Giving Up Naps
My daughter gave up taking naps right around the time she was poised to turn two years old. This may not have been such a big deal, but it was right around the time her baby brother was born and I really could have used an hour or two to myself during the day…or at least some time to only deal with one kid at a time. I initially fought the idea of her giving up her nap, but I eventually realized that she knew her needs better than I did when it came to naps, so instead we turned nap time into resting time. Nowadays she’ll do art projects or watch TV while her brother naps.
He’s approaching two and a half, and still no sign up giving up naps. Hallelujah for small favors.
The way I see it, there are some pros and cons to when your toddler gives up naps:
Pro: My daughter started going to bed earlier at night, and had less trouble falling asleep.
Con: After a busy day when my daughter really could have used a nap, she would refuse and then be a crankypants until she went to bed.
Pro: We no longer had to make sure that we were home by a certain time during the day for her nap, and this opened up our schedule quite a bit.
Con: If you’re anything like me, there are some days when you just can’t wait until nap time so you can rest/do housework/catch up on e-mails. When she gave up nap time I lost my “Me” time.
I know some moms who fight the nap issue tooth and nail until their kids head off to kindergarten. I’ve just tried to work with my daughter’s innate needs for sleep as best I can, and I’m counting my blessings that my son still dozes for a while every day.
Science-mom says...
For me it`s a toss between late bedtime (with naps) and evening crankiness (no naps). I chose the former so my boys can have some quality with their Dad in the evenings.