Back To Not Sleeping

I sleep terribly most nights - even when I am not having a bout of insomnia. I always assumed that it was the dogs. Ok, it usually IS the dogs... more specifically, it's Abby. I slept with Pocket and Mole just fine for 5 years before Abby came along. Once Abby came into the picture, the sleep has been a bit restless.

Abby is a great cuddler. She curls up right next to you and sleeps in the spoon position with her head on the pillow. She looks so peaceful in this position. The problem is that this is the only position she wants to sleep in. Sure she will sleep for a little bit with her feet stretched out and her nails in my back. But once she realizes where she is, it's a paw to the face until I get her back in her comfy spot.

This has been going on for years. I put up with it because I don't have much of a choice - I can't crate her after all. I was hoping that her deep love of the reading chair would give me some space and a chance to sleep... but alas, sleep still evades me. Or it did until last week.

Last week I was house sitting for my mom while she was on vacation. I had the choice to sleep on the couch or an air mattress. Pick your poison, right? I chose the air mattress because it had more room for everyone to fit...even though we all know that regardless of the space, the dogs always sleep on top of you. The air mattress was semi-comfy, despite the fact that you had to blow it up rock hard before bed, knowing it would loose half the air in the middle of the night. But for some reason, I slept better. I think that the dogs slept better too. I didn't wake up four or five times in the middle of the night rearranging everyone so that Abby could get comfy. In fact, there were some times that I didn't sleep with Abby at all. Seriously! She chose to sleep on the couch. OK, she didn't sleep out there all night long, but she still slept away from me for a while. I was proud of her independence and I was happy with my full 8 hours of sleep. I didn't wake up exhausted with dark circles under my eyes. I was really hoping that these sleeping arrangements would carry back over to our bed at home.

Unfortunately I was wrong. Last night was the same as the past 2 years. Tossing and turning. Moving smaller sleeping bodies so I had at least a sliver of bed to sleep on. It's exhausting not sleeping. And I am not sure that I can do this for the next 7 years - the estimated lifespan of Abby. But I also don't see what choice I have.