Tales of a Sleepless Woman...

My wonderful husband let me sleep last night and took the night waking at 1 am and this morning I feel like a new woman! I LOVE MY LIFE, sleeplessness and all. I can totally smile at my day yesterday. I know that this too shall pass, and one day, I will look fondly at these moments, Heck, I already do look fondly at them, though it does paint me as one unstable Mommy!

So I love my baby girl. I love the newborn stage, all except for the sleepless nights. I have always been one to need sleep and lots of it. I was the kid who used to put herself to bed at family parties...I once fell asleep sitting up in a chair at a cousin's wedding ...I NEED SLEEP. So needless to say, the lack of continuous sleep has been wreaking havoc on my body.

Yesterday I had my first meltdown. I had gotten up a few times during the night trying to let Rich sleep. Simeon then woke up early and proceeded to check on me and baby every half hour, well more like 5 mintues. I then got up and could tell that the day was looking awfully bleak. I headed off to the neighbors, where my normally polite son decided he was not going to talk or answer questions, which raised my defenses...everyone is going to attribute his lack of "social skills" on homeschooling...Once back home, I proceeded to cook a gourmet meal, ummm throw together something for Rich and Sim, fed the baby and figured I'd take a nap after I had a nice nutritious meal...okay, more like tortilla chips, salsa and cheese melted in the microwave.

Our lunch goes well, Rich goes back to work and the baby is quiet, though awake. I manage to read a book to Simeon, and put him down for a nap. ( Yes, my 5.5 year old still takes naps, and for that I am VERY THANKFUL!) By the time I leave the room, the baby is asleep. YES! It looks like the planets have aligned for me to get a nap. I lay down on the couch with my favorite fleece blanket, close my eyes, take a deep breath....and Naomi proceeds to scream, and scream and scream some more. I pick her up, and cuddle with her on the couch, but am not comfy. I figure we'll both be comfier(is that even a word, and if it is, did I spell it right?), and so I head downstairs. Well, that was a BAD idea. My little princess decides to exercise her lungs as never before. Diaper is dry, she's been fed recently...I don't know what to do...I'm begging God to help me figure out how to make her stop. I decide to call Rich, and make him promise me that this will one day stop, that I am not going insane, and that she will grow up to speak rather than screech when something is bothering her. He promises all of the above and then proceeds to ask me if I've tried all the tricks in the book. Sway? Pat? Bounce on exercise ball? Walk around (yes, though this is dangerous when sleep deprived I tell you, one trips over her own feet)? The Wrap? No, actually, though I have worn her in the wrap nearly everyday since she's been born, I had not thought of the wrap. Sure enough, she falls asleep in it, so I lay on my back( Have I said yet that I am a stomach sleeper, and cannot sleep on my back?) on the couch. I'm very uncomfortable, but the silence is better than the hysteria of 5 minutes ago, so I turn the food network on and proceed to watch some shows.

I must have fallen asleep for no more than 20 minutes when I hear the front door open. At first I thought it was Rich, who had offered to come home more than once as I calmly (choking down tears and trying to act brave) asked for his advice on how to quiet our crying (hysterically) baby an hour and a half earlier. Then I hear the familiar, " Hellooo?" of our 15 year old who is supposed to be at her Moms. She proceeds to say she wasn't sure whether we'd be asleep, but she was here to get her school stuff and fundraiser things. ( word of advice, if you think a mom (okay, THIS Mom) to a newborn is asleep, please don't show up unexpected, wait until your sure they are already awake! She then leaves. As I continue to try to get comfortable, with an infant head under my chin, and a wrap knot in my back, contemplating how awful the pizzas Emeril is making look, my 5 year old wakes up.

Sigh...no sleep for the weary. Within the hour Rich arrives to the rescue. I then lose it, the tears start to flow and I look like a crazy lady. I feel like a two year old having a tantrum, except my tantrum is for sleep. After supper, I feel so much better. Hmmm...maybe I need to make sure I get more protein and caffeine in my diet. After Bible study, and some fellowship I feel so much better, but we still stop at Dunkin's for a donut...nothing like a little comfort food. Home and bed.