Sunday, January 18, 2009

Illuminating Motherhood: Sleepless



I love the idea of talking with other moms about motherhood. There are so many words that describe motherhood, please join me each week and tell us how you feel about being a mother. I will be hosting a topic each week from the illuminating motherhood tree. Link your blog to your motherhood post and let everyone read your thoughts and ideas on this weeks subject. Also, you may copy and add the Illuminating Motherhood tree to your sidebar. To add your link below, type in your name and then your blog or direct illuminating motherhood post. I can't wait to see your posts! To add your ideas, you can also use the comment section.

Remember the land of before children? When it was called beauty sleep? Not, I have to get at least an hour of sleep before I fall over - sleep. Being a mom, means not only less sleep, but countless hours of worry and wonder about each child, their needs, and life.

Despite the ever increasing age of my twin daughters - I know that I am still recovering from sleep deprivation. The bags under my eyes, if we ever get the chance to meet, will prove it! The very first night we were allowed to take the girls from the orphanage, I was at a crash course in motherhood. Sure, I'd babysat before - but never twins suffering from attachment. It was a very sleepless night, and one of many to follow.

By the 2nd week, I was knee deep in two babies that didn't know how to comfort themselves. We were bonding, but it was clear that one of my daughters was never going to sleep gently in my arms. Perhaps with a little wisdom, I would have handled this situation better - but as it went until she was four - she fought me for at least an hour every night - sometimes two or three hours. This is with trying everything under the sun to help her go to sleep without such a frantic battle. Between four and five, it was twice a week, and now with age and reasoning skills, she understands bedtime. I still cringe every night, wondering if she is going to revert back to her tantrum filled nights. I am grateful that with age, came her ability to understand why she had to sleep; that it wasn't an option to sleep, it is necessary.

I guess if I took this same understanding, sleep is necessary not an option; I would get the sleep I need every night. I personally find that I still cannot relax until my children are asleep and if there are issues that arise during the day regarding their happiness - count any peaceful night's slumber out! The fact is, I am more than happy to put up with a lifetime of sleeplessness! CNN has a great list of mistakes mom's make when it comes to sleep. I like their advice about exercise and managing daily chores. What is your take on the word sleepless?
Next weekends topic: Faith

A week in posts:


7 comments:

Bren's Life said...

Isn't that the truth. Adopting a new baby & all the sudden being a mom is wonderful & crazy.

dani said...

i was very lucky, michelle. i almost feel guilty in typing this, but katherine (starting at 10 days) slept through the night!!!
i don't know why for sure; but i do know that we bought the top-of-the-line mattress (which she slept on every night til she was 3, ha), i enlarged the hole in her bottle a bit and started adding cereal at about a week (it was obvious that she was hungry when she awoke), i bought pampers (which seemed to stay much drier to the touch than other brands), kept her in very soft gowns, and... finally, i had been around babies all my life (thus i was very comfortable being a mom).
i don't know if any or all of these ingredients led to a child that slept well and through the night (10p-6 or 7a). but, i believe it was a recipe for success. i hope this will help those looking for an answer:)
love,
dani
ps naptime was always something katherine looked forward to, as well. i always made naptime an exciting time of the day with, "katherine, guess what time it is..." (said rather sing-songedly, tee-hee;). i believe the child would rather take a nap than eat chocolate!!!

donna said...

MY mother in law told me that she has not had a full nights sleep in over 39 years. They joy of motherhood.:)

SUPPORT said...

Thank You for you sweet friendship and l♥ve~! ♥ Hugs!

Carrie and Troy Keiser said...

My first child never slept til he was 3! We would wake up and find him in the hall or in the living room, wherever he fell asleep. I'm still not sure he sleeps much at nearly 15! I guess he comes by it naturally, I can run on very little sleep, but my reserves were drained when I had the twins! Oh boy were they ever!
This is a fun idea,I'll try to remember to play along each week.

Chrissy, said...

I can never figure out why kids fight sleep! I crave it and they shun it! IT cracks meup thinking of the first night with my twins. I was a wreck. I feed on and fell back to sleep and couldnt even remember what time I had fed them or which one I had fed. They were so tiny and I was so unprepared.

I'm glad some hard times are getting easier. The end of the day is the hardest time for me to keep my wits about me. YOU are just what your girls needed.

Marie said...

I am going to try to look up that CNN list.

I'm so relieved that bedtime is going better for you!