The Girl Next Door Grows Up
Don’t Mess with My Sleep Number
by Laura
5:15 AM
Yep. That is my sleep number. Actually I wake up at 5:05 AM, but I have my clock set 10 minutes ahead so I can hit snooze and then get out of bed at 5:15 AM. I know. It’s a brilliant system. You just didn’t realize how insane I was until now, did you?

Did I mention that I also wake up at that time 7 days a week? Yes I have read blog posts that talk about “that mom” the one who gets up and gets dressed and ready before the kids wake up. Well, “that mom” is me. Please still be my friend.

Let me explain. There is a reason for the insanity.

At the ripe old age of 15 I began working at a golf course in the summer. So basically when the sun is up – people are golfing and if people want to golf, others need to work. Being the newbie I got stuck with the 6:00 AM-2:00 PM shift and sometimes even the 5:30 AM-1:30 PM shift.

I know. Fun stuff. Crazy as it is, I really came to love the morning shift and that became my shift. Even 10 years later when I ran the place, I would come to work as early as possible. Then I could play golf after work every day. It was pure bliss.

The peace. The quiet. Seeing the deer. No traffic. Hot coffee. Watching the sun come up every day. I got hooked.
But, I got pregnant and began enjoying staying up later than 9PM and I got used to sleeping in. Then I had a baby. Emily apparently enjoyed the mornings too for she would wake up at 6:00 on the dot every single day. No matter how late I put her to sleep she would wake up at 6:00 AM. The benefit to that was I could put her to bed at 6 PM and she would sleep for 12 hours.

Now, I tried so hard with her, you see. I would beg for more sleep. I would pull her into bed with me and turn on the TV and I would doze in and out. Maybe I would get into the shower by 8:00, maybe not. Emily started school and I adjusted my wake-up time to 6:30 when she woke up. I seemed to be always scrambling around trying to get everything ready, and always feeling hurried.

Then came Sarah. Dear, sweet Sarah, who cannot for the love of God sleep past 5:30 AM. On the rare, rare occasions that she does sleep to 6:30 I am dripping in a cold sweat, sure that she is dead. She also will arise at 5:30 no matter how late she goes to bed.

One day, when Sarah was 1 month old, my dad was in the hospital because he thought he was having a heart attack. (He didn’t, but has an irregular heartbeat.) Anyway, I woke up with Sarah and fed her and instead of going back to bed to eeek out an extra hour, I did something wild and crazy. I got into the shower and got ready, did my morning chores and went to go visit my dad. I knew he’d be up early.

And do you know what?

That was just the best day ever! I wasn’t behind schedule and I finally felt on the ball. From that day on I have been waking up at 5:15 every single day. Tyler does too. We get some nice time alone drinking our coffee, going over our plans for the day. Ok – it is, like, 5 minutes of alone time, but, nonetheless, we savor it.

Tyler usually can get Sarah to snuggle on the sofa for about 20 minutes before she is dancing and playing and, well, Emily has always woken up talking 90 miles an hour, but at least I am prepared for it now. I have caffeine flowing through my veins, I am clean and dressed. I am prepared to handle any and all major crises that Emily has conjured up. Hey Sarah and Emily!!! I win!!!

So last weekend Tyler was out of town for 3 days. We were counting down the days and Sarah was missing him. To make her happy the night before I had told her that Daddy would be home by lunch the next day.

4:30 AM IS NOT LUNCH!!! Even if you wake up at 4:30 AM and are knocking on your door asking for lunch – it is not LUNCH TIME!!!!!

She got up and I tried to snuggle with her in bed and tried to get her to go back to sleep, but according to her, she was up. She wanted juice and to play…at 4:30 in the morning. Emily woke up at 5:00. 2 hours and 6 cups of coffee later, I was still not up. They beat me. They won.

I can do my fake 5:15 wake up time. I can even convince myself that I like it. I cannot and will not do 4:30 AM. Not now. Not ever. Do NOT Mess With My Sleep Number!!!!

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