Masculine Mask

I have always associated sleep masks with glamorous women. You know that woman who has the gorgeous silk pajamas and sleeps on the finest sheets in her large fluffy bed. She washes her face, puts on her face cream that is loaded with flecks of real gold and then floats over to her dream bed to put her white satin sleep mask on. After that, she quickly fades away into a blissful land of sleep and dreams and can wake up the next morning whenever she wants... undisturbed.

This is why I have never worn one because I am definitely not that woman (sweatpants and t- shirt to bed, did I wash my face?, oh darn it, my sheets are ripped as I trip over my shoes on the way to bed). I definitely don't qualify for a sleep mask... or do I?

My perception has been completely demolished now that my almost 8 year old son requires one for bed every night. Yep, that's right... Dallin can't fall asleep with out one. Here's a little background before you start making any snap judgements:

Dallin has the hardest time falling asleep. I will never forget one night that I put him to bed, went downstairs and didn't come back up until 2:00 in the morning. I climb the stairs to hear Dallin playing in his room. Apparently I hadn't tucked him in and he was just chillin' until that happened. He is definitely my late owl. Because of this, I try to find anything that will help him fall asleep. We have tried a fan to help block out noises (he hates the helicopters that fly overhead from the nearby airfield). We put a CD player in his room to play some lullabies. I have lathered lavender lotion on him in the hopes that relaxation would lead him to deep sleep. All of these things have helped, but not enough.

One night a few months ago, I had a genius idea. Some lights outside his window were bothering him and I remembered the sleep mask in my nightstand drawer. I kept it there just in case I ever had a glamorous night. I adjusted it to Dallin's head, put it on him and within minutes, he was out. It has worked well ever since.

I love peeking into his room at night to see my handsome boy rocking a satin sleep mask. The best part is, he could care less about how it may look or be perceived. He is definitely a cool kid. There are even some days when I drop him off at school that I can see the line the sleep mask band left in his hair.

There have been a couple of nights that the beloved sleep mask has gone missing. Those are rough nights for everyone. He eventually falls asleep, but it sure takes a long time.

I've read that a 7 year old needs about 10 hours of sleep a night, and thanks to one glamorous sleep mask, Dallin's right on track.