Umm...No. I may be a newbie mom but in these past ten months I have discovered that (wait for it, wait for it)...
Naptime is a gift from God.
Yes, a true, amazing and sheer bliss gift that if anything/anyone attempts to take it away it/they should be punished. To the fullest extent of the Mommy-Code Law, of course. No exceptions. Apparently, Munch did not get that memo.
My "sweet" little boy tried every trick up his sleeve yesterday. Seriously he pulled no stops. Overexaggerated smiles (to prove that he was NOT tired), attempts to "hide" behind toys, playing "quietly" so as to fool this nap-loving mama. But fortunately for me, his big brown eyes are a tell-all. As soon as those eyelids turn red, we've got a boy ready to sleep. And then throw in the rubbing of the eyes - Sorry kid. I've got you figured out.
What I could not figure out was HOW to get him asleep! Fellow mom's I need your tips and tricks for this one, we are in an adjustment period. Usually Munch takes 2 naps. One around 7 AM till 8:30/9 and then another after lunch around 1:30 PM till 2:30/3. Yesterday, the morning nap while with Daddy in his office was not happening. I know, I know, It started all wrong. Over the weekend we pulled the trigger and bought big boy car seats which means no more convenient carrier to stroller clip-in which makes transporting a sleeping child seamless. For the first time yesterday, Daddy had the joy of moving a wide-eyed new-seat struck child into a "new" stroller. Instead of sleeping, Munch decided to try and dismantle the stroller. "Uh dad? This is way more fun than sleeping." Morning nap - FAIL.
Which meant that when I picked Munch up from childcare on my lunch break, I had a red-eyed, eye-rubbing whiny boy. Still cute - Don't get me wrong. ;) However, the new car seat in my car kept him exploring until 2 seconds before we pulled into our driveway. The eyes were closing as I went to pull him out of the car. Normally, the seamless move-a-sleeping-child operation would work BUT again, big boy car seat enters picture. Instantly he was awake and ready to eat, play, run a marathon, climb a tree, the normal stuff.
So with my wide-eyed wonder boy, we grabbed our gear out of the car and headed inside where I proceeded to get lunch ready. Logical. My thought was this...boy eat, boy full, boy nap. Munch's thought...boy eat, boy play, boy poop, boy play. Because I was attempting to log back into work, I decided to let him get some wiggles out before attempting the crib. So while he scurried around the kichen opening drawers and cabinets, I got my computer turned on and ready so that when naptime hit, I could finish up some work projects that were looming in my head. With computer ready, I grabbed sleepy head and we headed off to his room where we flipped through Goodnight Moon before I laid him down in his crib. Before his head hit the mattress, the tears had started. And then came the mad yelling. I am a CIO mom for the most part. When I know his fed, changed and otherwise set, the only reason he could be crying is because he does not want to be caged up. 30 minutes folks. He was going off and on for 30 minutes.
Maybe I'm lying to myself but really, I tend to air on the realistic side of things and work through situations in a fairly calm fashion. However, there are times (especially when the whining starts up) that I lose any hopes of the patient me stepping in to save the day. In my defense, I was about to get the lovely monthly monster all the while fighting a mastitis infection. Bad combo.
I checked in every 10 minutes through the sliver in the door frame I had left and there he was - standing and crying with honest to goodness tears. Fine. I brought him out and tried the swing. FAIL. I tried the crib again. FAIL. Slowly going insane as I tried to work, I had the thought that maybe he's just not tired (delusional and desperate thought I came to realize) so I put him down to play again. Then the crying started there. Okay. Nap time it is. I clocked out of work and we went to lay down together. At this point, I needed a nap more than he did so we fought for another 1/2 hour laying on mommy and daddy's bed as he continually tried to crawl away. SERIOUSLY?!
//drumroll//
I won.
2 hour nap later - I had my Munch back. He was human again. Praise the Lord.
On a happy note, I made my first successful transfer of a sleeping bambino from a car seat to a crib today - Woo hoo!!!! Now to get him back to more than 30 minutes per nap.
keep up the consistency - when you "retrieve" him from the bedroom - you might as well be telling him that your starting over and you really didn't mean to have him in there that long - he learns quite quickly how to push your buttons and will train you to come to him with his tears and loudness - keep up the routine for at least 3 weeks - Don't give in or you will be having to start over each time - I know it's hard - my child was the exact same way - You Can Do IT !
ReplyDeleteI have found that consistency works the best. I made a decision to always have Peyton nap in her crib or pack in play for her nap times. So when she cries when I put her down and continues to do so, something is wrong. I am usually right...last time that happened she threw up in my mouth. Wonderful. Sometimes, they just want attention and just don't want to sleep. They might be overtired or just not tired enough. Every child is different and you just have to find what works and I guess just roll with it when he's being difficult. Sometimes Peyton just has those days!!!
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