It is so sad, but I believe my two year old is outgrowing naps. I try hard to convince her (read - trick her) into taking a nap, but it rarely works. She has this built in energy that prevents her from being still for more than five minutes at a time. About the time she begins to feel like she might drift off to sleep - she starts bouncing again just to be sure she doesn't accidentally doze off.
I'm sure I'm not the only mother in the world who wishes nap time could be easier. Here are a few of the tricks I use to convince my little ones that naps are a good thing.
1) I lay down with them. This usually works really well because snuggling is good for all of us. We all get a bit of extra loves and then drift off into a peaceful nap. I happen to enjoy naps and figure that laundry and dishes will wait until after I get some much needed rest. (This method did not work today.)
2) I put a movie in and tell the girls that it is rest time. I tell them they do not have to go to sleep, but they do have to be still and rest. This usually ends with both of them softly snoring in front of the television while some sort of kid's program is playing. (Yeah - this did not work today, either.)
3) I result to brute force and put them both in bed with the lights off, complete with threats. They are required to stay in the bed in the dark whether they sleep or not. This is a rare occurrence because I don't generally like to resort to such tactics. I use this only when I'm stretched to my very limits.
4) Every now and then (ahem - today), I just give up and figure that I'll try hard to keep them awake until 7:00 or later so that they don't wake up before midnight expecting to stay up and play all night. Sometimes we just have to admit defeat...
Eventually nap time does become a thing of the past. Even after my kids no longer need actual naps, I will require a bit of quiet time for reading or playing quietly because they will always need some down time to unwind and relax. Because they will be home schooled, I will always have the luxury of enforcing a bit of down time during the day.
Now - I have to go see if I can convince the two year old that she really does need to rest for a while before Grandma Shari comes to visit.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Nap Time
Posted by Mom at 2:29 PM
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6 comments:
Oh...I love nap time. My oldest didn't give up naps until sometime this past year...it was AWESOME! Now, I only have the baby napping, but I still love to cuddle him on the couch and enjoy a nap myself. LOL! Didn't know you were going to homeschool...welcome to the HSing world! :)
Yes, my 2 yr old and 4 yr old will be home schooled throughout. My 14 yr old is in public schools. My 18 yr old was home schooled for 10th, 11th, and 12th grade.
I love home schooling. It gives me a great opportunity to tailor their education to their needs.
I wish I could take Naptime!!
Linda
That's awesome! I love it...I only hope Caleb loves it as much as I do. :)
No#3 is often used in my house.
Oh my goodness! All three of my young ones still take naps and, if I'm lucky, the teenager will decide to lay down for a rest too. I noticed that my 5-year-old son says he doesn't need a nap, but he's so worn out by 5 from his constant movement. Now when Amber was that age she would "rest" until she was about 5 or 6 and could play totally quiet for at least an hour. :D Hey, mom needs a break too. I am not looking forward to Anna "deciding" not to take a nap. Just the thought makes me want to run away now!
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