I knew this would happen eventually ... but of course I was hoping it would happen later rather than sooner. The problem is my son is still very cranky during the day and without his daily nap he melts down even easier in the evening. Last night he fell asleep, but was screaming he wasn't tired up until the end.
The other problem is nap time was my chance to get things done. I used that hour or two for housework, exercise, blogging and just a needed break from my two little ones. So without sanity time, what will I do? My daughter has super-hearing and any attempt by me to wake up earlier than usual wakes her up. She is glued to my side for most of the day. My son wakes later, but is very chatty and still has trouble playing on his own. I really dread giving up my short time alone.
Yesterday we decided to put a knob cover on the inside of our room. This way my son couldn't get out on his own and wake-up his little sister. He sleeps in his toddler bed near our bed. Unfortunately there is a bathroom off of our bedroom. Can you see where this is headed?
All seemed to be quiet upstairs, but as I passed the stairs I caught a whiff of the Kandu Children's handsoap we keep in our bathroom. The smell was very strong! This is what I found when I went upstairs...
Oh, yeah. The shiny surface of the bathroom floor is water!
When I asked my son what happened he said he had gone in the bathroom for a drink of water... then he wanted to refill the water bottle... and then he decided to wash the floor! There were soap suds, soap and water everywhere!!! Um...
I would love to hear how you finally decided your children were done napping. What age were they? Any suggestions for starting a "quiet time" in the afternoon?
when my kids gave up their naps, I didn't fight it. I said, that is fine, you do not have to go to sleep. You DO have to stay in your room for one hour and play quietly. I got books on tape from the library and a timer. When the timer went off they could come out. Often, I would find them sleeping on the toy box or sprawled out spread eagle on the floor totally out of it. I figured, the more I fought it, the harder they would. It took a few months for them to realize that they HAD to stay in their rooms but now, at 9 and 11 we STILL have quiet time on the weekends. Hubby and I actually get a quick nap or a quiet cup of coffee and a chat during this time. Best thing I ever did!
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