Sleepless in MoHi

Some nights not much sleeping gets done around here. Last night was one of those nights...

When Jemma went to bed she had a fever of almost 102. She had been sick all weekend, with a hideous cough, runny nose, and pink-eye as an added bonus. Her cough had prevented her from sleeping much the night before - and I assumed (silly me) that she'd sleep all night from sheer exhaustion. She fell into bed before 7, but by 9:00 she had already awakened 3 times. At 9:30 she announced that she couldn't sleep, so we got up and read a couple of books, and she was back to sleep by 10:00.

Now, this is when I should have gone to bed - knowing that it would probably be a rough night, and that I should get whatever sleep I could... But I had started re-watching "Groundhog Day" and couldn't stop. (I don't know if that says something about what a good movie it is, or about how little sense I have... probably both.) I figured, hey, she had already woken up a lot already - maybe she would just keep sleeping... And she probably would have - if it weren't for that damn cough...

We were up again at 1:00... until at last she went back to sleep - after reading, stretching, listening to music, and finding a comfortable position (upside down) ...at 3:30. And she would have slept until 8:30 - I'm sure of it - if she hadn't started coughing again... at 7:00.

Of course I worry whether she's getting enough sleep - especially when she's not well... but she's as bright and enthusiastic as always. I however, am not so energetic. It's now 2:00, and after a brief late-morning nap, I'm still in 'zombie mode'. Still haven't washed my face or gotten out of my pjs (which is a little embarrassing, since we have a house guest at the moment...)

I tell myself I've learned my lesson... that next time I'll go to bed early when I have the chance. (And believe me, as a mother who has been sleep-deprived for 3 years I do take this seriously.) But some nights -for no real reason that I can explain - it's hard to do.