“I Have a Sleep Disorder — It’s Called CHILDREN”

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I saw this meme on Facebook last week, and it quickly became the backdrop of my phone! Seriously, I don’t know if I will ever sleep all night again!

We had our third baby just over a year ago. The trend with our kiddos has been that they don’t routinely sleep through the night until about 14-16 months. And, I know that a lot of the choices we make have an effect on that: I nurse on demand, breastfeed almost exclusively for about a year, we don’t cry-it-out, etc. But still…

Will I ever sleep again?!

It seems like there’s an unspoken conspiracy among them — if one is going to sleep all night, at least one other sibling needs to wake up! And on days that I must have upset them, THEY ALL WAKE UP!

I’m usually not one to get frustrated often, but most nights I find myself following the same routine: hear a familiar cry or loud scream for “MOM” (why is it NEVER “DAD”?!?!), lay there very still and hope and PRAY that I was just dreaming it or that the issue will resolve itself in T -10 seconds, it doesn’t, I sit up in bed and have a momentary pity-party, then I look over at my husband and strongly consider waking him up to take care of the need (which is typically NEVER a good idea for any of us — long story), and then mope to the room of the child which has summoned me.

"I Have a Sleep Disorder -- It's Called CHILDREN"
Sweet sleeping moments

In that brief walk of despair, I shift my attitude from a feeling that something very cruel is happening to me, to one that is grateful to have a child calling for me, and more specifically who calls me mom. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. I kiss their forehead, pick them up, or ask them what’s wrong. I tend to their need, get them comfortable, and usually watch as they drift back off to sleep, standing in awe at just how perfect they are. Then I make my path back to my bed, hope to fall back asleep quickly, and then… just wait to do the same thing all over again!

In all seriousness, I adore my kids and am blessed to be able to be their mom, day and night. But honestly, I do look forward to the day I may get some more uninterrupted sleep and don’t have to clean up pee or poop!

Can anyone relate?

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