It Figures

Why is it that during the summer months 'good nights' and 'good mornings' are so much easier with the kidlets?? WHY?

So far during this summer vacation we haven't had any issues with bedtime {OK, so we're letting the kids go to bed a teeny, weeny bit later than normal}. We still deal with the occasional complaint about having to brush teeth {good dental hygiene is important}, but after that it's, "Are you going to come tuck me in?" And, in the mornings, I wake up sometimes to find both kids already dressed and on the couch eating cereal and watching TV. Mind you, this is before 7am.

Never, EVER would this happen during the school year.
Oh, no.
Bedtime is always a fight. Someone wants to stay up to watch something or they need to stay up because they didn't have enough time to play. And, don't even get me started about mornings...I guess getting up to get dressed & ready for school seems to be more of a hassle than it really is {of course, I do feel that way about work...sometimes}.

I do remember that it was always like this for me as a kid. However, I could never pinpoint why. It's not like we're off schedule because, well, I do work so the kids are still following a somewhat similar routine as the one during the school year. I just don't get it.

But,

I will enjoy every second of it and cherish these "easy" moments because September will sneak up on us and soon the kids will be headed back to school and the 'good nights' and 'good mornings' will cease to exist.

CAN YOU HEAR THAT?

No, you can't? Well, of course you can't...it's called silence! Sweet, wonderful, amazing silence!

The kids went to bed a couple hours ago. The hubs is, much to my dismay, passed out on the couch, but even he, too, is quiet. Well, I hope I just didn't jinx myself because he snores louder than a hibernating grizzly bear. (Just a side note, he had a "hard" day at work today...playing golf, drinking beer, eating tilapia for dinner...*cough*that's bullshit*cough*) Who knows where the cats are...hopefully they are sleeping, too, and not plotting against me (as usual) and coordinating a group effort to bring an even bigger animal into the house than last time.

I love it when the house is quiet. Aside from the gentle hum of the dishwasher and the tapping of keys on the keyboard, the house is asleep. Peaceful. Quiet. In a deep slumber. I suppose that is what I should be doing, too. You know, enjoying the fact that everyone is already in bed...that my gloriously comfy bed is wide open and will be mine all night (because, yes, I am that wife who will leave her snoring husband on the couch)...that's my cue for some shut-eye, too, right? Nah. Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to use this time to fold laundry or tidy up the living room. No sir. Instead, I think I'll fix me a big ole bowl of Edy's Rocky Road, watch some TV and maybe then I'll call it a night.

BEDS, BUGS AND A LACK OF FANCY

Our son is "vacationing" with my parents...in other words, he's staying at their house. I guess this means that WE are the ones who are technically on vacation, right?? Well, not exactly, but it's always nice to have a bit of a break from the kid (soon it will be a break from both kids, but that's a different blog post).

Anyways, at my parents house, Aidan always sleeps by himself in the spare bedroom. I should clarify that "sleeps by himself" means that he doesn't get up in the middle of the night or early in the morning and climb into bed with anyone. I don't know if it's because he's sleeping on a bed that's bigger than his puny twin size bed at home. I don't know if it's just because he's at Po Po and Gung Gung's house and not at home (I mean, things are always so much more special when you're at your grandparents house, right?). Or, maybe it's just because the queen size bed he's sleeping on this week (and for the next two weeks...woo hoo!) is so damn comfortable. I mean, even I had trouble getting up last weekend when we visited my parents because I felt as if I could sleep all day in that bed.

Well, he told me the reason why he sleeps in his own bed at Po Po & Gung Gung's house and NOT at our house (because he still climbs into bed with us in the wee morning hours)...

And, I quote...

"Because your house has bugs and isn't fancy enough."

WTF? Really? Thanks, son. I love you, too. My "all houses have bugs and no one in our family lives in a fancy house" talk didn't work. That was his story and he was stickin' to it.

So, I guess this means that when he gets home I should put some (fake) bugs in my bed and make his room as fancy as fancy could be for a 5 year old boy...that way he'll steer clear of my bed and want to sleep in his own bedroom all the time.

THE COLD SIDE OF THE PILLOWS

Sleep hasn't been my friend lately.

I don’t know if it’s because our time had to go and spring forward – yes, I’m still upset that I was robbed of one precious hour of sleep. I’m seriously convinced that the magical hour that was taken away was KEY to me getting an adequate amount of sleep every night. But, whatevs, I won’t get that hour back until the fall so what can I do about it? And, no, I will not try to go to bed an hour earlier.

I don’t know if it’s from stress. I mean, it’s possible. It’s quite ridiculous some of the things I think about while trying to fall asleep. My mind starts to race the very minute I close my eyes – it’s so sad. But, I’ve been trying really hard to clear my mind and my thoughts before bedtime. I really have.

I don’t know if it’s my habits – the good ones and the bad ones. The good – I’ve been really faithful about drinking enough water every day, so maybe it’s my multiple trips to the bathroom that keep me from falling asleep as fast as I should. The bad – I’ve tried very hard to limit my computer time after dark. As silly as it sounds, sitting up and staring at your computer monitor starts to mess with your circadian rhythm and, if that’s the case, mine is already messed up thanks to the time change.

I don’t know if it is unnecessary excessive noise that’s keeping me awake – and the unnecessary excessive noise I’m referring to is my husband’s God awful snoring! I mean he should really try using those Breathe Right strips or just sleep on the freakin’ couch. No one in their right mind – and I don’t care how tired you are – can fall asleep with all the noise he’s making.

All I know is that I toss and turn...turn and toss.

I get up. I lay back down. I try watching television. I try reading. Sometimes, I try to blog. I check on the kids. I go pee. I toss and turn some more. I kick Adam. Sometimes, I get a snack.

When I do finally manage to make myself stay in bed and I find my eyes starting to close, I bury myself in the covers. I need darkness. I need silence. I stuff my head between two pillows. And, as always, I must have the cold side of the pillows up against my skin. Maybe then I will finally fall asleep.

The pillow picture is from Country Living.

Nighty night!

8:30pm rolls around and it's time to tuck the kids into bed -- Malia has a loft bed (that Adam built for her a couple years ago) and as she climbed into bed she found one of our cats, Ziggy, already snuggled up in her bed: