Routines...

We have been discovering that by changing our nap routine (one midday nap, and no napping past 4pm) the toddler goes to bed earlier and more easily.

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 horrified at not thrilled about.  I know I'm totally spoiled having an almost two year old who has been taking at least two (1 hour +) naps a day for the past six months, and three a day before that, but still!

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?

Banana Breakthrough

Nathan likes eating little banana cubes, but he frequently had trouble picking them up and got frustrated because they were so slippery. Of course, the more you try to pinch up a banana cube, the slipperier it gets, so it would just get worse and I would end up having to feed him the little cubes, which wasn't as fun for either one of us as finger food would've been.

I don't know WHY I didn't think of this sooner... but I took some raisin bran flakes, put them in a baggy, and rolled the rolling pin over them until they were mostly crushed. Then I slice the banana as usual, put two or three pieces in the bag, and shake. I put those in front of him and he can finally just enjoy eating his now non-slippery banana! As a bonus, this gives him a (teeny) amount of fiber, which he also needs.

Yay! I would've shared a picture of this gourmet delight with all y'all, but my camera batteries are dead and we're out of AA's. Sorry. But I'm sure you can imagine it anyway, right?

very joyful and engaging news

I'm engaged to Micah! :-)