Sleep is underrated

The most coveted space in my house would most positively be my pillow-top king size bed. People have been known to drive for hours just to come sleep in it. Considering that John and I are both night-shift workers, it is very important to have optimal sleeping arrangements.....because no matter how tired you may be, it is very difficult to sleep during the day. Take today, for instance. I worked a 12 hour night last night, and I drove home literally with one eye open. I was exhausted when I climbed into my cool, empty bed in my dark, cave-like room at 8:01 am. Then, like a patient coming out of a coma, my eyes pop open. I look at the clock....it's 8:32am. The onslaught of questions begin swimming in my head. "AM or PM? Am I supposed to be asleep right now? Where am I? Are my children safe? Do I even have children?" Then the fog clears like an amnesiac getting her memory back. I realize that I have only been asleep for 31 minutes. And worse, I only have 3 hours left to sleep before I have to wake up and be somewhere. This part sucks because now I must struggle to clear the thoughts so that my mind will allow me to rest again. And my body is so freaking tired!
Because John and I work nights, and because I am a sucker, my kids have pretty much always slept with me. The two nights a week that John and I actually sleep in the same space, we usually move them into their own rooms, but the three nights that I am the only parent home, I say, "Bring 'em on!" It is and always has been so much easier to accomplish the bedtime routine when they all are in one place! Unless a person has routinely slept with their children, they will not understand this concept. People at work criticize me, and I totally get that. I would criticize me if it wasn't so much easier. I am not a crunchy granola family bed type of person. I'm just lazy, that's all. Plus, they are so very sweet when they are sound asleep and they are innocent once again. My husband does not always agree with me, but often times, when we are in bed, I wake up to find him sharing my youngest child's coveted sock monkey with her, and I know that there is no place either of us would rather be than surrounded by those little nerds.

I often wonder if I will ever wake up feeling well-rested. That seems as foreign a concept as waking up in utopia. I think because I miss 2 nights of legitimate sleep every week, and the other 5 nights I am fighting off little elbows and knees, I may never find that feeling. This must be why God invented naps......and coffee.