I don't sleep well. Not because I don't want to. I just can't. I get up a minimum of 3 times every single night. A typical night of sleep (or lack thereof) for me goes down like this:
8 PM - Corral the kids to bed.
9 PM - Finally have them in their beds after the giggling episodes, sneaking/running around, threats have been completed. (Of course, I LOVE the nights I work because this phase of bedtime is completely avoided by me!)
9:05 PM - Jeffrey protests and Tommy doesn't want to listen to him, so he gets Jeffrey out of his crib to come back downstairs. As long as he doesn't see me, I don't care, and G takes him into our bed to fall asleep while I finish the PTA Newsletter.
9:45 PM - I really want some Friendly's Wattamelon Role ice cream, but my winter supply is dangerously low, so I decide it's too late and skip it for the night and finally head to bed.
1:13 AM - Jeffrey wakes up. (He had long ago been transferred to his own bed.) I reluctantly climb out of bed, head upstairs. He holds out his arms, obviously anticipating that I will be scooping him up into my arms to come back downstairs with me. Wrong. I look and point outside and he follows my gaze. I quietly tell him it is still 'night-night' time. He whines in protest. I ask him where his eyes are. He points to them. I tell him to close them and go back to sleep with his little friends. He suddenly realizes that he won't win and lies back down, cuddling a stuffed toy under each arm. I cover him up, wish him goodnight, and before heading back to bed, shut off the radio beside which Tommy has fallen asleep on the floor. Tasteless rap music. Probably the horrible noise that woke Jeffrey up in the first place.
2:07 AM - Unsure of what he's dreaming, but it must be action-packed because Koda is running in his sleep. Chasing rabbits? Running away from the boys' endless torture of him? Who knows? But his paws hit the closet door and I get out of bed to slide his dog bed away from it.
2:46 AM - BOOM! Somebody fell out of bed upstairs. Koda must know this already, because he doesn't move from his bed. Out of bed and up the stairs I climb again. I find Joey disoriented on the floor next to his bed and lightly joke about it while tucking him back into bed, hopeful he's sleepy enough not to want to come and sleep in my bed. He is, and I kiss him goodnight again. While I'm up there, I check on the rest of the boys. Tommy has now moved to his bed. Jeffrey and Christopher are sleeping soundly.
3:29 AM - Jeffrey wakes up. Again. See 1:13 AM action taken, minus the Tommy and his rap part.
6:05 AM - Jeffrey wakes up. G has just left for work. I take my time heading upstairs, and apparently take too long because his cries are getting closer. He must have woken Tommy up, who helped him out of his crib, sent him out of the room, closing the door behind him. I wait in bed for Jeffrey to join me. I pull him up into bed to cuddle with me.
6:08 AM - Koda puts his head on my pillow with the look of "I need to go out. Now." G didn't let him out this morning, so it's up to me. Jeffrey insists on coming with me and points to the refrigerator once we are in the kitchen. Hey, we're up. Might as well have some breakfast!
I bribe Koda back inside with a treat and go back to bed, Jeffrey on my hip and Koda on my tail. Jeffrey cries momentarily, but I remind him he's lucky to even be in bed with me and he'd best go back to sleep unless he wanted to go back to his crib. He stops. We fall back asleep.
6:58 AM - Time to get up and get the day going. Joey and Christopher are up, although they don't need to be, and I wait until the last possible minute I know will still allow Tommy to get up, get dressed, and eat before having to head up to meet his bus for school. That would be 7:40 AM.
8:07 AM - I send Tommy off to school, 10 minutes earlier than he needs to go, but he's already instigating his brothers and I've already had to yell at him 5 times, so he can stand outside a little longer. He has his hat and mittens. He won't freeze to death.
8:45 AM - I hop in the shower. Jeffrey cries the whole time outside the door I have had to lock to ensure my 5 minutes to myself, but I zone it out. I need to wake up to get through the rest of the day, and the shower is required to get me started.
