Sleep Problems

One night last week, Don and I were exhausted and wanted to head to bed early, but Daelyn was still wide-awake and unwilling to climb into his own bed. So we put him in ours. Don immediately rolled on his side and, within minutes, was snoring. I, however, have to lay completely still, on my side, with my earlobe bared (see my Post from July of this year, "The Lobes Have It" for an explanation). Daelyn bounced around, back and forth, driving me crazy. If I tried to move to get comfortable, he'd fuss. Just as I began to doze, he'd wiggle or throw a leg over me, and I'd be jolted back into alertness. After about 45 minutes of this, I unceremoniously moved him into his own bed with threats regarding staying there.

I came back to bed and had just settled down when Don rolled over. You have to understand, when in bed, Don does nothing simply. Rolling over involves jerking the covers, flailing in the air, and landing with a thump as his body rotates. The entire bed bounces up and down for several seconds until it settles back into position. It's as if a whale just flapped his tail on the bed. Thank God we don't have a waterbed.

I snickered to myself. All this commotion from Don and, the truth is, it didn't bother me at all. But Daelyn's incessant ear rubbing and wiggling drives me absolutely crazy. I'm assuming it's just because I'm used to Don's movements in bed, after 10 years of sleeping with the man. And, the most important part, his movement rarely bump into me. I get waves of motion from his side of the bed, but his body isn't jolting me and he's not constantly touching me while I'm trying to sleep.

My father told me, about 15 years ago, that my mother slept, every single night, with her head on his chest. While the image of Mama soundly asleep in Daddy's arms is wonderfully touching, the truth is, I'd go crazy - never being able to roll over, waking up and lying awake with this weight on my chest. UGH!! No romantic lives in my bedroom.

When Don and I were first married, I discovered that he's extremely ticklish. He can't stand to be touched. If I reached out to touch him during the night, he'd jump in the air, fully waking up both of us. I learned very quickly that, once he rolls over, there is NO TOUCHING.

Then we had Deanna. She would go to bed every night with her Daddy. By the time I got my chores done and came to bed, she'd be curled up on top of him, whichever side of him was up. It might be his back, his chest, or his side, but she was always on top of him, curled in a little ball. I'd peel her off and put her in her crib. Once I asked Don about it. I couldn't understand how one little touch from me would send him into a tailspin, but Deanna could sprawl all over him with no consequences. He laughed and said that she must climb onto of him after he was already asleep, thus, it didn't bother him.

Big joke. The truth is, she's his baby. Nothing she does bothers Don. It's the same with Daelyn. His wiggling, fidgeting, and talking doesn't keep Don awake. It's just me. I keep Don awake and everyone else in the house keeps me awake.

Ah, motherhood.