I remember both Charlie and Suzzane asking me questions when they was little that would have me going hmm. I thought it would be fun to share some of those questions with you. Then to ask David and Charlie the questions I come up with so Charlie could get the feeling of questions that make us go hmm when we don’t have the answers.

This morning I thought my question that makes us go hmm would be do you need background noise to fall asleep? If so what kind of background noises do you use and why?

To me that sounds like a simple question, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that everyone in our family has a completely different answer. And when you share a bedroom with someone, those differences can become pretty interesting.

For some people, the perfect sleeping environment is complete silence. For others, they need a fan running, the television playing, music in the background, or some other kind of noise to help them drift off.

And then there are people like me. I’m a night owl. Before I share my families preferences with you this question affects more people that we know. My best friend Debbie and her husband Curtis can’t sleep in the same room because he snores and she is a light sleeper and he keeps her awake.

In my family let’s start with Charlie because his sleeping habits are probably the complete opposite of mine. Charlie likes his room completely black when he sleeps. And I mean completely black. He has even started sleeping with a sleep mask, which is something he didn’t used to do.

If there is light coming into the room, it can bother him. He likes his darkness, and apparently he has gotten even more serious about it. Which I never thought I would see and neither did David.

Then there is me. I Actually Like Having the TV On I’m one of those people who can have the television on while I’m trying to fall asleep. Actually, because I’m a night owl, the television may be on because I’m still awake!

I’m up all hours of the night sometimes. I may be watching television, working on the computer, writing a blog post, or just doing whatever happens to be keeping me awake that night.

And somehow, David doesn’t really complain about the television. I’m actually surprised sometimes that he doesn’t gripe about it. But he doesn’t. Now, the light from my computer is a different story.

David will sometimes cover up the light from the computer because it bothers him when he’s trying to sleep. And you know what? I understand. If I want to work while he is sleeping I wait until he is dead asleep and then I do the things I need to do on the computer and it doesn’t bother hime.

Then There’s David and That Fan David can sleep through just about anything. He gets up early, so he’s usually going to bed somewhere between 7 and 9 o’clock. And while I’m still wide awake and ready to keep going, he’s ready to sleep.

And David likes to have a fan on. Now, I’m going to be honest. I hate the sound of a fan and if the house gets to cold I begin to hurt. This is why I hate the fan. There. I said it. Let’s not even get started on his alarm clock or the games and videos he wants to listen to on his phone while I’m trying to sleep.

This is why more times than not I’m said I’m going to buy him a twin bed and put him downstairs with Gerald and Pheobie and I will keep the king size bed and our bedroom to ourselves.

But I’ve learned something about marriage over the years. When you share a room with someone, you can’t expect everything to be exactly the way you would have it if you were sleeping alone.

Sometimes you have to make little sacrifices for each other. So David gets his fan. And I try not to fuss about it. Because if that’s the only thing David does that bothers me when we’re trying to sleep, then I’m okay with it. And I think that’s part of being married.

Here’s the funny thing about me, though. Sometimes I actually do need background noise. The television can be on. There can be some noise in the house. Sometimes the fan is running.

And I can fall asleep with all of that going on. But once I actually fall asleep? That’s when everything changes. Because if you wake me up, I’m probably going to be awake for the rest of the night.

It doesn’t take much, either. Charlie opening a door. Charlie playing his game. A little noise somewhere in the house. And suddenly I’m wide awake. Meanwhile, David can wake up, roll over, close his eyes, and be asleep again practically at the drop of a hat.

Charlie is pretty much the same way. They can go right back to sleep. Me? Not so much. Once my brain decides we’re awake, apparently the meeting has been called to order and nobody is going back to bed.

The more I thought about this question, the more I realized that maybe it’s not really about whether we need background noise. Maybe it’s about what makes each of us feel comfortable enough to sleep.

Charlie needs darkness. David likes his fan. I can tolerate — and sometimes even enjoy — background noise. But I also need to be able to stay asleep once I finally get there. And when you live together as a family, you learn those little things about each other.

You learn that sometimes the computer light needs to be covered. Sometimes the television can stay on. Sometimes the fan wins. And sometimes you just have to compromise. Because at the end of the day, if the biggest disagreement David and I have about sleeping is whether or not I like the sound of his fan, I think we’re doing pretty good.

And yes… I still hate the fan. But I love the man sleeping beside it. At least most days I love him. LOL That is when he’s not waking me up. And sometimes that’s what marriage is all about — making room for each other’s little quirks.

So Now It’s Your Turn Do you need background noise to fall asleep? Do you sleep better with a fan running? Do you need the television on? Do you listen to music, rain sounds, or white noise?

Or are you like Charlie and need your bedroom to be completely dark and quiet? And what happens if someone wakes you up? Can you roll over and go right back to sleep like David and Charlie?

Or are you like me, where once you’re awake, you’re awake for the rest of the night? Let’s go Hmm together. Because sometimes the simplest questions can tell us a whole lot about ourselves — and the people we share our lives with.

Grateful, Thankful, and Blessed.

Thank you,

Glenda, Charlie and David Cates