Naps and Other Fun Newborn Things

When you have a new baby, you don't really get to sleep at night. What you get are naps. Some lucky moms get a few three or four hour naps each night. I get two two-hour naps and, on a good day, an additional one hour nap. There is no deep sleep, which leads to not thinking clearly, and in my case, being even more absent minded than usual. (For example, yesterday I left the house with the dishwasher open, half unloaded, and didn't even know it.) For me, it also leads to the never-ending lack-of-sleep headache. If you know me well, you know I rarely take medication so I have been living with this headache for about four weeks now. It's kind of become a part of me. I am so busy I don't even notice it until I sit down for a minute to catch my breath.

I truly can't wait for the day when Eli wakes up only once at night. But right now I would simply settle for Eli to stop these fussy periods at night. Last night he cried from 4:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. Tonight he started at 5:30 and it's been an hour. He's been fed, changed and burped. But he is just crying. There is nothing I can do - trust me, I've tried everything - but lay in bed and listen to him cry. Luckily, he hasn't woken Tali yet, but I'm sure that will happen soon enough.

The good news is that I have "Mommy Power" and can somehow get through the days with a smile on my face, everyone fed and still in one piece and my sanity still (mostly) intact. Part of what keeps me going is knowing that Eli will outgrow the baby phase in a few months (sorry, not a fan) and things will get better.