In the Wake of Sleeplessness

Today, I am exhausted. Little Bird has declared war on sleep, and has recruited Little Red.  So far, they are winning, but we're sure the tide will turn. Not tonight, maybe not even the next day, or week, but sometime in the next few years.

If the world had a contest for the worst sleepers, I would probably come close to first place. I suck at falling asleep and staying asleep.  The room must be dark - and I don't mean dim - but blackout, dark. No glow from a clock, humidifier, or anything.  S and I invested in some specially ordered blackout shades for our room when we bought this house. They are excellent, and I'm actually not dreading the coming of spring anymore!

I also have a white noise machine.  We got this when we were first married because I couldn't sleep because S breathes.  He's not a loud breather or even a snore-er, but he does breathe, and I want him to continue, so we got a machine that makes consistent noise that drowns him out.

I've even worked to include in my diet more pre-melatonin rich foods before bed!

I have tried so many things to help me sleep, really almost anything except for sleeping pills, which I really don't want to venture into because I'm afraid of a)being dependent on them, and b) I'm still nursing Little Bird.

Anyway - because I am so awful at sleeping, S has become my champion and warrior for sleep. Like I said earlier, we've made some investments, financially, in getting me to sleep. He also listens to me talk until I "close all my open windows" (like on a computer). Most importantly, he gets up with our kids.

This leads me to the point of this post.  In the wake of last night's lack of sleep, I find myself beyond grateful for this man who God gifted to me as a husband and friend. He loves me, and I love him. He has the gift of sleeping almost anywhere - from the floor in the hospital during labour, to our lovely bed and most anywhere in between.

Last night, and like a host of many other nights, he showed his love to me in a very practical way: he took the monitors and Little Bird and made his way to the couch to try and get a few winks with her. After she got up 4 times and sort of went back to sleep, he made the executive decision that the best way for either or both of us to get any sleep was to take her out of our room. He got some sleep, and I did too. How incredible is he?!

As I laid awake after he left, though, I prayed and prayed and praised God for this man. He's a keeper.


Do you have a keeper? How have they shown you love lately?

xo,
J

Soli Deo Gloria