Getting a good night's sleep - in 4-6 weeks

I am a fussy sleeper. Truly, ask my husband. Everything has to be "just so" in order for me to go to sleep. First, I need absolute darkness - but I refuse to wear one of those Felix Unger masks. Not going to happen because something on my face will not let me sleep just like light in the room will not let me sleep. I hate to be cold, but I need a fan blowing on me (just in case I get warm). Plus, I like the sound of the fan. It helps me sleep. I'm not a fan of flannel sheets although my husband loves them but I tolerate them in the winter months. I prefer "cool" sheets. Again, keeps me from being too warm.

I hate to sleep with heavy pajamas on. Again, the warm thing. I prefer to sleep in oversized t-shirts or a tank top - the legs need to be free! I keep a bottle of Tums near the bed in case there is heartburn (and there often is). I keep the TV remote on the night stand so that first thing in the morning I can click on the TV and catch the morning news - so I can see what the weather is. All of these variables have to be in place for me to GET to sleep.

Staying asleep is another story. Since I've been working out with my friends, I tend to drink a lot of water at the end of the day. Now suddenly it's like having an infant in the house - I'm up every two hours! This does not please me. I go to bed before Frank (because he is a night owl) and for the most part, I can handle the momentary wake up as he crawls in to bed. It's when he starts to snore that I have issues. When he is in snoring mode, I am up every 30 minutes trying to move him (or suffocate him - whichever is easier). It makes for a bumpy night's sleep.

Have you noticed that I have said NOTHING about the bed itself? That is because up until this point, I have never had a good mattress. The only time I've ever slept on a really good mattress is when I get to stay at a deluxe resort in Disney World. And FYI, the Grand Floridian resort has the BEST beds. But I digress, we've never had a good mattress. When we got married, Frank already had a bed and well, it sucked. We had to furnish an entire apartment so a mattress was not a priority. A few years later we got an almost new, hand-me-down bed from my aunt. It was okay but still not a favorite. Fast forward a few years and we got ANOTHER hand-me-down bed but this one was a queen size. How we had lived so long with only a full-sized, I'll never know.

Well, last night my wonderful husband surprised me and took me out to buy a new bed. A real, honest-to-goodness NEW bed. I got to choose it. I felt a little bit like Goldilocks -this one is too firm, this one is too soft, but then, suddenly, this one is JUST RIGHT. Seriously, I am almost giddy about this. The only fly in the ointment here is that we have to wait to get out tax refund to get it.

Sigh.

I came home and GLARED at my bed. My eyes full of loathing. Stupid bed. Stupid old, uncomfortable bed. Makes my room look bad it's so awful. I think it knew I was having bad thoughts because I woke up with a backache this morning.

Let the countdown begin.