Et Tu Sophie?

Last night was one for the books. You should all know that I love to sleep. It is my favorite thing to do at the end of the day and I look forward to it starting at around 6 p.m.


Mary Claire does not feel the same way about sleep as I do. This is a bummer, but I have learned to adjust and I hope and pray that she will be sleeping through the night by the time she goes away to college.


I have never had that "She slept for 10 hours straight!" joy that many other mothers have with their babies. I had that with the other kids... more so with Hope and Emma. Aaron did not like to sleep either, and I adjusted.


So what if I look like a walking zombie most days. So what if I forget to comb my hair or evenly button my top. So what if I have bags under my eyes and a constant nagging headache that cries out for a little sleep during the day but I refuse to nap.


I refuse to nap because I have a very precocious 4 year old and if I went down for a nap the next thing I would know is that there would be police and reporters in my home after she would have escaped from the house and walked one mile up the road to Starbucks. The newspaper would say "4Year Old Found Wandering Through Starbucks While Her Mother Was At Home Napping."


Anyway, back to my current little night owl Mary. She goes to bed very well, but she just does not stay asleep. On average, she is up at least 2 times, sometimes 3 times. I have become a pro at making my way to her crib, feeding her and changing her diaper while I sleepwalk.


Last night Mary decided that she did not want to sleep at all. She was up until after 9, and then again at 12:30, again at 1:40, again at 2:15... then Emma was up to go potty at 2:45. Mary was up again at 4 and just wanted to cry. She cried for over an hour until she finally collapsed on my chest and slept... until 5:30, but she only was stirring (false alarm) and then was up again at 6:25. Oh, Emma was up again at some other point in the night, but I can't remember what time that was, but I know it was during one of my sleep moments.


Do you feel sorry for me yet? Well, listen to this...


When I finally got Mary back to sleep after 6:30, I walked back in my room to find my stupid dog rolling and rubbing herself all over my pillows and sheets. I walked in and she stopped and looked at me as if to say "Phew, that was GREAT!" I half expected her to light up a cigarette.


I know this about my dog and I usually prepare myself for this. She would never jump up on the bed when my husband is in it, but my husband is out of town so she must have thought, "That man who sleeps on my side of the bed is gone! Bonus!" I usually throw my covers up over my pillows when I walk out of my room and actually look at her and say "STAY" when I go feed Mary in the middle of the night because I know that this dog loves me so much that she has to roll in my sheets and get her snot and hair all over my pillow. But due to my enforced insomnia last night, I forgot to do this and she obviously thought I was signalling her to go right ahead and make my sheets and plump pillows smell like dog.


ARGH! So by 6:40 this morning, not only had I NOT slept all night, but I was now stripping my bed of its sheets and cursing like a sailor at my dog. I believe this is why dogs get kicked. I will not get upset about a baby waking me up 8 times in one night, but if I find the dog slobbering all over my pillows, well all hell will break loose. The only thing that saved her is the fact that I was too tired and the windows were probably frozen shut due to our winter weather.


Oh, you would have wanted to toss her out the window too-you know it! She is just lucky that I am a card carrying member of PETA... but my membership expires in 60 days.