Please don't nap!

When my boys were younger I LOVEDDDD nap time! I mean who doesn't? The get a much needed rest, wake up in a better mood, and seem so much more themselves.

Blake was a really good napper when he was young. I could look forward to two solid naps with no question from him. Even when he cut it back to one nap it was a 1-2 hour nap. Blake gave up napping around 2.5 years old. I fought it, but he just wanted nothing to do with it from then on. So I adjusted his bedtime and he just went to bed earlier.

Colby was never a really good napper. He did take two naps until he was about one. This was nice because he was taking two naps while Blake was still taking one. This gave me time alone with Blake while Colby took his morning nap, and time alone while they both napped in the afternoon. Colby gave up his nap all together a few weeks after he turned two. Yes, you read that right. Again I fought it, but it just wasn't happening.

I set in place a solid bedtime routine for my boys. For a long time they went to bed at 6:30pm and slept until just after 7:15am. I was content with this. I could handle it since I still got a big block of time at night. As they've gotten older I've shifted their bedtime slightly. We usually start bedtime about 6:45/7:oo. We aim to say goodnight to them before 7:30 so that they are sound asleep by 8pm. This works for us. The boys both sleep until about 7:15/7:30.

But the challenge is when they fall asleep during the day. Yes, I know most parents get excited when their child naps... not me! With Blake if he falls asleep during the day it means he is sick. That is the only time he naps. Colby will fall asleep in the car sometimes. What does it mean if they take a nap? It means bedtime hell!

Yesterday we were driving home from my parents house. Colby fell asleep in the car and did not wake up when we got home. He proceeded to sleep for close to an hour.

We let the boys stay up a bit later than normal because Blake wanted to go for a bike ride with Richard and Colby didn't eat dinner until 6:45pm. So bedtime didn't start until close to 8. Well at 10:25pm I put Colby back to bed for the last time. What did this mean? A late night for me. A late night for Colby. And a grumpy mommy and child in the morning. I did not let him sleep in because well that would mean another tough night.

So now I don't like to see my boys nap... nope I cringe at it!