I am totally and utterly knackered following yet another sleepless night looking after the kids. I’m not alone in my suffering as both Paul and I are like walking zombies having had next to no sleep.
Poor J suffers with terrible nightmares from time to time and last night he was apparently visited by spiders, bees and god knows what other random terrifying visions. Obviously we encourage our children to come to us for reassurance should they ever feel worried or upset but 3am isn’t the best time to be woken by a screaming child.
An hour later J was finally settled in bed with us, sprawled out like an octopus between Paul and I. I was just drifting off when I heard E crying for help. Paul went to the rescue assuming it would be the usual ‘night time trip to the toilet’ which Paul is so adept to carrying out that he can often return the Princess to her pillows without her fully waking.
However, having had a few days glorious sunshine the pollen count must have been high as E was struggling to catch her breath. Every now and then E’s asthma flares up which can cause her to become breathless and panicked which is completely normal given that being unable to breath is blumming scary for both the child and parents alike.
Poor J woke with all the commotion and quickly escaped back to the comfort of his own bed whilst we gave E some Piriton (allergy medication), Calpol, a few puffs on her inhaler and a cold drink to help her settle. I then sat bolt upright in bed holding her against my chest so that she was elevated and able to breathe a little easier.
Another hour or so had gone by and I was finding that my arms were beginning to go a little numb with my daughters weight and I asked Paul if we could swap. Paul could sleep standing up so having his daughter laid on his chest wasn’t really an issue and it meant that we could finally get some much-needed sleep.
Given that the clocks went forward by an hour at the weekend the sun was now rising, this wouldn’t have been a problem in our old bedroom. However since having the extension built we now have new windows and we are yet to buy new blinds for said windows. Until then we are making do with paper thin curtains which look lovely but are similar to a chocolate fire guard in terms of practical use.
It was now 5am, the sun had risen and our bedroom was brightly lit. Other than dragging the duvet over my own head or donning an eye mask there was very little that either of us could do to solve the issue. The duvet was promptly pulled over my head and I got a few hours kip before the alarm clock rang ready for the school run.
Thankfully Paul took J to School whilst I rang E’s Nursery to let them know that she wouldn’t be in. We then had a few hours snoozing before finally dragging ourselves out of bed to get dressed and ready for the day.
I’ve spent most of the day consuming vast amounts of caffeine whilst trying to function with a wooly head. Be warned anybody considering approaching me today that I’m lacking most basic humans functions including coordination, understanding and patience.
I fully expect for there to be countless spelling errors within this post as I am barely able to string a sentence together I am that shattered! Here’s hoping that after tea (the Northerners version of an evening meal should you wonder) we can settle down and maybe get an early night by which I am in no way referring to anything of a romantic nature let me assure you!