Warming a cold, winter bed

Shawn has been in Boston, but he's coming home tonight.

In the past, I could never sleep when he was gone, and even if I could get to sleep, my neck and back always went out so that I was crippled in pain by the time he'd come home.

It took me forever to figure out why this was, but I finally figured out it was two things:

(1)  I could not get warm when I was by myself in the bed.  

I figured this out first, and I began taking a hot water bottle to bed with me, thrusting it down to the mysterious bottom of the bed, by my feet.   The problem was, it only warmed a very small part of me, which ultimately led to the second issue...

(2)  If I could get warm at all, I could only warm the exact, immediate area where I was lying, and if I moved even an inch, I would be in Cold Sheet Territory.  This caused me to sleep still, in one crunched position all night long, which made my neck and back go into spasms.

So... he stopped traveling.

I wish.

No, he did not stop traveling.  He bought me an electric mattress warmer.

You put this on the bed over your mattress pad and below your fitted sheet.  It's better than an electric blanket because heat rises.

If you leave it on high all night long, you wake up feeling rather like a crispy raisin.

So you really need to turn it on before you get into bed, and then turn it off.

Except, when I am all by myself (lacking that other body, the one that can actually produce and radiate heat), if I turn off the electric mattress pad, then halfway through the night I am once again stranded on my exactly-body-sized island of warmth.  Out go the neck and back, again.

But... I found a solution!  Our electric mattress pad has dual controls for each side, so...

•  I turn both sides on while I am getting ready for bed.
• After I get into bed, I turn my side off, but I leave Shawn's side on all night.

This has been the most marvelous solution.  The heat emanating from Shawn's side of the bed makes it almost, almost feel as though he is here at home.  Except, I have The Whole Bed To Myself and I can stick my legs wherever I want and roll whichever way I desire at any time during the night!

I suppose the radiation is a potential carcinogen.  You have to weigh your consequences:  sleeplessness and guaranteed neck spasms vs. potential cancer...

Short term certainties are hard to bear for the sake of long term possibilities.

Beds, blankets and birdbrains

Since this blog is mainly about sleeping, I thought I'd show you a picture of a very inviting sleep space.

• Soft, cozy flannel bedding
• Well-loved bear
• Lamp next to bed; no need to cavort across the room in the dark after turning off the main light switch
• Comforting verse on wall over bed:  "Be still and know that I am God." (from Psalm 46:10)

This is our daughter's bedroom in her apartment.  Last weekend, we went out to visit her and hang some new curtains over her drafty windows.

Daughter and Dad

It is difficult to take a good picture in front of a window on a sunny day, 

especially when you have just hung curtains and would like them to be seen in the photo.

Daughter and Mom

in daughter's living room...

sitting on the futon which converts to a bed.

We the parents slept on the futon.  It is a very decent sleep surface, and we slept quite well.

Our daughter has extra sheets, but we brought our own pillows and blankets.

Funny story:  I was packing to go, and was not sure what to do about a blanket.  Our daughter has been talking about how drafty her apartment is--saying that she needs thermal draperies--so I was thinking about how I did not want to be cold.  

Looking for a blanket to take, I opened my cedar chest, the one at the foot of my bed.  And there, much to my surprise, was my favorite woolen winter blanket, the one I ordered from Faribault Mill in Minnesota, the land of my birth.  I was shocked.  It's February, for goodness' sake.  I thought this blanket was on my bed!

I peeked under my quilt, and there was my blue cotton summer blanket.  Still.  

Well, I'll be.

So we took the woolen blanket to our daughter's place and used it there.  Now that we are home, I guess I'll change my sheets and put on the winter blanket today.  We have at least three good months of winter left for sleeping under it.