Mommyhood: Surviving On Little Sleep

I started this post months ago. It's been kicking around in my Drafts on my Blogger dashboard. Well, today I need this post more than ever. I figured I'd brush the dust off and start putting into practice what I wrote those few months ago. The bright eyed mom at the time knew that the mom running on three and a half hours of sleep would need to reread this post. Let me set up my coffee IV drip and I'll finish up what I started. It's going to be a looooooooooong day.

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We've all had those nights where our little one would not sleep and you as the diligent, awesome, attentive mother that you are stayed up right along side them. Or, that pillow you were using to cover your ears from the wails just wasn't filtering out the sound like you'd hoped.

I'm joking.

Kind of.

We've all had a sleepless night..or two...or five months worth...  Last night was one of those nights for me. We are currently sharing a room with Aubrey due to a home renovation so there is no option of trying to bear through her night waking/screaming. And, she's teething. She was screaming and crying and eventually I was too. It was a rought night. I gathered a combined 4 hours worth of sleep last night. This momma is tired! Oh those sleepless nights!


So how do you survive the next day?


Coffee
Was there any doubt that this wouldn't be on the list? I mean, really. I was never much a coffee drinker until I became a mom. I don't even order a coffee drink at Starbucks! But I've found that starting my day with a warm cup of joe gives me a fresh burst of energy to get me through the first few hours of my day. Then I employ some other tactics so I'm not a slave to caffeine. If you're not a coffee drinker - what about some tea? Like Green Tea. I believe there are energizing properties in tea that can help you through those sleepies.


Stay Hydrated
And I'm talking about good old fashioned water here. Skip the pop and skip the third and fourth cups of coffee. Pop is loaded with sugar and after that initial energy burst, you are pretty much guranteed a crash. And that's the last thing we want! Fill a glass full of ice water and sip away. Staying hydrated will keep you fresh and ready. Don't skip this one!


Shower
I know what you're thinking. You want to head straight back to bed as soon as you can but I promise that a quick shower will rejuvinate your body and mind. It's amazing what that blast of water can do. If you really want to skip this step in favor of a nap, I'd encourage you to take a quick, hot shower and then take that nap. Clean skin and fresh hair will help you sleep a whole lot better. Promise!


Take a Power Nap
A power nap can be from 10-15 minutes - sometimes even 5. Don't make it longer than 20 minutes though as I've read that your body starts going into REM sleep and you will actually wake up MORE tired. We don't want that! If you've got the time during the day though to commit to an hours worth of sleep, I'd definatly take advantage of that. If you don't though, just stick to twenty minutes or less. I love to wear those sleeping masks that help filter out the light.


Exercise
Exercise is pretty much the first thing that I kick off the list when my day is too busy or I'm way too tired. But in reality, exercise gets your blood pumping and your heart racing. It's ENERGIZING! Exercising releases feel-good endorphines that leave you feeling great. Even if it's just a walk around the block, try to make some time for exercise.


Eat Right F and V's
Have you ever watched the show "Deadliest Catch"? It's a show about crab fisherman. I have to admit that it's one of my favorites but to see how the men punish their bodies to real in a bunch of crab leaves me cringing sometimes. They survive on little sleep - sometimes they are up for over 48 hour straight. Crazy. One thing that they do to stay awake is eat. They eat huge, calorie laden meals to trick the body to stay awake. I'm not suggesting to load up your plate with more food than you can possibly eat in a sitting, but I am saying that when you are tired your body thinks it's hungry. I've been up since 4 am. It is now over 8 am. I should have had a little breakfast hours ago. Load up on fruits and veggies for healthy, sustaining fibert that will keep you feeling full longer and power you up with energy for the day. And don't forget some protein too! Think chicken and eggs. Yum!


Accept Help
Sometimes this can be very hard as Mom's to do. But if someone is willing to step in and give you a hand today, accept it graciously. Maybe you can drop your precious darlings at your neighbors house for a couple hours for twenty bucks. It could be money well spent if you are able to catch up on some much needed rest. Or maybe those loving grandparents would like to visit with their cutie pie grandkids for awhile while you take a rest. Or maybe it's the arms of your partner that will reach in and give you the break you need. Whatever it is, if you are lucky enough to have the option, take it.


So there you are, friends. A few ways to stay up in a sleep deprived state. As I was updating my facebook status at 5 am, I was amazed at the other mom's who's little ones weren't sleeping this early morning. Must be something in the air. And also as a little UPDATE, Aubrey is now sleeping in her room for 12+ hours a night...that is when she isn't teething!!


Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to load up my IV again......ZONK.

Mommy Monday - Praying Over Your Children

Growing up I always knew that my Mom was praying for me. It was something that was always present and always a constant in my life. I had a Mom who spent her morning at the kitchen table with a Bible in front of her praying for her family. She prayed specific prayers over us. And now, as our family grows and expands, I think we all have a day of the week that we each are prayed over...and I think some of us might be doubled up now. But it's been amazing to see those prayers of my Mom's come to fruition. Mom used to say that she would plead the blood of Jesus over us that we would never get head lice. And not one of us did. Funny enough, one summer my best friend and her sister kept catching lice over and over again. They just couldn't get rid of it. And it seemed that every time I spent the night, a few days later they were finding lice. Kinda makes you wonder if you were the problem! But my head was always checked and we never had an issue. God cares about those small prayers we pray!

Going into my pregnancy, I knew that I needed to pray over my baby. I read through a book called "Praying Through Your Pregnancy". It guided the reader through specific things to pray over your baby like her kidneys, her eyes and the things she'd see in her lifetime, praying protection against disease. It was an excellent book and one I highly recommend to every pregnant gal. Already, I can see some very specific prayers that I prayed over Aubrey coming to pass. I'll just briefly share with you two examples.

The first was for her skin. Her dad has pretty great skin. It's clear, soft and just nice. My skin, not so much. I always prayed that Aubrey would have great skin like her dad. And she does. Anyone who holds her always comments on how silky smooth her skin is. There is not one spot of roughness on her and there never has been. She's soft and silky. I continue to pray that her skin will remain nice into her adult life. I pray against things like scarring acne and skin cancers. I ask God for his protection over such things. And so far,  that specific prayer, that I prayed repeatedly, has been answered.

Another prayer that I prayed over Aubrey was that she would radiate. That specific word - radiate. To radiate means to glow with cheerfulness and joy. To extend and to spread. To shine. And my sweet girl does those things. She smiles when people meet her. She's always been so happy to meet strangers. I asked the Lord to let my daughter radiate not for earthly attention but I wanted her to shine for Him. My prayer is that people will be attracted to her because of her countenance and because she emits a joy that is unexplainable. And for that sole reason to be because of her love and adoration of Christ.

Matthew 5:16 - "In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."

Philippians 2:15 - "...so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky."

Every night I pray over my daughter. I ask that she would love and serve Jesus all the days of her life. I pray a hedge of protection around her. I pray safety over her life. I pray against horrible things like murder, kidnapping and abuse happening to her. I pray against disease and cancer. I pray for her hands and the things they will hold and do. I pray for her feet for where they will take her. I ask the Lord to provide her with an amazing, honest, truthful husband who will love her all the days of her life. I pray for her children. I pray against infertility. I pray for her as a teenager that she would be friends with everyone. I pray that she would also have a group of good, solid, uplifting friends in her life. These are just some of the things I ask the Lord for.

I wanted to leave you with some specific prayers that you can pray over your children. I recieved this in an email before Aubrey was born and I cannot remember the resource to refrence it. But, I wrote these verses onto notecards and prayed over them every night before she was born. I still continue to do so. I'm going to share them with you so that you too can pray over your children. It's so vitaly important. Please make sure that every day you are praying upon their behalf - because Momma's, if you aren't, who is?

• Help ___________ listen to (her) father's instruction, and not forsake her mother's teaching.  - Proverbs 1:8
• May __________ have a pure heart, good conscience and sincere faith.  - 1 Timothy 1:5
• Show ___________ your ways, O Lord, teach (her) your paths, guide (her) in your truth...and may (her) hope be in you all day long.  - Psalm 25:4-5
• Hide __________ in the shelter of your presence, from the intrigues of men; keep _________ safe from accusing tongues.  - Psalm 31:20
• Help __________ to love righteousness and hate wickedness.  - Psalm 45:7
• Guide ___________'s feet into the path of peace.  - Luke 1:79
• May ___________ love the Lord with all her heart, and with all her soul and with all her mind.  - Matthew 22:37
• Protect __________ from the evil one.  - John 17:15
• Give ____________ the strength to obey God rather than men.  - Acts 5:29
• May ____________ be joyful always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances.  - 1 Thessalonians 5:16

And just because I can't get enough of her, here's a photo of Aubrey. She's just two weeks shy of eight months in this photo. (She just turned 8 months this past Saturday.)