Is there a more effective alarm clock than a toddler who has resolutely decided they want mum to get up?
Our little balls of energy just don’t want us to get an ounce of sleep do they? Bye bye lie in, hello small child bouncing excitably on our abdomens…
Here are all the glorious ways our toddlers wake us up:
1. The suspicious noise
Is it a creak? Or a thrash? Or a scratching noise? Or all three? What is it and where is it coming from and should I be afraid?
Toddler, bathroom and yes are the answers we were looking for.
2. The general paranoia of being a mum
Also called sleeping with one eye open. Everything is great, the house is quiet, the kids are asleep, but we just can’t get back to sleep dammit! Basically now that we’re mums our sense of peace is destroyed, we’re a bag of nerves, we’re waiting for ‘the suspicious noise’.
3. The “I’m HUNGRY!”
A knock at the door at 6am on a Saturday morning. A tousle-haired child with one pyjama leg rolled up to the knee. A butter-wouldn’t melt-look on their face. A plaintive, “I’m huuuungry”.
Up we get, make the brekkie. And do they touch it? Do they ‘eck.
4. The ‘mum is a bouncy castle’
For some reason our toddlers confuse us with those inflatable structures you see at birthday parties. The fact we are but flesh and bone and have the capacity to feel pain (“Ow, you just kicked my tender boob!”) is conveniently forgotten as they energetically bounce us awake.
5. The ‘just because’
Often the only reason our toddlers wake us up in the night is because they A) know they can and B) want to spend time with us. Basically they want a bit of a play, a bit of a cuddle.
A lovely idea, but not so lovely when you’re wrecked tired and have to be up for work early.
And you know the funny thing is when they’re teens it’ll be us trying desperately to wake them up! Payback is sweet!
Can you relate mums? What 'clever' ways do your tots wake you up? We'd love to hear your stories.
