The Early Bird verses the Night Owl

Cassie and I are the best of friends and our personalities are very similar, which makes working with her on kidsgoals a breeze. We are both like minded and never seem to disagree about anything. There is only one thing where we are not quite on the same wave length, and that is our sleeping patterns. Cassie is definitely a morning person and is usually in bed by 9 PM or earlier and up at 6 AM, while I am a definitely a night owl and I am lucky to make it to bed by midnight. Luckily my husband is also a night owl and my children during the holidays prefer to go to bed later and sleep in the next day.

When Cassie visited me in Canada I followed her lead and started going to bed when she did and also to wake up when she did. It was nice because the days seemed to last longer and since she was only here for two weeks I wanted to spend as much time with her as possible. Alas, when she went back to the UK I went back to my old habits rather quickly. Cassie is very rigid when it comes to her sleep hygiene and I know she is appalled at my lack of it.

Recently I came across an article in "Psychology Today" that it may be better to be an early bird. According to the article people who are early to bed and early to rise are more agreeable than their counterparts. Not to mention according to a study by Pennsylvania University, adolescents who stay up late and then sleep in are more likely to have behavioral problems.

So Cassie my dearest friend you are right on the money after all!!! I probably won't ever be a morning person naturally, but for the sake of my children, I am starting to think that a better sleep schedule for this family may be just what the Dr. ordered. Not to mention the new school year will be starting up soon and the quicker I get my kids used of a regular sleep routine the easier it will be on them and me.

Happy Parenting,:-)

Monicka