photo by Amy Crawford Photography
Today I am thankful Super Hubby returns from a week long business trip.
The Little and I have managed fairly well so far, and with only a few minor setbacks. That first night he was gone I remembered to check all the doors to make sure they were locked - something that in the natural evolution of our marriage has somehow ended up as his job.
The following morning, as I was scurrying around for 20 minutes looking for my car keys I realized that they were sitting right were I had left them the previous afternoon. In the front door. It's a good thing I made sure to lock it right? We wouldn't want to make it too easy for a would-be burglars.
The rest of the week was fairly uneventful. I made sure the dog was fed and watered. I even remembered to let her out on occasion. Meals were made, teeth were brushed, crafting took place. But we missed Super Hubby terribly. We missed the little things he does every day to show us how much we're loved. Things like making sure we have a glass of water to share in the middle of the night. I can't tell you how many times The Little woke up in the middle of the night this week asking for water.
We missed Daddy hugs and kisses. We missed bedtime stories told by Daddy. We missed sharing meals with him. We missed giggling with him. We just missed him.
And last night all that missing? It culminated in a Mama meltdown.
We're a co-sleeping family. We've shared our bed with The Little since he came home with us from the hospital. Its worked well for our family. Our family bed has become one of the favorite places in the house. So many things we've experienced there, we wouldn't have had the ability to enjoy had we chosen to have The Little in his own crib in his own room. Things like watching him discover his shadow on the bedroom wall - cast by the dim night light at two a.m. Things like hearing him talk in his sleep about his love for "bubs". Finding out that he giggles in his sleep. Sharing so many middle of the night snuggles, and early, early, early morning cuddles.
But that co-sleeping? Apparently it comes with a price when Daddy is gone. And that price? It would be sleep. The Little has been all out of sorts at night without Daddy in bed with us. He's been waking up every two hours, pressing his dear little face right up to mine in the shadowy dark and asking for Daddy. Did I mention it was every two hours? Did I mention it had been like this all week?
Hence, the exhausted Mama meltdown.
I'll spare you the details. It wasn't one of my finer moments. And while The Little and I are now square - I still feel badly that I lost my cool.
And so - while I'm desperately happy that Super Hubby is returning simply because I miss him, I'm also desperately happy he's coming home today because it means I'll finally be able to sleep again. And sleep a happy Mama makes.
Yours in sweet slumber,
Simple Mama
oh sweet lady. my heart goes out to you.
ReplyDeletewe too are a co-sleeping family. and there are so many joys in tucking in together as a family...the talking in the sleep, the right there comfort when there are night-scares, the family stories before bed...
yes the sleep. it is all important.
peace until he arrives back at home (in bed) with you all,
hillary
I hope you get some rest this weekend and enjoy your hubby being home. :) I'm the same way with the locks. I may or may not remember to check them, and I almost certainly won't remember to close the downstairs blinds. I'm just not in the habit of doing that particular task!
ReplyDeleteLocking the door and checking the security of the family is the hubby's job.
ReplyDeleteHere's to getting some sleep and next week being better.
Oh, I know just how you feel! My husband was recently away for 3 weeks, and before that he had pretty much never been away more than a couple nights on a backpacking trip. My girls are 5 and 9 and they slept with me every single night he was gone. And that part was wonderful, because we were a co-sleeping family too, but now rarely does our 5 year old end up in bed with us. I did notice though, without daddy in bed too they seemed to toss about without a care. I was stepped on, climbed on, pinned down, buried... and very tired!
ReplyDeleteYour thoughts on co-sleeping with your little one were so sweet to read! Thank you for sharing. And glad that your family is reunited!
Hope you enjoy a wonderful sleep-filled weekend together!
ReplyDeleteenjoy a wonderful family weekend darling
ReplyDeletexx
My husband comes home all the time to find my car keys in the door with the door closed!! Why I leave them there I do not know, he gets annoyed though since anyone could um take them and the car :)
ReplyDeleteWe co-sleep too except we have a 6 yr old 3.5 yr old 5m old and a um large dog !! Atleast we now have a king size bed that helps. The older kids start out in their own beds and throughout the night make their way into our bed sometimes they sleep through in their own rooms but more often we wake all together in the bed . Its sweet and peaceful usually ;)
I'm enjoying your blog too as I'm a new reader!
Thank you everyone. :) Daddy came home last night and we all slept wonderfully.
ReplyDeleteOur bedroom is mostly bed. :) We have a king and a queen pushed up next to each other. Sometimes the teeny-tiny chiweenie ends up in bed with us too. We're all sprawlers.
oh, i'm right there with you. my hubby has been gone the last 5 weeks in a row for at least 4 days. :( it's so hard on my girls. they love their daddy so. we also co-sleep and when Deladis decides to join us it's 4 to a queen. while there is much more room... we still miss daddy and the stress of doing everything alone catches up.
ReplyDelete