I love sleep, and I need quite a bit of it to feel my best--7 to 8 hours a night.
However, as a mom, I rarely sleep a full night without interruption.
Currently my baby has a cold, and her congested breathing often wakes me with a start.
I used to dread this.
I would go to bed at night praying "Please help them sleep--so that I can too!"
I have learned some strategies though for "night prowling" with a baby or toddler that make it easier.
Prepare--if you know that your baby will need medicine, a bottle, a drink etc during the night put it beside your bed so you can grab it quickly if they wake up.
Relax--if you are walking the floor with the baby resist the urge to look at the clock and repeatedly calculate how much sleep you are missing. A tense mother doesn't help a baby go back to sleep.
Enjoy--snuggle your little one while you can--before you know it they will not need you during the night.
Distract--sometimes I read a book with a low light on, and before I know it my little one is snoring again.
Pray--I do some of my best praying at night--often at night I think of some of our friends who live (literally) on the other side of the world, and who are awake and working at that very moment.
What are some of your strategies for coping with wakefulness at night?
