Sleep?

Naw, I don't need it. At least that seems to be what my children think. Of course my parents and my husband can attest that I need AT LEAST 8 hours sleep to qualify as a decent human being the next day.

The Hawaiian Princess has been battling fever all weekend--it began with a puking session on Thursday night. When the fever is controlled, she is mostly normal. But this means that she wakes up at least once in the night.

And if she doesn't wake up (like Saturday night), the Racing Princess does. This one has been coughing through the night for the past couple evenings and getting up before the crack of dawn. For as much like me as this child is, how can she be a morning person???? Did I mention I am not a morning person? Especially not an early morning person.

Sunday evening began well---normal bedtimes, no major stall tactics even. The Racing Princess got up an hour after being put to bed--crying and coughing (and she had a dose of cough medicine prior to the original bedtime). She fell back asleep as I rocked her in the big chair in the living room (her favorite comfort activity). Put her back to bed. Peace and quiet and then...

The Hawaiian Princess cues up her cries. I am thinking: she had medicine (for her reflux and her fever), she had her paci, she had several loveys, she had a sippy of water, she will stop soon. No. So I get her up. Our normal odd hour wake up routine is to go to the living room--I put a pillow on the floor for her, change her, lay down on a pillow next to her and we watch a cartoon (20 min) at the end of which, it's bedtime again.

Yeah well, the Racing Princess must not have been sound asleep cuz she joined us as well. It is after midnight by this point. After cartoons, everyone goes to bed.

Fast forward oh a whopping 3 1/2 hours. And I am hearing voices. The Racing Princess has set up camp on the floor beside my bed. What the heck!! Since she won't stop whispering to herself (or her imaginary friends) and it's keeping me up, I ask her what she's doing. "Oh look Mom, I brought my blankie, my pillow and my water. Can I sleep with you?" UGH!! "Only if you lay quiet and still," I reply. She had to be reminded to stop talking once and then there was the sound of snoring. I hate snoring. Yes, even if it means the child is asleep--it means I shall not be sleeping anytime soon. So I lay there, not too long, maybe 20 or 30 minutes and can you guess what I hear?

The Hawaiian Princess has wound herself up again. And believe it or not, my deep sleeping, snoring Racing Princess has now woken up. "Aren't you gonna get her Mom?" "Yeah, sure, it's not like I am supposed to sleep at night or anything."

So it's not quite 5am and we are all watching cartoons while laying on the living room floor. The Hawaiian Princess, who is not used to sharing her early morning TV viewing with her sister, thinks it's great fun for us all to be together. After our 20 minute cartoon, I tell the girls bedtime (again!). So for the moment they are both in their own beds (don't know if they are asleep or not), but I am now wide awake as the sun is creeping way too quickly into the sky.

Oh yes, I will go back and lay down. And most likely fall asleep just minutes before we are supposed to be up for the day...that is NOT my favorite way to start a Monday! I get to spend the whole day feeling like I am missing something (besides my sleep).

Just think Honey, when you get home--you can have the 5 am shift since you will be getting up for PT anyway!!!