Beauty Sleep

It has always been a saying delivered in a joking matter, "Leave me alone, I need my beauty sleep.", "Don't bug mommy, she needs her beauty sleep.", "Time for bed, I need my beauty sleep.".  But, have we actually paused to think and realize that, even though said in a sarcastic or joking tone, it is in fact TRUE?

Last night I was determined to go to bed by 9 PM because I was EXHAUSTED having been woken up at 5 AM by our 3 year old. I didn't go to bed at 9 like I had planned.  Instead I made it to bed a little after 10.  The difference an hour would have made became apparent to me as I woke up with him holding my arm at 1 AM this morning.  My husband quickly put him back in his bed, but I continued to wake up every half hour or so thinking that he had ventured into our room again, or that he was wondering the house.

In addition to eating more healthy and exercising, we also need to realize that without adequate sleep the previous two are pretty much moot. I know that kids make it difficult to get that "beauty sleep" that we, as parents, are really in desperate need of. The way we take care of ourselves plays a vital part in, not only our physical needs, but also our mental needs. When I don't get enough sleep, I am down right ornery. My husband can't even talk when he hasn't gotten enough sleep, it is actually quite comical. When people give their kids too much sugar, they quite literally bounce off the walls!

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I have been taught through scripture and leaders that I should retire to my bed early and arise early (D&C 88:124), and that I shouldn't run faster than I have strength (D&C 10:4).  Nutrition, regular exercise, and adequate sleep are vital in having a healthy body, mind, spirit, and life. The lesson I have learned from all this is that I should have gone to bed at 9 last night instead of staying up, barely keeping my eyes open, just to watch a movie I have seen a few times before.  If I had, I would have had 4 hours of blissful, uninterrupted sleep instead of 3 and I probably would be more awake than I am now.