If I was a dinosaur, I'd be a Sleepasorous Rex

By this, I mean that if there's one thing I wish I could get more of, it's better sleep at night. I have no trouble taking a nap during the day on weekends, but that doesn't exactly work with an 8-5 job during the week. This really isn't a complaint, but rather an observation.

My friend, Sharon, has really good logic as to why this happens to pregnant women. And, I really think she's on to something here. She believes its nature's way of preparing you for the sleep deprivation that is sure to accompany the arrival of a newborn. That would make sense b/c right now, it seems like the hardest thing I'm dealing with is my inability to sleep at night. Its gotten particularly more difficult in the last couple of days.

I'm sure there are a couple of really good reasons why this is happening. Some of them are actually medically-related; the others are just humorous "bonuses:"

1) Stuffy Nose: This is totally normal, especially around this point in a pregnancy. As blood production goes up dramatically, so does your mucous membrane in your nose. Therefore, its common to get very stuffy, especially at night

2) Sinus Pressure Headaches: The stuffiness leads to pressure, which can build up in your sinus cavities. Wonderful :) These pressure headaches tend to come on at night and ease up by mid morning. Rinse & Repeat.

3) Sleep Position: I've always preferred to sleep on my back. Now that I'm pretty far along, the baby can put pressure on arteries when I lay on my back, so its advised to avoid sleeping in my favorite position. So, I'm learning a new one. I literally build up a blockade with pillows on either side of me. It still doesn't quite feel natural yet, but we're working on this.

4) Boomer's New Sleep Position. When I said "we" in the previous point, I mean me and Boomer, who also isn't a big fan of our new sleeping arrangements. He used to start out the night at my feet, which worked out great. Now that I'm surrounded by pillows, he prefers to lay on top of my body pillow, as if its his throne. And if he doesn't sleep there, its between me in the pillow. Not exactly the place I would prefer him to be. We're working on this too. At least now he doesn't start out there (but he does end of there at some point in the middle of the night.

5) Midsleep Acrobatics by Little B: Apparently, Little B thinks that night time is the most perfect time set up his/her uneven parallel bars and trampoline and put them to use. I'm not kidding-- its quite unreal. I feel movement all throughout the day, but nothing like the Olympic-ready routines Little B puts on at night.

All in all, this is all well and good. I'm finding ways to cope with less sleep, which should help later on this year when its "game time." For now, I play the role of Sleepasorous Rex on the weekends to try to catch up on my zzzzzzzs. Its just an interesting observation.