It is Saturday morning and I am tired. Once again, I can smell the fear of fatigue.
Why oh why must small children alight early from their beds on a Saturday morning? Five thirty am! Such needless action resulting in grumpiness and bad humour. Irrationality becomes family member number five and no one invited him.
We have had much worse nights. A three thirty wake up or the two hour chat that must take place in the middle of the night. Today, it was just an early start. Definitely not the worst. It still feels like proper rest was just within my grasp only to be ripped away at the last minute. I feel robbed.
Recently I overheard someone tell their partner that children are high maintenance. My own little dears were looking for ten things instantly at that exact point and I know for sure that we were the reason the statement was made.
I am not insulted. It is a fact.
Yes. They are high maintenance.
An early morning once in a while is manageable. Wander about, get jobs done and fall on the couch if you need a rest.
That is not possible with the miniscule house managers.
They need things. Right now this minute they are both calling to me do things. Both requests/demands are minor but must be immediately carried out. Instantly like bad mash.
You see, they are high maintenance because the needs are constant and never ending. You get up at half five and you do not stop. You know the minute you hear the dinky little feet patter, hear the shrill squeal pierce the impossible darkness, that rest is over for another sixteen hours or so.
It was much worse when they are babies if they do not sleep- Betsy was a terrible sleeper- as you have no knowledge of when true bedtime will happen. That utter powerlessness of perennial exhaustion and no sight of consistency I do not miss. We are not there now. I think. Looking back, it is miraculous that ordinary life took place at all during that time.
This is not as bad. Maybe the terror of regression adds to the threat when it does happen?
I must go.
Someone needs me to put an impossibly tiny rubber boot on an equally diminutive dolly.
Coffee on a drip please.
Oh no!! I feel you on this – except instead of babies waking me up it’s my own body that decides it needs to check the time on the clock just in case I’ve overslept and then it won’t go back to sleep. There are these cute little clocks with coloured sections for kids – if the hand is in the red/yellow it’s WAY too early to be out of bed, but if it’s in the green they can leave their rooms. Have you tried one of those? It should help with self-regulation and give you the nice sleep in that you need.
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I was looking into those clocks for the eldest girl. I think it might be the way to go!
I can remember the fear of oversleeping that causes insomnia. Very frustrating. You want to sleep yet you just cannot until the last minute and then the alarm goes😣
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Ooo I hope it works out for you! And if she stays in bed, then maybe the youngest will as well? 😉
And yes it is very frustrating haha
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They both march to the beats of their own drums! Which is good when they are older I suppose🙂
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I sympathise! My body has decided not to get up because of the pitter patter of human feet (my four are now old enough thank goodness) but the patter of four little paws multiplied by four to match my sprogs! The wake up calls are as early as five but the vast difference is I don’t have to worry about nappy changes. Instead, I have an overflowing cat box to deal with! Aren’t we lucky to have these beautiful moments in our lives? Hehe, sending coffee on tap.
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I Remember that with my dogs as pups. At least you can return to bed if you wish but I recall that never happened
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Nope! There’s always something or someone needing mum. Oh, the joys!
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That is just the way!!! Thank you for calling by😊
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I hear you! With four daughters (oldest 8 years old, youngest 9 months old) I am so deprived of sleep that I could fall asleep standing!!! I wonder how could you write so well even even after such an early wake up !
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Well thank you! I did not post it until Sunday- an edit seriously was required otherwise it was total jabberwocky.
I think you must have magic powers if you can handle your daughters!😊
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No magic required… lot of patience, yes, that’s the secret 😉
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And good food! Which you definitely provide x
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Ah ah! That’s for sure 😉
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You have my sincerest sympathies, from someone who most emphatically appreciates the luxury of getting out of bed on my own terms, not someone else’s. Looking back, we were blessed that both of ours quickly fell into a regular sleep pattern – 7 to 7. But the sleeplessness of the early months still lingers in my mind even years on.
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I think it makes you appreciate the rest when you get it. That is a positive. I will not forget the hardest nights too easily! Thank you for calling by.
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I do not miss those sleepless days. Although now I’m in the teenage phase where he doesn’t want to wake up for anything. Yes, they are high maintenance, always and forever.
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I think I am still high maintenance for mine! Karma gets me goooood😂
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I was going to tell Orla that, too. There will come a day when you can’t get them out of bed until it’s time for lunch (or later)!
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My aunt in law still relishes waking them up early now- like they did to her! Hers are in their 20s
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Yup… Been there … Now other things deprive me of sleep!
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Ugh! Kids are high maintenance. I have been living with my nieces and it is a constant, can you get me? And she is six! Can’t wait for her to be older.
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Ahhhh memories …after the early mornings come?? I will let you discover that…lol..Here schools start really early 7 am ( my grandson ) lives with me…At the weekend he stays put pleased he doesn’t have to do the 5.30 am cold shower and so am I…Lol
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😂 I think I am warned about this stage. 7 am is an early school start
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Yep today he had me up @5.10 am… I am getting too old for this…lol
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Awww No!!💜
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Ahhhh I forgot meant to say I absolutely love your header picture 🙂 x
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Thank you!
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What fun! It takes me back to those busy, draining but oh so important days!
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And precious. It is a funny balance!
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I remember these days, now with fondness. My girls are all grown up, and I lose sleep not because they wake me, but because I worry about them out in the world, away from me.
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My parents say the same. They worry about me still😊
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I couldn’t function without coffee and my kids are grown!
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I think it is a lasting effect of parenthood
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Totally get it! However, I will say in just a few years they will sleep in, I promise!
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And then I will probably want them to get up! 😂 thanks Rebecca x
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Haha, makes me tired just reading it and remembering those days. Happy to have found your blog!
💕 Amanda
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Thanks Amanda! Sorry to have reminded you of former tiredness- I am clearly not over it😂
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Ha ha, I so so love love my kids.. yours sound great! Our son had daddy up at about 4.30am yesterday. He was hungry and then wanted company..whilst eating my breakfast this morning my daughter has insisted that I climb into the airing cupboard for her penguin socks. She could not want till I was finished. Today we have a birthday party to go to and my son still needs to do his homework about the River Nile… the fun never ends…
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I feel this. Not so much now because my son is almost 8 but he has autism and autism and sleep disorders go hand in hand. So we had years of three or four wake up calls a night. Draining.
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That is hard- it takes a long while to come back from sleeplessness night after night. Would he sleep during the day sometimes?
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I hear ya! I do not miss those sleepless times at all. Do you remember before having kids, we used go to bed when we wanted & got up when we wanted and all we had to do inbetween was just lie in bed? It’s a glorious thought, isn’t it?
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It was totally indulgent!! Those midday naps..oh wow
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Orla, though I can’t relate to being woken up by little people I can relate to being tired! Oh yes, I do have distant memories of staying with siblings when their children were small, and they too looked tired each morning 🙂
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It is a small grumble and a small price for what parenting affords me- but it is still real! Thanks Suzanne.
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I am sure the benefits of being a parent is worth those sleepless nights. You apparently spend the first 10 years trying to get them into bed and the next 10 trying to remove them from the bed 🙂
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I think that is exactly where my life is headed!
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Oh, I feel your pain! My little darlings are old enough to sleep in for longer, but they are still just as demanding (if not more so) than when they were toddlers. And don’t even get me started on the dog, who drags me out of bed in the middle of the night when he needs the toilet, and never disturbs his daddy!
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I hear a lot about needy pets! There seems to be an on going theme. Dogs never move out to settle down somewhere else too!
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