Naps are very vital at the Henry house. We cherish the time when there is nothing but peace and quiet for a certain amount of time. And it happens every day. Or it SHOULD happen everyday. Not only are naps important at our house, but the way they take their nap and where they are taking it, is just as important.
I had to post about naps today because I was sooo frustrated today I was busting out in laughter. And I'm sure those of you that have gone through this can laugh along with me. Because you know you all have been there. And probably multiple times.
When we nap at home, Logan has his rituals. I have to walk up there with him, cover him up with his "ban-chee" and give him three kisses. In between these three kisses I have to tell him 'good-night', 'I love you', and 'sweet dreams'. We then battle back and forth about me not sleeping with him because I have to put Bennet to bed. His response is (as he holds up his fingers with sheer concentration) 'mama. only tree minutes'. Again, I tell him not now. He settles with 'oh-tay. when you done wit Bennet you tome up, awl-wight.' ok. As I exit his room, he reminds me that I cannot shut the door. Gotcha. Nap time usually lasts about an hour and a half. It is very vital that he gets this nap too. Otherwise we deal with a hyper, crabby, sassy, unruly boy, who will not be able to eat dinner because he's so exhausted; and probably pass out by 6:30 for an hour and then be up until midnight. Not a fun time or child to deal with.
Bennet. His naps are just as vital. However, we are now in this stage of fighting it, wanting to be rocked, yet 'I would like to stay up and see what everyone else is doing'. He will get a morning nap for about 30 minutes. The afternoon nap will last about an hour and a half because I swear he can hear his brother's footsteps in the house and can't miss the action.
Now, when one travels the nap time is completely and always thrown off. You do everything in your power and in not-so-normal ways, to ensure that your child(ren) get their nap. You bribe them with treats, toys, movies, whatever it be, just so you can get them to nap so that bedtime won't be as horrible. But in the back of your mind you know that it will be! ha.
We are out of town and today was just hilarious. I have the two boys in the same area to sleep. Logan was beyond tired and needed a nap. He was on the bed tossing and trying not to play with a toy I told him he could sleep with, while I was giving Bennet a bottle before his nap. I told Logan for the third and final time to lay down or the toy goes away. I say this to him as quiet as I can because Bennet is trying to fall asleep. But of course, he flails up and needs to see Logan to laugh and squeal. Now I am at square one again, trying to get both asleep.
Logan eventually lies down quietly and falls asleep. Bennet I rock to sleep with his bottle. He falls asleep and as I get up to place him in his pack and play, he wakes up. I go back to the chair to try it again. Fifteen minutes later he is asleep, after some major battles. I lay him down, tiptoe to the stairs. All is good. I can have 45 minutes of guaranteed quietness. I grab a drink, snack and labtop, and head quietly back downstairs....Bennet is wide awake and standing in his crib. So, here we go again. We rock again for 15 minutes. This time I grab a pillow to see if he needs to be propped up (reflux). I set him in there. All is good. I go to the recliner, turn the computer on quietly, take a sip of my lemonade, and the turkey is standing up. I swear these little creatures of ours know deep down inside that when their mommies want quiet time soooo badly, they instinctively stay awake and screw up your mommy time.
I gave up on the battle with Bennet. So we quietly try to go upstairs before Logan wakes up. No luck. His radar of tiny footsteps wakes him up. Thus, no mommy time. No enjoying of getting anything done. And even though I tell each child that they are going to go to bed early because they will need it. Do you really think it will happen???? You all know the answer because 9 out of 10 times it doesn't go your way.
1 comment:
Oh I can so relate. :) Especially to the part about Bennet now entering the stage of stubborness with being tired but not wanting to fall asleep in case he misses any action. Kristian is so like that. Standing in the crib...playing with the curtains, spitting out his paci but yet crying because it's now laying on the floor. Both boys "need" to be rocked to sleep and his hard when they share a room. Thanks for reminding me that this is "normal" haha
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