Sleep

I feel like this must be a topic on many parents' minds.  I've only been a parent for just over a year, but sleep is a hot topic.  My sleep, JW's sleep, how much we're getting, when to go to sleep, how many naps, etc.  It's kind of overwhelming.

Overall I think JW is a great sleeper.  In fact, I was looking back through my notes and this is what I found:
- at 1 month and 1 day JW slept for a 6 hour stretch at night
- at just shy of 2 months we got another 6 hour stretch followed by 2 nights of 7 hours
- a couple weeks later we got a random 8 and half hours
- at 5 months we started getting regular long stretches of sleep and then settled into a pattern
- JW has been consistent with 2 naps a day and the first one generally starts before 10

Now, just because he was sleeping that long, does not mean Mommy and Daddy were sleeping that long.  His sleeps starts before 8PM, there is no way we're getting to bed before then.  In fact, we generally haven't had dinner before then.  (we've lived in Europe where dinner after 8 - or even 9 - is normal).

Late summer and into the fall JW got into a really good rhythm of going to bed around 7:30 and sleeping until at least 6:30.  Then we travelled for Thanksgiving, hosted family and friends for his birthday, he turned 1 and started getting molars.  Now our sleep is ALL OVER THE BOARD.  He's still fairly consistent with two naps - morning and afternoon.  The length of those naps is undetermined.  A couple days in the last two weeks he skipped the afternoon nap all together.  Bedtime is sometime between 7 and 8 with a bottle, diaper change and short rock with Mommy or Daddy.  He's pretty good about going to sleep on his own (as in only a couple times a month do we have an issue.)  But we've been up once a night almost every night.  We'll have a few rough nights, then a good one or two (good being sleeping at least 11 hours).  I think our better nights of sleep are when JW goes to bed between 6:30 and 7:00.

But getting him to bed between 6:30 and 7 is HARD.  Not to mention if he goes to bed that early, Daddy might not see him all day.  And as a working mommy, how am I to run any errands during the week when we can't get out of the house before 5:00?  I really believe consistency and routine are good for JW.  But is that good for Mommy and Daddy?  Is Mommy just trying to do too much?  Work, volunteer, maintain the house, a marriage and a life?

I have moments where I feel an overwhelming sense of failure, like I'm not doing any of it right.  And moments where all is right with the world - we've had a wonderful dinner, JW is happy, the house is clean, I'm caught up on volunteer emails (I'm an officer with my sorority).  But those are rare.  Sometimes we have a great dinner.  Sometimes I've spent good quality time with JW.  Every other week my house is clean (yes, we've hired a house cleaner).  And sometimes I'm so overwhelmed with the to do list - I just spend the evening hanging with JW - playing and loving on him.  Which is what's really important, right?

Please tell me I'm not the only one struggling with this sleep, schedule, how to get it all done issue.......
If you have any tips/tricks on "getting it done", please share!

Until next time........