Catching Up

Why is it that when you miss a couple of hours of sleep one night, it seems to take a couple of days of extra sleep to catch up?  And when you’re pregnant, it may take a whole week to regain the lost sleep.  Well, it seems like I’ve been playing catch up all week, and I could still sleep for a whole day if I didn’t have any responsibilities.

We attended the marriage retreat last Friday night and Saturday, and Dh and I really enjoyed getting away and having all that time for uninterrupted conversation.  We had a beautiful ocean view room with a balcony.  The weather was beautiful, the tradewinds keeping it cool and fresh.  We stood out on the balcony and looked at the city lights all around us and enjoyed the Friday night fireworks on the beach.  Then we decided to go for a walk along the beach and through the shops in Waikiki.  It was beautiful.  It was relaxing.  We were alone.

Unfortunately, I had not packed good walking shoes.  I was thinking more of style than of comfort when I packed my one pair of cute-but-uncomfortable sandals, so we stopped frequently and didn’t walk as far as we had planned.  On our way back to the hotel, we stopped in at Planet Hollywood for a late night snack (the baby’s gotta eat…) and live music.  By the time we arrived back on the 29th floor, I realized that I had perhaps overdone it with all the walking.  I was so exhausted.  I guess I’m not as young as I once was, and being pregnant isn’t as easy the fifth time as it was the first.

Needless to say, I was looking forward to sleeping so I’d be ready for our 8 o’clock session in the morning.  Unfortunately, the bed was not as comfortable as it looked, and I tossed and dreamed and dozed until about four a.m. when I finally pushed Dh to the other side to make room for more pillows. 

The alarm at 7 a.m. was not welcome.  But we got down to the meeting room for breakfast and our morning sessions.  We enjoyed hearing all the stories and insights from the other couples who ranged in marriage length from 1 month 9 days to 38 years.

We got home around 3:30 in the afternoon to our very eager children, and we literally crashed on the couch.  And I’ve been trying to catch up on some sleep since then.  But it was so worth it.  Dh and I hadn’t “gotten away” in longer than we could remember.  Once our new baby boy arrives, it will be a long time before we do it again.  So I’m glad we went.  I just wish I could have had a day to sleep when I got back.