Today, our family journeyed over to take a look at the Sculpture Garden. It was a warm, windy day, and Madeleine loved the hundreds of wind chimes they’d suspended in the trees.
Advice from the Bassets: Catching Zzzzs
The other day, while watching my two basset hounds curled up for a lazy, late afternoon slumber, I realized something. I haven’t gotten eight straight hours of sleep since before Maddie was born. And after six months, I think it’s starting to wear on me.
Before becoming a parent, sleep was always high on my priority list. I never pulled an all-nighter in college. While my friends would meet up at 10 p.m. for a night on the town, I’d often already be in my pajamas. I just knew that my body required 8 solid hours of sleep, and that if I got 7 or less, I’d be in for a rough day.
I don’t know about you, but one night of being short on sleep can send my emotions on a roller coaster ride. I’m deliriously happy or sad, content or frustrated, and any small change will send me off in a completely different direction. I am impressed that my body has been able to handle the lack of sleep as well as it has. After all, it’s no small feat to wake up, feed the baby, and fall back to sleep multiple times in the middle of the night. But now, at six months, I’m no longer deliriously happy or sad, content or frustrated. I’m just delirious.
With this in mind, I may have to take a cue from the bassets. They value sleep highly. If nothing particularly exciting is going on, they’re saving up energy to make the most of the next big adventure. I really enjoy my evenings talking and watching late night TV with my husband after Maddie has drifted off to dreamland. But that first stretch of sleep is her longest. And more than 4 straight hours of sleep is starting to sound like a mini-vacation. Will I feel cool turning in at 7 p.m.? Absolutely not. I will feel like the oldest 20-something on the planet. But will I feel better (and maybe even younger) the next day? I think I will. And that’s something worth giving up late night TV for. At least sometimes.
Pssst. This was originally posted on my parenting blog. Please follow me at http;//amommynous.tumblr.com too!
