“Triple Grande Non-Fat Caramel Macchiato please”
That’s on a good day. On a bad day: “Make it a quad.”
I wake up in the morning and pick out a k-cup. I have my mug with me throughout the day either nuking or refilling as needed. And sometimes, I even pour myself a cup of coffee or tea mere hours before bed.
A few nights ago, Dan got on my case about this.
“You have too much caffeine and you have it too late at night. This is why you stay up so late.”
Of course, an argument erupted. Because he just doesn’t understand, does he?
I don’t stay up late because I have excessive energy. I stay up late because it is the only chance I have during the day to get me-stuff done. From the moment I wake up in the morning until 8pm when I have managed to get the baby to sleep and have sung a lullaby to the toddler, I am doing everyone else’s stuff. I am cleaning up after everyone, feeding everyone, and getting everyone to sleep. Each time I pick up a rogue sock or fill another sippy cup, I am doing work for my family.
It is good work. It is rewarding work. But it isn’t everything that I want to do.
So, when the day comes to an end and I realize that I only have three and a half hours before the baby wakes up again, I look around and my head explodes because of all the things I wanted to do that haven’t yet been done. No matter how tired I am, I stay up so that I might feel slightly productive.
But that doesn’t mean I’m not tired. I am up at least three times a night. Some nights I spend hours sitting up with a baby in my arms. Other nights, that baby is sleeping so close to me that I can barely fit on my bed. And then I wake up and spend a day with these two awesome bundles of energy and noise.
This motherhood gig? It is exhausting.
So, I drink coffee. And tea. And fancy espresso drinks with lots of sugar in them. And I drink them all day to keep me going. One after the other after the other.
Sure, they help me stay awake. They make it possible for me to write a few extra words on a blog post or find that extra 10 minutes to load the dishwasher. Caffeine is one of my secret weapons to help me reach my goal of surviving each day.
But it doesn’t keep me awake.
I know this because the moment I put my head on the pillow (and turn off my phone), I am out like a light, regardless of the amount of caffeine I have had during the day.
Dear husband. I love you, but you don’t get it. If you did, you’d be delivering a quad grande nonfat caramel macchiato to me daily.
Please?
Do you consume caffeine throughout your day? How does it affect you? What other secret weapons do you use to survive your day?
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Hey you just described my day (and nights)!
I drink a coffee in the morning if I’ve had 4 or less hours of sleep. Otherwise, I drink tea. Cup after cold cup of tea and my last one is usually at 10pm. I don’t even know how many I drink. Ahem.
My husband drinks as much coffee as I do tea, so he can’t rag me, hah!
Alison recently posted..Memories Captured – November Link Up!
nopes, no coffee here. I drank it once upon a time but my body doesn’t/can’t handle coffee, I feel very ill after I drink some. My husband on the other hand used to drink lots of coffee. I commented about it, of course I didn’t understand but I expressed my concerns and he has cut back greatly. He knows when he needs to stop drinking because yes he’ll be up all night if he drinks it too late. Sometimes we just need to listen to the concerns of our spouses.
I have my (one) morning cup of fair trade, dark roast with a generous amount of cream. I have weaned myself off the sugar though – sweet drinks a) make me fat and MUCH more prone to cold and flu catching and b) leave me tired again and wanting another in an hour. I have one very occasionally, and in the Christmas season I love to make a big batch of homemade eggnog with raw milk and local, farm fresh eggs sweetened with maple syrup – and that usually gets dumped into my morning coffee! But I do try to cut out caffeine after about mid-afternoon. I remember learning in university that even if coffee late at night doesn’t stop you from falling asleep, your sleep will be lighter and not as restful and you will wake up more tired. As a busy mom of two boys just like you, I NEED a deep, restful sleep!
It takes a full 10 hours for caffeine to totally get out of your system, so I try to keep that in mind and if we’re having an afternoon hot drink I’ll make mine an herbal tea (at home) or a decaf (if we’re out). Even though caffeine at night never stopped me from sleeping while I was in university, now that I’ve stopped the habit it totally does if I give in and have an evening coffee.
But that first cup of dark roast in the morning? Nobody better try and take that from me. Pregnant or not, that kickstart before my boys wake up is essential!
