Sleep Training

Oh. My. Gosh.  You guys.  I'm exhausted.

Sleep training a 7 year old is just as tiring as sleep training a 7 month old, and only just a little bit more frustrating.  Or maybe a whole lot more frustrating, because holy moly guys, he's 7.  And you think that you can rationalize with a 7 year old in a way you cannot with a 7 month old.  You think you can talk them into sleeping alone, and talk away all the fears and such.  But you can't.  Then you start to get all angry with yourself because, sigh...you could have done this seven years ago and then you wouldn't be doing it now. 

I haven't slept through the night since Q has started sleeping in his own bed.  Well, that's not entirely true.  I slept through the night last night, but that's because I was so completely exhausted that I fell asleep in Q's bed with him at 9 pm and didn't wake up until 6 am this morning when I had to pee really, really bad.  But before last night, I hadn't slept through the night since this whole *experience* began.

I think it's harder on me than it is on him. 

He either calls for me or crawls in with me every night.  The other night, he called for me and I was in a deep deep sleep, dreaming about talking to an employee and all of the sudden he starts calling me, "Mommy" and I start to get all weirded out and then he says it louder, "Mommy!!" and that one wakes me up...

And I'm all sleeping with one eye open, every sneeze, every move, every breath I listen for, hoping he's sleeping and sleeping soundly. 

Then, just when we start to make some progress - he goes to his daddy's and we get to start all over again.

I always say that I need at least 9 hours of sleep in order to be beautiful...so man, I'm gonna be an ugly momma pretty soon.  All *this* does not just happen.  My sanity also hinges on sleep.  And I'm sure that's not just an exaggeration...

Then I wake up every night and reach for his little hand...and he's not there.