Nothing Good Happens After Two A.M.

A radio talk show host I used to listen to way back when used to say that.
Nothing good happens after two a.m.
He was talking about less than virtuous things but I think the very same principle applies to parenting.  

Except I'd amend it a bit.
Nothing good happens after 11 p.m.

Can I get an amen??

Last night, Luke woke up shortly after 11 and was completely out of it.  He wanted Papa (AND ONLY PAPA NOT YOU MAMA!!!!!) but Brian was still out with some friends.  I had been wakened from that really (finally!) deep sleep.  The so very much needed because you're pregnant and sick kind of sleep and I felt just as out of my mind crazy as the three year old.  Maybe others don't struggle with this but I know many do.  Do you feel like a completely different person in the middle of the night?  You do, right?

Parenting is hard.
Parenting in the middle of the night is harder.
Parenting in the middle of the night while sick and pregnant and trying not to lose your mind with an inconsolable child is saint-making.

So I did what clearly made the most sense at the time.
I sobbed and had a mini fit of my own which then made me cough until I gagged.
(Tell me you've done that, too??)
I think I missed the chance for the saint-making on this one.

Anyway, all this shared, I suppose, to let you know you're not alone.
You, mom or dad who feels like you could snap or sob or scream or fall down in exhaustion all at the same time?  I know you're out there.  We're in this together.  Maybe if I can realize that a bit more I'll get a little more strength during those so very very trying moments and maybe if we can lift each other up a bit, we'll help each other out a bit on this journey to heaven.  Hey, maybe we can even get something good to happen after 11 p.m.

I'll pray for you and you for me, okay?  
His grace is enough.

(For those who are wondering, Brian did come home shortly after - probably minutes but it felt like eternity - and Luke was quickly consoled and fell back to sleep.  All was well.  I collapsed back into a coma and though I overslept, we've survived the day without too much struggle.)


  1. I don't miss those sleep deprived days at all. When you just mention the subject I get some very vivid pictures in my head. Hang in there , you are not alone.

  2. ugh man, this is us, every.single.night with either the twins, daniel or both! i can handle daniel but the twins just drive us batty! as if it doesn't take enough time getting them to sleep, then they have to wake us up several times a night. man, and if mike is not home when this happens, it gets ugly. nothing as dignified as crying though, haha. but glad you wrote this. literally as i'am sitting here while mike is next door visiting with his brother from out of town, and my kids who are supposed to be sleeping are running amok, i thought to myself, "geez, i wish i had the mad putting to bed skillz the haseltines have. their kids are probably sleeping like angels right now." and then i read this. does make the craziness over here a tad bit more bearable ;)

    1. haha. and maybe the fact that i'am reading your blog instead of dealing with them is an indicator as to why they are still up! i guess i'am just hoping they will exhaust themselves sooner or later.

    2. I can't even imagine what your nights are like. No, it doesn't make me feel better but it does make me pray for all of you!! :) Seriously, there needs to be a patron saint for sleeping children.

  3. Mary, this post! YES! Night wakes are sooooo hard. I really feel like I'm having outer body experiences. I feel so much unlike myself. And then the worst is when it spills into our day after having tough nights of no sleep. I struggle and feel like I'm still learning to cope. Yes, prayers for you. Haha, I'm not even pregnant right now, either! So many prayers for you because I know pregnancy exhaustion is brutal! But, prayers for us too because we are currently on a mission to encourage my almost 2 year old to wean. Soon.

    1. Out of body experiences…yes, exactly! And then sometimes in the morning you can barely remember it all...

  4. That point of snapping, then sobbing, then screaming thru tears....with a continuous "I don't know what to do" mantra going thru your head....nope don't know anything about that. ;)

    Prayers mama. You. Are. Not. Alone.

