Shortly after we were married, one of John’s professors told him he should write an essay about bed sharing. Apparently, after a life of sleeping alone, adjusting to another person’s presence and habits can be interesting. I’m not sure the essay ever even got started, but I’ve thought about that now and then. What would make it in? Perhaps the fact that EVERY NIGHT we have the following conversation:
Erin: You’re on my side!
John: Are you serious? Are you referring to your side as your 90% of the bed? Because if that’s the case….”
Erin: You are breathing on me.
John: I guess I’m going to turn over now because I have to BREATH to SUSTAIN LIFE.
It’s not as bad as all that. We do like to cuddle. We have cuddle time while finishing our TV show or while reading or chatting, but when it’s time for sleep- that’s it. We turn to opposite sides of the bed so as not to breath on each other, and then drift off into snooze land. Occasionally there is cuddling throughout the night. Like the time that Bubby was up all night and I finished this book about the plague (yeah, as in the Black Death…) and got myself so thoroughly depressed that I got back into bed and “accidentally” woke John up to get a hug so that I wasn’t so sad. Yes. I cried. Mostly these days, though, our nighttime convo goes like this:
Me: Was that Bubbs?
John: Yeah.
Me: Sigh.
John: When was he up last?
Me: An hour ago.
John: I’ll go. You sleep.
Me: says nothing because I’m already asleep
or
Me: Was that Bubbs?
John: deep breathing
Bubbs: GOO
Me: Sigh.
Bubbs: GOOOOOO
Me: Hey Bubby…what are you doing awake?
So why the sleep time diatribe?
John has a job. This is very, very good news for our little family. It means we can pay our bills. Pull our weight, etc. The job, however, is not ideal. (Aside from being a job. Which makes it super ideal.) He’ll work from 10pm to 7am- which means he’ll need to sleep during the day (which I really hope he can do with a 5 month old hanging around and all the other activity that happens around these parts) and work at night. My luxurious morning nap will also come to an end. Which is not so cool. I really LOVE that nap and am UBER grateful for it. My favorite child still diggs waking up a few times every night and especially loves just BEING UP between 2 and 4am. But we will adjust. More than the sleep, even, it’s nice just having a couple hours when I can REALLY sleep- not listening for Bubbs, just me dead to the world. I can relax like this because I know he’s with his Daddy. Every other hour of sleep I get there is always a part of me listening. Always listening. But I guess grownup life and reality had to catch up with me, and the side effect of trying to get our life in order (i.e. unemployment), although sometimes convenient for napping, is thankfully coming to an end.
So today I am grateful and worried at the same time. Although we might not be the cuddlesleeperchamps of America, it’s nice to know he’s there, breathing in the opposite direction, each and every single night. Hopefully I will not suffer from having been spoiled, and hopefully John will be OK working nights and not become too exhausted, and hopefully this will be a short stint as we keep applying to (and hearing from at least one last week!) other places who would be a better employment match for us. New things all the time, huh?
Tags: John, sleeping habits, Work