So, this may sound silly to some, but the thing that I'm really struggling with right now, and have been for the last three years forever...is bedtime.
That's right - bedtime. Now, as most of you around here know J is a surgical fellow - so he is at work by around 6 most mornings, sometimes earlier - and he works hard going all pretty much nonstop all day - so prior to getting married to me - he went to bed pretty early. But I've always been a little bit of a night owl - my ideal sleep time would be from 11 or 12 until 9 or 10 most mornings - which for a while with Owen worked out well for me (he's now getting up around 8, but we snuggle for a whole before we actually get up and go downstairs). So, with Owen sleeping until 8 most mornings (or later) and napping once or twice a day, he doesn't really go to sleep at night before 8:30-9 (sometimes 10) and then there are all of the adult things that need to be done - dishes, straighten up, blog, watch a non-animated television show that doesn't revolve around trucks, spend a little time talking to my hubby, budgeting - you get the idea. Allthethings - they haunt me and they never seem to be done, add in that end of pregnancy nesting symptom - and it seems to be easily midnight before we head upstairs and that just isn't fair to my hubby! And then I just feel like a jerk because even if I'm getting less sleep than I'd like - he's getting less than that. We make plans, I set "get ready for bed" alarms, I try to get things done while he's at work or Owen is still awake - yet it just keeps happening that day after day we stay up later than we should - and we are about to add a newborn into this mix - goodness gracious!
Oh and I've tried making J just go to bed without me - he won't - he feels too guilty because he knows that I'm lonely and we don't spend enough time together - so it's an all or nothing thing around here - also it's much worse when he's on call and not here - I've developed some lovely pregsomnia and can't sleep when he's gone resulting in staying up even later cleaning/organizing/watching pointless TV or tossing and turning in bed.
I don't have any answers and I seem to just be digging myself deeper into this struggle instead of out of it. So, I sure could use some help! Any ideas out there? Any grownup bedtime routines or rituals that actually help you get to bed and sleep at a decent hour? Tips? Tricks? I'm sure J would love you forever if someone could actually get me to get things done and get to bed at a decent hour! (Oh, and because I'm feeling convicted after writing this - it's currently 9pm and Owen just went to sleep - I'm posting this and headed up stairs to fold/stuff diapers in bed and go to sleep - hopefully by 10 - maybe I just need to write a post about how I stay up too late every day!)
