I'm a full-time, stay-at-home momma and self-admitted naptime-lover.
No, I'm not a napper. But I LOVE naptime for the kiddos.
It's time for me to relax, read, get chores done un-interrupted, snack, blog, you know the finer things in life.
When Carter was born, he slept all the time for about the first 3-4 weeks (less a few days of intense tummy-pain before I eliminated dairy from my diet). Then it set in.. the 45-minute nap monster. The child would NOT sleep past 45 min (less a few or more than a few road trips back to Lincoln). It was like a clock, put him down, he'd go right to sleep (this was a blessing) and bam... up 45 minutes on the dot! Much to my joy he outgrew this around 9 months and began taking some nice, long 2 hrs naps - ah, it was bliss. Pretty much he's been a good napper ever since (less a few weeks transitioning from 2-1 nap).
Then came TW. I was convinced that God would NEVER give me another "tough" baby. Boy were we wrong. TW decided that he'd top his brother's 45-minute nap monster and broke me in on the idea of the 30-minute nap monster. I can't even remember when it started, sometime after the first month where I thought having 2 was going to be so easy!! Thankfully TW wasn't as consistent and would sometimes throw a little longer nap here and there (you know like an hour or so). I finally gave up staying home for 2-3o minute naps and tried to move him to 1 nap around age 1. This was a difficult transition, but around 14-15 months he was finally doing 1 nap of 1-1.5 hrs - which seemed like bliss.
At first, their 1 naps didn't coincide. TW was going down at 12/12:30 and Carter at 1:30 - which meant 0 time with no boys for momma. (sometimes when TW was on 2 naps they'd overlap by about 15 minutes - boy were those good days). But now, in the past THREE months they have both been doing 1 nap, both going to sleep at 1:30 and sleeping 1-1.5 hrs. So, for the first time in my life as a mother of 2, I've had some "me time" back to relax, read... you get the picture.
And now... this week... Carter is thinking he's done napping..... I really hope it's just a (QUICK) phase.... because he really can't be done... can he??
SAY IT AIN'T SO!!!!
(do any of you think this has anything to do with the fact that I'm not a napper and a catnapper if I nap at all?? Is this hereditary?? Their dad sure knows how to nap! I want to know about you - do you nap? do your kids? is there a connection here? )
4 comments:
Say it IS so around here, my kids are pretty good nappers for the most part, and many a day, you would find their momma snoozing at the same time. I don't know how the rest of ya'll do it, but I can often barely make it through the day without a nap.
I love 'em so, but my kids wear me out! (should also mention Tyler is not much of a napper - thinks it will keep him up at night...)
Praise God for the times that your kids do sleep well and give you a nice little break. It makes us better mommies to have a little quiet, a little time in the Word, a little time to get stuff done, whatever it may be.
For a few MONTHS this fall Jonah thought he was giving up naps, but I could tell he really needed them. He was such a crab without them! I tried to let him stay in bed and read, etc., but eventually ended up disciplining him when he didn't sleep (I'd sit outside the door and go in every time I heard him making noise right after I put him down). Sure enough, that did the trick and he still naps great today! Don't give up yet!!
I know I've only been a Mama for a year, but we took the "train your child" approach. Brode wasn't the best napper at first either... took catnaps also... I wondered if this was because he was "preemie" or had acid reflux. Soon, though, we got him on a schedule by training him and he officially has been taking good naps for awhile now. At least 1.5-2 hrs. each time.
As a side note, when Brode used to wake up at or before 45 min., I'd leave him in there for awhile and he'd eventually fall back to sleep for another 45 min. I think after awhile he got used to that and ended up sleeping straight through with no wake time in the middle! PRAISE THE LORD! =)
Brode is approaching 15 mon, and we are starting to transtion him as well. Depending on when he wakes up will determine whether or not he gets 1 or 2 naps. It's hard... once you adjust your child and he really gets the hang of one thing, you have to throw something else in there and make a change! =) That's life, I suppose!! And, yes, eventually all naps will go!! But I don't think Carter has to give up his nap just yet! You'd have to ask Jamie when her girls gave them up, I think by 4-5 yrs old.
Hope this helps. Hang in there! And enjoy that YOU time when you get it!! I hear ya, there! =)
-Sarah
girls, thanks for your thoughts! we definitely are dealing with a discipline issue more than sleep I think! it is taking over an hour to go to sleep for bed and not quite that long for naps. This is coinciding with his new freedom of being able to get OUT of his bed w/o us - this privilege has been removed again now until he can use it responsibly!! Ah... I want my naps and nights back =)
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