SLEEP

Recently, a good night's sleep in our house has been a hot commodity. Last night, for example, there was very little sleeping going on. Here's how it all went:




10:38pm

I finally finish all of my work for the day and hand Rachael off (asleep) to Ryan so I can take a

shower and get into bed at a reasonable time.




11:02pm

I get out of the shower and hear Rachael screaming at the top of her lungs! I rush through the

rest of my nightly routine and rescue Ryan as quickly as I can.




11:17pm

Ryan, Rachael, Bogie, and I head upstairs to our bedroom.




11:34pm

I nurse Rachael for her last feeding of the night and place her in the bassinet next to the bed.




11:46pm

Ryan turns off the tv and I fall asleep within minutes.




1:39am

Rachael would like to eat again. During this time I have to nudge Ryan several times to quiet his

snoring so that he doesn't wake Rachael completely.




2:00am

Back to sleep.




4:11am

Rachael is restless and can't get comfortable. I decide to feed her again, then place her on my

chest were I know she will be happy.




4:28am

As I'm drifting off to sleep, Bogie begins to dream about all the squirrels he has never been able

to catch in the backyard, and they are taunting him. He is barking so loud that he can't hear me

calling his name. Finally, Ryan snaps his fingers and tells him to be quiet.




6:10am

David wakes up crying and yells for me. I quickly roll Rachael onto the bed next to Ryan, who

also heard David and now knows that Rachael is in the bed. I feel around for my glasses, grab

them, and put them on as I open the door to David's room. There he is, sitting up in his bed,

lamp on, Spider-Man flashlight in hand. "Mama!", he says with a sniffle. "Do you want me to get

in bed with you?", I ask. He nods "yes". I don't close his door all the way so that I can hear

Rachael should she start to cry.




6:20am

David is drifting off to sleep and I begin to make my plan of escape back to my own bed. But,

just before I start to make my move, Bogie pushes the door open so hard it whams the door-

stop causing David to sit up in bed and proclaim, "Ba Ba!". I told David that it was still night time

and he needed to close his eyes.




6:48am

My eyes are doing their best to stay awake, I think I may have dosed off once or twice. David is

still not asleep, but is resting quietly. I have to keep checking the clock. I know that if Rachael

stays on the eating schedule she established during the night she will be hungry soon. I told David

that I would get Daddy to help him go back to sleep. David reluctantly agrees.




6:52am

I wake Ryan up and ask him to see if could have better success with David than I did. I crawl

back into bed and snuggle with the sleeping little girl next to me.




7:26am

Rachael starts crying as if she's having a bad dream. The only way to make it stop is to wake

her. This is easier said than done. I start by gently patting her back and whispering her name.

When that doesn't work I say her name louder and put my cold hand on her cheek. She continues

to cry and at this point it starts to scare me. I prop her up on my pillow and pat her all over trying

to do anything to rouse her. Finally, she opens her eyes, looks right at me, realizes it was just a

dream, and her little face is overcome with the biggest, most adorable, toothless grin. And I am

not tired anymore. [It's amazing what that precious smile can do to your energy level. 1,000 times

more than any cup of coffee.]




7:30am

As I'm feeding Rachael, I hear Ryan and David moving around in his room.




Time to begin another day.