On the other hand, this discovery went hand in hand with the discovery that if he goes to bed earlier, he doesn't need two daytime naps. This I was
Naptimes are times when I don't have to pop into the living room every five minutes just to check that the toddler isn't climbing the piano, make sure nobody is unrolling/eating/strangling their sibling in a ball of yarn, the baby isn't eating the toddler's snack, the toddler isn't trying to pick up the baby, the baby isn't eating a magazine, the toddler isn't unzipping the baby's outfit, etc. Y'know. I can power through laundry without interruptions, go to the bathroom without wondering what they're up to, or sit down with a cup of tea and concentrate on some reading. So naptime is of course precious, and losing one? Well, I'm going to have to get a lot more organized and incorporate the toddler into more of my housework while the baby is napping, I think!
So we've been pulling out puzzles and blocks and generally having fun figuring out a new normal, which has fit in nicely with the fact that he is ready for more "preschool" looking activities. I'm planning on making him some playdough for his birthday, which I am really excited about. We gave him eight pieces out of the giant bag of Duplo blocks I have stashed away for his birthday (shhhhh!) as an Epiphany gift, and he has been playing with them and really understanding how to pull them apart and put them back together. Seeing him enjoy them so much is making it really hard to wait until his birthday to give him the rest of them! :)
Now that I've been thinking about this, and reading this post and this post... I'm actually excited about this new opportunity for finding a new rhythm for our days! :)
Also, I'm wanting to start getting up earlier and working out while they're asleep... even if it is just a few minutes! I think that will help me hit the day running... well, that and having a cuppa tea in my system before they wake up... ;-)
What do your days look like?
5 comments:
Our days are pretty busy and always have been. Ben and Liam are often awake before 6am though they usually are happy to amuse themselves until 6:30am while I shower and get coffee made. It usually takes an hour to get baby nursed, everyone dressed, and the cribs in order (as Liam's sheets are generally wet EVERY morning). Then it is breakfast time. After breakfast, Liam usually takes inventory of his toys making sure that none have disappeared overnight while Ben gets some floor time.
3 days a week, Liam goes to school from 9am to 1pm and while he is gone, I do all my errands for the week as Liam does not tolerate shopping without screaming and flailing. I also try to clean, organize, pay bills, and do any other household chores during this 12 hour window a week.
The mornings he isn't in school, we try to leave the house for aan activity--Gymboree, the zoo, a trip to PetSmart to look at the birds, a trip to the art museum. Ben won't nap more than 2 hours during the daytime, so i usually just have him sleep while we are out and about to ensure me some quiet time in the afteernoon (as he'll refuse an afternoon nap if he takes a proper morning nap).
We eat lunch and then it is nap time for both boys. Ben usually naps for 2 hours while Liam only naps about once a week. The other 6 days he just bounces around in his crib.
After nap, it is geenerally TV time while I make a quick and simple dinner. After dinner, we usually play with toys some more and Ben seems to be most active right before bed. then it is bathtime and the start of bedtime routine. Everyone is in bed by 8pm, though some nights (like last night) not asleep until after 9pm. Ben wakes once to three times at night and after 8 to 9 hours, everyone is asleep and we start all over.
Liam usually sleeps about 9 hours in total and ben about 11 hours in total, so leaves about 14 hours of solo parenting for me. This means I get less done than many people, eat frozen food too much, and the boys watch more TV than they should.
Incorporating a toddler into housework is a really good plan, even if it slows you down some, they are supervised and learning to pitch in.
Toy organization and teaching them to be directed in play (get out one thing at a time) is a good exercise and will help stretch out play and make clean-up easier (and easier for him to help!)
In the wintertime and when you have another little around, being sure you have active stuff around or make time to dance/jump is a good idea. A rubber ball to bounce on, riding toys for bigger kids (my kids still use them!), etc.
Wow, Michelle, your days are busy! We tend to be waaaaay more laid back than that... for example, I put Nathan down for his noon nap in his pjs today, I shower every other day (in a good week!), and I don't like to leave the house more than twice in a week. We do have quite a drive to go pretty much anywhere though, since we're rural. It sounds like your routine is working well for you, though, and that is what matters. You know that this time of frozen food and tv is just a season... don't feel bad about doing what you need to do to get through this deployment!
Kristen, thanks for sharing your thoughts! Your comment about having play being more directed especially is a very helpful thing I hadn't thought much about. Picking up generally is overwhelming for *both* of us, and he needs a lot of help with it, so I think working to organize the toys and getting one set or puzzle out at a time would really help. And we looooove dancing around the living room! :)
Stopping over from babybunching. Your days sound hectic like mine. Both of my kids switched to one nap around fifteen months (I was actually glad to have them napping on the same schedule) but they only ever nap for an hour, maybe an hour and a half. My son wakes up super early (between 5 and 6, usually closer to 5) so we've had to find several activities to keep him quiet and entertained. I just bought a bunch of Pooh and Mickey Mouse flash cards at the Dollar store that have shapes/letters/colors and also several preschool workbooks (he just turned 3) and so far he loves them! Good luck with one nap... I dread the days when naptimes go away altogether!
Hi Casey! :) Welcome!
So glad I'm not the only one. The one nap has actually made it easier to coordinate their naps, somehow, so even though she is taking another nap in addition, they're both taking the middle of the day nap together and I am so happy about that. It gives me at least an hour, usually, to have them both peacefully sleeping, which is great! :)
I'm looking forward to the coloring book stage... here we're still at the point where if he gets into markers we're scrubbing all nearby surfaces furiously as soon as we find out, lol...
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