Honeymoon Sleep

Instead of going Trick -Or-Treating on Sunday night I stayed home and . . . slept. Yes, you read that right. This mom of three, stayed home and slept. And it.was.beautiful.
When was the last time you slept this well?

I battled a cold all week, unsuccessfully. Fever, cough, the whole deal. Friday morning I thought I had it beat and with renewed energy cleaned the house, did laundry and finished projects I'd neglected. It felt awesome. But Friday night was lurking around the corning just waiting for me. By 8:30 I felt like I'd been hit by a truck. It wasn't pretty.

Saturday I attempted to help around the house. I did some laundry, cleaned the litter box, etc. I got the kids dressed for our awesome neighborhood Halloween parade, but then opted to sleep through it.

All this time though,I was doing 'The Doze Of Parenthood.' All parents know what I mean. You're asleep, but not really. It's that sleeping yet consciousness state in case somebody needs you. You hear every conversation that takes place downstairs, every arguement, every ring of the phone. Even if you refuse to participate in them. When everybody left for the parade on Saturday, I knew they'd be gone for two hours. So I slept with one eye on the clock, counting down how much longer I had. Not so restful.

But on Sunday, the family left at 1:00 to go to the cousins house for the day. The entire day. The wouldn't be home until 9:00. Do the math, my friends. That's eight hours. Eight. I hacked and moaned my way to the fridge where I made myself a big glass of Vernors and orange juice (the drink of the gods if your from Michigan) and headed upstairs. Upstairs to the restful quiet of my serene bedroom. The bedroom I'd meticulously desinged to be relaxing and calming. I flipped back the fresh, clean covers of my massive, Amish made king bed and slipped between wonderfully crisp sheets. My cat curled up at my side and began to purr. I cuddled down and rested my head on my favorite pillow, breathing in the sweet scent of Vicks Vapo-rub and Tea Tree Oil. I sighed. The cat stretched. I purred.

I woke up four hours later. Four! Never having moved. That, my friends is honeymoon sleep. That's how I slept on my honeymoon, when there were no worries, no kids to listen for, no alarms to wonder about. No schedules to keep. Just rest, relax, and feel calm.

It'll be years before it happens again.