La versión en español está después de la versión en inglés.
I DIDN’T SLEEP WELL LAST night. No particular reason. I went to bed at 1:00 and was up six or seven times, and finally out of bed for good at 8:00. By 11:00, my eyes were closing as I tried to do the crossword puzzle. I got back in bed and slept until 2 (14:00). And that aggravates me because I feel like I missed the day.
My pal Luke’s mother, Kathleen, didn’t have a great night either. Luke’s little brother Beckett (now 17 months) wasn’t sleeping. Kathleen tried to help. At 3:00, after crawling around for a while, he finally found a comfortable position and settled into a heavy sleep — as you can see by the photo Kathleen sent this morning.
Luke, now 5, is sleeping just fine. It’s his waking hours that I worry about. Last week he gave himself a haircut. Pedro and Kathleen are the types of parents who encourage their kids to express themselves freely. So I asked Kathleen if Luke’s haircut had been supervised (I had my doubts).
“Definitely NOT supervised,” Kathleen wrote. “He thought he looked great. I had to act angrier than I really was because I know who his next victim would be if he thought cutting hair was ok. Nobody better take away little Beckett’s curls!”
Kathleen received a Fitbit for her birthday (her choice, not a hint from her loving husband). Her first day, she was short by 7,000 steps. In her goal of 10,000 steps a day! Ouch. Luke offered to wear it for her when she’s not on the move (you know, when she’s just sitting around doing nothing). I love that boy.
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ANOCHE NO DORMÍ BIEN. NINGUNA razón en particular. Me fui a la cama a la 1:00 y me levanté seis o siete veces y finalmente me levanté para siempre a las 8:00. A las 11:00, mis ojos se estaban cerrando mientras trataba de hacer el crucigrama. Volví a la cama y dormí hasta las 2 (14:00). Y eso me agrava porque siento que me perdí el día.
Kathleen, la madre de mi amiguito Luke, tampoco tuvo una gran noche. Beckett (ahora de 17 meses), no dormía. Kathleen intentó ayudar. A las 3:00, después de gatear un rato, finalmente él encontró una posición cómoda y se durmió profundamente— como puedes ver en la foto que Kathleen envió esta mañana.
Luke, ahora de 5 años, duerme bien. Son sus horas de vigilia lo que me preocupa. La semana pasada se cortó el pelo. Pedro y Kathleen son el tipo de padres que animan a sus hijos a expresarse libremente. Así que le pregunté a Kathleen si el corte de pelo de Luke había sido supervisado (tenía mis dudas).
“Definitivamente NO supervisado”, escribió Kathleen. “Él pensó que se veía genial. Tuve que actuar más enojado de lo que realmente estaba porque sé quién sería su próxima víctima si pensaba que cortar el cabello estaba bien. ¡Será mejor que nadie le quite los rizos al pequeño Beckett!”
Kathleen recibió un Fitbit por su cumpleaños (su elección, no una pista de su amado esposo). Su primer día, le faltaron 7.000 pasos. ¡En su objetivo de 10.000 pasos al día! Ay. Luke se ofreció a usarlo para ella cuando no ella está en movimiento (ya sabes, cuando está sentada sin hacer nada). Amo a ese chico.
If you tried crawling around like that to find a comfortable place to sleep, I think someone would find it unacceptable, even saints have limits. I am now past one year without a haircut,
David:
No cave man/hippie photos? I can be a very “active” sleeper. San Geraldo has been know to leave the room. As far as I know, however, I’ve never crawled into THAT particular position.
Ah, Kathleen. I remember those days. When mine were small and I’d spent the whole day trying to keep them from harming themselves and each other (aka – parenting in a nutshell), their father was supposed to put them to bed. One night, when I was finally relaxing down in the family room, I heard noises in the kitchen (one level up – a split level house in those days). Went to investigate and found an 18-month old standing on the kitchen table getting ready to climb up on some nearby open shelving. Where was Dad? Asleep in said toddler’s bed. Words were exchanged.
As for unplanned haircuts–well, with four kids I tried hard to keep scissors out of reach. Limited luck. Then there is my GS’s first grade teacher (he has been virtual schooling with me since August). Recently, I sent the teacher an encouraging email–she works so hard to maintain a positive and encouraging attitude while keeping her eyes on the 22 kids online (and two kids in-class with her–they have no internet at home). She responded and said my email was timely, as one of those little in-class darlings had just taken his school scissors to his hair while she was doing a lesson. God bless her.
Thanks for sharing this! Makes me remember we’re all in the struggle together!
Mary:
I never thought I’ve cutting my hair while on a video chat. That’s a perfect way to use the time if I have to sit and stare at myself anyway.
kathleen and pedro DO have their hands full!
some days, dear mitchell, accept that your body needs rest and give in to it.
tomorrow is another day!
I just posted a birthday card to chuck today.
anne marie:
Interestingly, I’m not “tired,” I’m “sleepy.” Depression. So, yep, I gave in to it for a couple of days. Oh, I hope the Pony Express gets from Philly to Brooklyn quickly. Thanks so much!
Well, at least ONE of them is comfy!
Debra:
Can you believe that?!? But you’re right, Kathleen DOES look comfy.
Sixteen months since my last haircut. I used to keep it very short, about the length of SG’s. Now it is down between my shoulder blades. That’s a lot of grey hair! It would be hard to be angry at Luke.
Wilma:
I would so love to have a lot of gray hair. Of the hair I have, a lot of it is gray, but that’s not really what I mean. Luke ended up getting a very cool buzz cut, so all is well.
By one a.m. I’ve already had three or four hours of sleep. When I can sleep, that is. Sometimes insomnia gets me.
Walt the Fourth:
I’m not a great sleeper usually. Lately, I’m awake every hour or so. Between midnight and 1 has become my usual bedtime and I’m elated if the first time I wake up is after 3. Hasn’t happened for a while! What I really hate is waking up at 6:30 or 7, too tired to start the day. I go back to sleep and THEN I sleep 2 or 3 hours uninterrupted (like today).
I feel your pain – I don’t sleep much either (except in front of the TV when it’s something I really want to watch).