Preparation
Well, if you look at the timestamp on this post you’ll see that I’m writing this at 3:29am on Friday morning. I’m getting the sneaking suspicion that God is preparing me for fatherhood. Let me recap my previous nights for you:
Wednesday night / Thursday morning: I wake up at 4:30am to find out that my wife has apparently conclusively determined that her body can’t handle jalepenos while she’s pregnant. I stay up with her in between puking sessions and then take a quick “cat nap” before I have to wake up at 5:30am for Ironman.
Thursday night / Friday morning: My dog Chloe decides that it is playtime at 3:00am by parading around our room in hopes that we’ll get out of bed. When that doesn’t work she resorts to making this high-pitch whining noise which I’m not even sure how she makes. I’ve now determined this to be one of the few noises MORE annoying than my alarm clock. Impressive. When that backfires on her and we lock her in her crate she responds by throwing up inside and outside of it. We then get up and take her out to go to the bathroom because evidently she is on some time schedule that we aren’t keeping up with.
And the encouraging thing about all this? People keep telling me that I have till mid-november to enjoy my sleep. So until then, here’s to preparation.
This is the personal blog of Jeremy Jernigan. Husband, father, teaching pastor, and student of truth.
Not only that, but you also have until then to enjoy any sort of real schedule freedom for a long time. Go on as many dates as you can before then!
I promise… it’s not nearly as bad as people scare you with. A little planning, a good routine, and a lot of patience and you should usually be out of the worst of it in a couple weeks, minus teething or sick times
Best of luck. Besides, no amount of pre-sleep will make up for any sleep you don’t get later. Our bodies just don’t work that way, as we don’t have a savings account of sleep and energy. You’re going to be awesome parents – don’t sweat it.
Welcome to my world, Jeremy! : ) See, here’s the deal/secret that I quickly discovered early on….things never get easier, just different. Even after 12 years of twin daughters, 2 beagles, and 1 stray cat(now ours, still don’t know how that happened!), that theory still is in play. It’s like the law of gravity…it just is and when you come to accept that, life actually does run smoother. And seriously, Jen is right, get the bambino and everyone else in the household (Chloe too!)on a consistent schedule and good routine. You’ll avoid much grief in the long run, trust me!
Kirk being the engineer that he is actually had poop,pee / feeding schedule spreadsheets just so we could keep track of who did what. We were just too tired to remember anything. Looking back, how retarded, but it kept us sane and gave us some warped sense of “control”! haha I still have those spreadsheets somewhere.
And yup, God is definitely preparing you for what lies ahead in the area of sleep deprivation (God’s got some sense of humor, doesn’t He? ; ) Just remember the next time you’re sleep deprived point your finger at the other person (or animal) and say “you’re more important than me.” ; ) That’s seriously harder to do than getting cut off in traffic!
Something tells me you and Michelle will weather parenthood really well! You’re gonna be great parents to Winston Mercer! ; )
We were geeky enough to make a spreadsheet, too. In our defense, we DID get the idea from the hospital. We used them for the first three months or so, and they were a lifesaver. We were so tired and doing the same things over and over that the spreadsheets really helped us remember what the heck we were doing. I have it if you want me to email it to you, J.
Also, I totally third the routine/schedule thing. It makes your life soooo much easier & smoother, even if it does cramp your style a little. Totally worth it.
Oh yes, God is definitely preparing you. I have no words of wisdom to give you…sorry.
Sorry to respond so late but I could not let this one go by. Let me start off by saying LOL. This is the greatest blog posting that I have ever read. If I had a dollar for every time the kids have keep me up ALL night puking or crying or just wanting to be up I would be a wealthy man. But I am a rich man. I have been blessed with the joys of fatherhood. Yes so far there have been hard times and I am sure that there are more to come. But The good time more than make up for it. To sum this up you just got a taste of what is to come and I know that you will cherish what is to come.
Being a mommy of six…i totally agree with a schedule…however, don’t become so rigid with it that you NEVER do anything or take your baby with you ‘cos: “well we need to get junior home to bed”…all my kids slept in strange beds, floors, anywhere we could lay them down so that we could still hang out with friends and family! You guys are totally gonna rock as parents!