I am a coffee drinker! I start every day with a cup of organic, fair trade coffee with whole milk. After that though I usually switch over to tea in the afternoon once the girls have gone down for a nap. Not because I prefer it but because it is cheaper. Ben and I have our budget set up so that we each get “blow money” every month to blow on whatever we want…mine is always spent on coffee when I’m out. I’ve worked at both Starbucks and Second Cup so I know what actually goes in those drinks and they have mostly lost their appeal for me between the cost and the calories but I will get a pumpkin spice latte every now and again through the fall..same goes for the peppermint mochas. Most of the time though I am a tall nonfat latte kind of girl :) It’s easier on my wallet and waistline which means I get to enjoy it more often. I can see why Dan would think the caffeine is what keeps you up or be frustrated by how tired you are but won’t go to bed..Ben has called me on that many a time in the early days of having 2 under 2 and every now and again I would humor him and go to bed early and never regretted the extra sleep. Keep on truckin’, mama! You’re doing great!
Katie recently posted..Lost and Found
I consume too much too….and yes when the kiddos are down my to-do list just overwhelms me. It’s amazing how much you can get done in a short period of time…b/c you know that baby will wake up soon! But you never get that “me” quiet time. Rewarding job but the hardest!
Natalie recently posted..Watch Me Grow!
Motherhood is exhausting! I’m always relieved to hear other mothers admit this (and divulge some of their secrets to surviving it all).
I actually limit caffeine because I just don’t like the effect it has on my body. I have a (lightly) brewed cup of tea 3-5 times a week, and have a hunk of dark chocolate a few other times? I usually feel worse after a lot of caffeine (and don’t like the taste of coffee), so it’s a pretty easy addiction for me to avoid (potato chips on the other hand, are an entirely other vice for me)!
Mmm…other survival mechanisms.
1. Royal jelly – this was recommended by a natural health practitioner and I took it as a last resort (I was pretty skeptical about holistic medicine until recently). I am convinced this (along with acupuncture) REALLY helped my energy levels. I take a capsule every day.
2. Diet and exercise – I try to get outside walking or jogging 5-6 times/week (and pushing a stroller just makes it more physically demanding), and am limiting gluten and dairy lately because I think I have an intolerance. I love ice cream and cold cereal too much to write it off, but am trying to use some restraint.
3. Be alone – I try to get out shopping on my own once every few weeks. Even for groceries. Just out. By myself. In quiet. No dirty diapers, no tiny hands ripping boxes off the shelf. It is heavenly.
4. Early bedtime – I try to get to sleep before 11:30 every night. I also try to have my 19 month old in bed at a reasonable hour (ie: by 7). She doesn’t have to go to sleep right away, but she has learned to play in her crib until falling asleep. It is worth a few tears to establish early bedtimes (for both you and baby).
5. Unwind…every night – I make sure to section off at least 1/2 hour each night for myself/husband. Either to watch a sitcom (way shorter than drama’s, so these are my go-to), or just read a book in peace. I actually sometimes use a kitchen timer to make sure I don’t end up wasting my entire evening on Pinterest, but I find that little segment of time in the evening, helps me get through the day!
Elisabeth recently posted..Denmark Adventures: Day 7
I am a definite caffeine junkie. I can’t drink it as much (well, obviously not now being pregnant) anymore because it gives me headaches. I drink a cup of coffee in the morning and might drink a glass or tea once or twice throughout the day. At the end of the day, though, I’m beat. No matter what I’ve had to drink or eat. :)
Courtney Kirkland recently posted..False Alarm…
I am a constant coffee drinker, and am also “guilty” of staying up FAR too late just doing things that I wanted to do throughout the day, but didn’t because I was too busy figuring out who really had that doll first, feeding adoreable little ladies, etc…
I recently began Naturopathic care and was terrified that she was going to tell me to stop drinking so much coffee. But you know what? SHE DIDN”T! She said that at this point in my life my body is running on coffee. No coffee no function.
But she did give me a new tool to use. Nettle Tea. Handful of nettles in a 1L Mason jar, fill said jar with boiling water and let it sit overnight. This amount should be consumed over 3 days.
I did not buy this at all, but I thought I should at least give it a shot…after all I gave her almost $200 to tell me that.
It took me a few days to realize it, but my coffee consumption has gone down to two/three mugs daily, and it had been between 6 and 8.
So – Some coffee (because it is SO YUMMY!) + Some nettle tea = One Happy Mama!