This week should mark my very last as a sleep deprived mother of two and absentee wife.
Amelia starts preschool next Tuesday. She will go three days a week. I get to sleep at least five hours on the days she is gone. I would jump up and down with joy if I had the energy.
Let me paint a somewhat self-indulgent picture of my soon to be former schedule using this past week as an example.
Last Thursday I worked 7P-7A getting home just in time Friday morning to pass Elijah in the kitchen and take Asher to school. I spent the day with Amelia, sneaking in an hour in a half nap while she talked and sang in her bed before picking Asher up from school, throwing a frozen pizza in the oven and heading to bed around the time Elijah came in from work.
That Saturday, I worked 11A-11P, it was a ROUGH day and I didn't end up getting home until half past midnight because I had to stop by Taco Bell and get dinner. I got to bed a little after two. Up Sunday morning with my monsters, too exhausted to do anything except lay on the couch sipping coffee while Elijah made breakfast. I napped from 2-5, then headed in to work another 7A-7P.
Monday morning, another passing in the kitchen, Asher taken to school...no nap because Amelia just wasn't in the mood. I seriously fell asleep that night between putting Amelia and Asher to bed, leaving Asher to feel left out and upset. Up Tuesday morning, rested just enough to strip the sheets, fold and put away laundry and balance the checkbook. Asher had swimming and Amelia's school had their parent orientation that evening.
Was off Tuesday and Wednesday night where I stayed up far too late trying to catch up with the husband I hadn't seen in four days. Which brings me full circle to last night, where I worked another 7P-7A and have now inhaled just enough coffee to keep me up until Amelia's nap, but hopefully not too much to keep me awake through it.
Yep. FOURTEEN MONTHS OF THAT.
Give or take the summer weeks where I take off and drive my kids 8 hours each way to spend a week as a single parent with Elijah's family.
I think telling you that I'm tired is an understatement. I swear I'm not complaining. Elijah and I have spent the past seven years working out a schedule that made it possible for us to have our children at home with us most of the time. We took turns with Asher and it I am so glad that we've been able to do the same with Amelia. We have had help, especially when both of the kids were really young, but I can honestly say that I am so relieved that I will soon be able to drop them both somewhere and sleep off my night shift.
I'm looking forward to having more evenings with Elijah.
I'm looking forward to having more time to read.
I'm really looking forward to spending more time in bed...alone...without a monitor on.
