monkey is teething, or reaching some milestone he's trying to work through, or in the word's of a friend, "sometimes he might just be an a$$hole". In any event he's exhausted but he's refused to settle for a few naps over the last week. We did sleep training around four and half months and haven't had any real problems since (but oh the problems before....). It was hard this week when he was tired but just kept crying, and I'd end up cuddling him in his room hoping he'd sleep. I'd get 10 minutes maybe and then he'd just want to get going again. It wasn't great, and I couldn't work (too bad cuddles don't pay the bills), but there are worse things.

Like me losing sleep.

And wouldn't you know? Saturday night found hubby and I sitting on the couch enjoying some tv around 9:30pm only to have O start screaming. This happens now and again as he comes out of a sleep cycle - a slight cry and then back into dreamland. This one kept on going. I had to go in and I found him wide awake climbing toward the door looking for us. I did the diaper check (nothing), then gave him some drugs for his teeth (what can I say?), an extra cuddle and back to bed. He cuddled up with his blankie and drifted sweetly into dreamland.

I crossed my fingers we were golden, but no such luck. I went to bed around 10pm, and I woke up when hubby was making his way to bed at midnight, just as O let it rip again.

I'm officially useless at night and have been ever since we weaned O off night feeds, so much so I actually sleep through some night time cries. I dozed in and out as I heard O screaming and crying away in the other room. Hubby did his best to console him, then gave up, tip-toed into our room with O and asked if I minded if he brought O into our bed to see if he'd be happier there. I care about nothing in the night if it means sleep. They crawled it but the crying started again.

I tried nursing him, but after that he was happy to play and tried to climb all over us, then cried when we tried to cuddle him. After that hubby and O left the room and (again, if it means sleep I care for nothing) I conked out again and awoke briefly around 5:30am as I heard crying from downstairs. Quarter to seven found me attempting to open my eyes in guilt as realized I'd left hubby alone on baby duty all night. I found them in the guest room downstairs, sharing a single bed and hubby looking rather unhappy.

Turns out he'd gotten a total of about two hours sleep. I felt horrible. I still do. Thing is, he functions better than I do on less sleep... that isn't an excuse though, is it?

I guess what it comes down to is that I value my sleep above most things. The best I could do was suggest a fast food breakfast. He jumped at the idea as we both know there are view things that hit the spot like a bacon-n'-egger after little sleep. I appreciate the drive-thru even more now as a parent.

Last night was better, and I cross my fingers it continues. And with that, I wish you all a lovely sleep tonight, but it's time for me to get to bed. Lights out before 9:30 is always my goal on Mondays when hubby is out, and if I hurry I might make it.

Sweet dreams.