Monday, November 16, 2009

Yay for Productivity!

Today during Ella's morning nap I got a ton done. I cleaned the bathroom, took a shower, got dinner going in the crockpot, balanced our checkbook and ordered some things online for Kyle and Ella! Then Ella got up, we had lunch and went to Walmart to return a few things that I found cheaper online and got groceries. I love days like that, when I get so much done in the morning that I can relax during Ella's afternoon nap. I think I am going to try just doing one nap for Ella from now on though. I have been debating it for a long time, and I don't think Ella is quite ready, but I think I need to. Nowadays by the time she gets up from her second nap it is dark out and she is totally disoriented. She ends up crying a lot and being pretty crabby. I don't think it is worth it anymore to deal with all that when I am trying to make dinner. I think I will mourn the loss of my afternoon break for a long time. Right now when she only takes one nap she doesn't sleep any longer than if she was taking two, but I think over time she will adjust. She will need to just stay up longer in the morning before napping so she is more tired and her sleep is more evenly distributed. I think I will try putting her down an hour later than normal, and slowly keep pushing it back until she is napping from about 1:00-3:00 (or 4:00!). Right now she naps from 10-11 and 3:30-5:00. Tomorrow she will probably be fine even if it doesn't work very well because I am watching Ella's friend Owen during the afternoon and we have small group in the evening so Ella will get even more play time with friends. That always helps her from being crabby.

2 comments:

  1. Molly, my heart's breaking for you. I am already dreading the loss of the afternoon nap. I tried Nora with 1 nap the other day just to see and I think it was harder for me than for her. I kept thinking-oh I'll just wait until Nora's next nap to do this or that. Then I finally realized that there would be no other nap coming. Hahaha, so I think the mom needs to adjust just as much as the kids.

    ReplyDelete
  2. The first few days of switching to one nap can be hard, but you both will adjust. Try introducing a new toy she has not played with in awhile to keep her distracted from the first nap. You can aways try to give her lunch earlier. When I switched Addison to one nap she became a happier child. IT also helps to have older friends to play with. She also will lay down earlier at night, so I can have more time with hubby!!

    ReplyDelete