The Art of Sleep

     Sleep is kind of a big deal in this house. We all love to sleep and we all love feeling refreshed and ready to go after a restful night.  Did you know that Homer (no, not Homer Simpson) said "“There is a time for many words, and there is also a time for sleep.” Sleep is such an important part of our daily life cycle, out biological clocks depend upon it. If a person persistently sleeps too little, they run the risk of becoming overweight, absent-minded and ill. If you have any of these issues it is time to re-evaluate how your sleeping habits and your nightly routine are effecting you. There are several resources that I found on the web that give great insight.

1. National Sleep Foundation's web site
2. Zen Habits web site

     I guess that I am kind of old fashioned in the sense that I am very strict when it comes to what goes into our bedrooms. This all started when I began having trouble sleeping a few years ago and I remembered reading a article that talked about making your bedroom a haven for rest. Which meant that I needed to get the TV out, I also needed to take the exercise bike out as well. We as human beings thrive on routine. I didn't really have a routine set so my body could realize it was time to begin shutting down.

     I would begin my nightly routine by making it darker in the house, turning off a good majority of the lights, about an hour before my Thing 1's bed time. After working through her bedtime routine I would then focus on unwinding myself. When I actually began to feel tired I would get myself ready for bed and fall asleep.

     To have my bedroom be my sanctuary I had to make a few sacrifices. I took out the TV, this was hard for me because I loved snuggling down in bed and watching TV. I removed my exercise bike, I forced myself to begin exercising out in the TV room or outside. I also re-decorated it so that it felt more relaxing to me. For instance I added several star lanterns like the ones found on Amazon. I made the curtains heavier as well so they worked like blackout curtains helping my room to be totally black at night. I also re-vamped my bed. There is now a foam mattress topper on my bed, and my oh my do I love the comfort that thing has brought me. I also went to IKEA and bought a down comforter. I never knew how utterly fantastic my bed could be until I got that comforter on my bed.  So with the darkness in my room and comfort of my bed I was able to let my body shutdown and sleep.

     Truthfully, we don't do much else other than sleep in our bedroom. I think that is the way it should be. I don't keep a book by my bed, I don't have music in my room, I don't let Thing 1 and Thing 2 track their toys into my room either. 

     I made sure that Thing 1 and Thing 2 also have very comfortable beds. They have bedtime routines that we stick to. They love cuddling up and reading Goodnight Moon, it is a family tradition. When Thing 1 was three she had the book memorized. We would get her stuffed cow, bear and mouse and we would re-enact the whole book, she also insisted that we sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star when we got to the page that says "Goodnight Stars, Goodnight Air". Then we had to whisper, "Goodnight everywhere". I love the book, it has always been one of my favorites ever since I was a little girl and it warms my heart knowing that Thing 1 and Thing 2 love it as much as I did.

     In case you were wondering no, they do not have a TV in their room. We have actually began to see the benefits of not having a TV in the bedroom, so we have slimmed down the number of TV's in the house all together. There is only one, in the TV room, and that is the way we like it, in fact we don't even have cable anymore. I have enjoyed shifting the priorities for our family, we strive to be more Christ like and to make our home more like a bit of heaven on earth. Really, I think that is where our ultimate happiness will lie, but being well rested sure helps a lot too! Have a great day all!