When Will My Child Sleep Through the Night? {BTW, he is 33!}

  You might find it odd that one of my favorite verses in scripture is Proverbs 31:18b which says (about the proverbial) Proverbs 31 woman, “Her lamp does not go out at night.” I figured this woman had energy! I’ve also figured out that she must have been tired at times because “she looks well to the way of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.” (vs. 27) She must’ve been doing things at hours no one else really knew about, cared about, or that she shared about with others. That’s where I’ll make a lane change. I want you to know that I’m still getting up almost every night with our son who is 33!   When young moms talk about their 6 month old child still not sleeping through the night, I raise my eyebrows as non-conspicuously as I’m able. I think but don’t verbalize, “You’re kidding me, right?” because I know, that while it’s hard getting up a few times a night, nursing a baby, and doing life the next day with one eye shut and the other half opened isn’t easy. I listen, but I do remember being there, too, with two daughters following our son. I wake up in the middle of this conversation and realize…I’m still there!   Every so often, (like this morning at 12:10 a.m. and 12:50 a.m. right after I had dozed twice) I want to say, “When will my son sleep through the night?!” Clarifying every so often: I mean almost every night. Not always twice a night. Sometimes he gets up 3 or 4 times. He packs and unpacks his bag of goodies to take to stay at Aunt Sue’s house. The bag contains no clothes, just games. When I hear his bedroom door open, I know he’s going to his bag (which he insists on keeping in the foyer and which makes crinkling noises when he’s going through it…) I know I need to get downstairs and redirect him, or he’ll be at it for hours. I really think he’s doing inventory but at all hours of the night, it’s just not cute! (Cute applies to 3 year olds…not 33!)   Yes, we’ve put the bag in different places; we’ve hidden the bag, and even thought of tossing it. If it weren’t the bag, it would be a suitcase. If it weren’t the suitcase it would be…..fill in the blank.   I digress; he’s still getting up most nights twice. I’m not looking for an answer or solution, for after 33 years, we’ve really tried most everything. Some may offer solutions, but you’ll need to take him for 2 weeks to be sure you nip this, OK?   So, here is what I have come to learn about this dearly loved verse and how it applies to me: 1. God made me energetic. It’s such a good thing, because most people can’t function on this little sleep. 2. God allow me to be a stay at home mom; able to sneak in a 10 minute snooze. 3. I’ll never be idle. 4. God allows me to go right back to sleep. (This served me well during child-rearing years as well as menopause years…that’s for another blog!) 5. God gave me parents and in-laws (now deceased); a sister, 2 lovely daughters, and some friends and other family who helped out when a break was/is needed! 6. I’m thankful I am still able to make it up and down our stairs numerous times a night. 7. But I am still wondering: When will MY son sleep through the night?