The double-edged sword of nap time
As I pound out this post, Analise continues to babble from her room ...
"Kno, kno, KNO!" Her tiny protest against the indignities of a forced nap time.
We have been at this for an hour and half, with no end in sight.
It all started when she got sick in her crib. She was so adamant that she not be left alone in there again that she climbed out and crashed to the floor.
So, we converted the crib to the toddler bed and got a handy-dandy safety rail.
She no longer falls!
Sigh.
She no longer SLEEPS.
We seem to be on an every other day nap rotation.
One day she refuses. Mommy puts her back in bed 6, 7, 8 times. She stays just long enough for Mommy to leave the watch outside the door and sit down. Out she comes. Back she goes. Continue this charade until our nap time is over, at which point Mommy says, "Guess you don't want to nap today!"
That night she nearly falls asleep in her dinner. Mommy takes her and puts her to bed at 6:30 p.m. She wakes at 2 a.m.(because she's had 8 hours of sleep) and plays for an hour or so. Mommy wakes and spends an hour trying to get her to sleep, gives in and pretends she doesn't hear her playing. At some point Analise falls back asleep.
The next day Analise falls asleep on the way home from picking Nicolas up at 11 a.m. Mommy transfers limp Analise to her bed. Analise misses lunch and naps for 2-3 hours.
Repeat.
What seems to the untrained observer a Mommy's oasis in an otherwise demanding day, naps can in actuality be one of the worst times of day. The persistence and attention required to train a busy toddler to nap is exhausting. Meanwhile, what "should" be Mommy's down time to be still and regroup translates into a "walking on eggshells - did I just hear a sound?" paranoia.
Seems like it would be much easier to just let them stay up.
I have an Infant Slumber Buddy on order. It displays stars on the ceiling and plays soothing music. We'll see if it can keep a tired baby girl still long enough to fall asleep.
I'll keep you posted.
"Kno, kno, KNO!" Her tiny protest against the indignities of a forced nap time.
 |
| Analise, surrounded by the contents of her dresser drawer. Guess this is what she's been doing instead of napping! |
We have been at this for an hour and half, with no end in sight.
It all started when she got sick in her crib. She was so adamant that she not be left alone in there again that she climbed out and crashed to the floor.
So, we converted the crib to the toddler bed and got a handy-dandy safety rail.
She no longer falls!
Sigh.
She no longer SLEEPS.
We seem to be on an every other day nap rotation.
One day she refuses. Mommy puts her back in bed 6, 7, 8 times. She stays just long enough for Mommy to leave the watch outside the door and sit down. Out she comes. Back she goes. Continue this charade until our nap time is over, at which point Mommy says, "Guess you don't want to nap today!"
That night she nearly falls asleep in her dinner. Mommy takes her and puts her to bed at 6:30 p.m. She wakes at 2 a.m.(because she's had 8 hours of sleep) and plays for an hour or so. Mommy wakes and spends an hour trying to get her to sleep, gives in and pretends she doesn't hear her playing. At some point Analise falls back asleep.
The next day Analise falls asleep on the way home from picking Nicolas up at 11 a.m. Mommy transfers limp Analise to her bed. Analise misses lunch and naps for 2-3 hours.
Repeat.
What seems to the untrained observer a Mommy's oasis in an otherwise demanding day, naps can in actuality be one of the worst times of day. The persistence and attention required to train a busy toddler to nap is exhausting. Meanwhile, what "should" be Mommy's down time to be still and regroup translates into a "walking on eggshells - did I just hear a sound?" paranoia.
Seems like it would be much easier to just let them stay up.
I have an Infant Slumber Buddy on order. It displays stars on the ceiling and plays soothing music. We'll see if it can keep a tired baby girl still long enough to fall asleep.
I'll keep you posted.
Ugh...before being sick she was great with the sleep routine. Thought we lucked out.
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