Upon Further Review...
Abbie is falling asleep for her nap around noon. She is then waking up between 1:30 and 1:45 for a total nap time around 90 minutes. This is not adequate nap time for a 14-month-old, and she needs to be put down again later in the evening for a quick nap. Therefore, Abbie is not on the cusp of a one nap a day schedule. Des Moines is not charged a time out. First down!
I should have known this would happen. I’ve been a parent long enough (14 months) to realize that childhood development is not a straight line. It varies quite a quite a bit as Abbie takes two steps forward, one step back, falls down, sees a dog behind her, turns, chases it, falls again, scrapes her knee, cries, and I have to pick her up several feet behind where she started. She did so well for a few days, though. That three-hour nap a few days ago was fabulous; I used the time to nap, exercise, blog, check every website in my bookmarks, sort laundry, nap again, and start dinner before she woke up. The next day her nap was closer to two-and-a-half-hours, and I had to lop off those last three activities along with a couple bookmarks. The next day’s nap was closer to two-hours, meaning I had to pare my afternoon internet surfing to the really important sites (general sports news and Cubs news). A shade over two hours is barely long enough to be considered adequate time for one nap, but I tolerated her crankiness and toughed it out that night, much like girlfriends and clueless parents everywhere are toughing out the new Dukes of Hazzard movie. Finally these last couple of days her naps have been just over 90 minutes, and that just isn’t long enough; that doesn’t even give me enough time to blog.
These past couple of days I’ve had to supplement my blogging time and her napping time with an extra nap in the evening. She’s actually accepted her bonus nap pretty well, falling asleep quickly and without too much fuss; it’s nice to know I’m not always forcing her to do something against her wishes. Unfortunately, these last couple days, just as she dozed off somebody has woken her up, and when I say “somebody” I mean “the dog.” The dog has an awful habit of barking furiously when people, other dogs, or especially threatening small animals are at the door, walking near our house, or simply unlucky enough to be in her line of sight. When Abbie is awake, this barking is a minor annoyance that results in, at worst, a headache and some window screen damage. When Abbie is napping, though, I have to rush to the window or door, grab the dog by the scruff of her neck, and scream in whispered tones for her to be quiet while praying Abbie stays asleep. Sometimes she sleeps right through it; other times, like the past two days, she wakes up crying, and I soon join her in tears because I know she’ll be irritable for the rest of the night and I still had stuff I wanted to do. Two days ago, a maintenance worker knocked on the door just as she dozed off. Yesterday, Ellie came home in an exceptionally menacing manner minutes after she fell asleep, setting the dog off more than usual. Tomorrow, maybe hostile squirrels will hoard nuts in an intimidating style in the park across the street.
For today, though, things are going better. We’re approaching two hours into her nap, and Abbie is still asleep. That means I still have time to blog. Now if only I had more to say.
I should have known this would happen. I’ve been a parent long enough (14 months) to realize that childhood development is not a straight line. It varies quite a quite a bit as Abbie takes two steps forward, one step back, falls down, sees a dog behind her, turns, chases it, falls again, scrapes her knee, cries, and I have to pick her up several feet behind where she started. She did so well for a few days, though. That three-hour nap a few days ago was fabulous; I used the time to nap, exercise, blog, check every website in my bookmarks, sort laundry, nap again, and start dinner before she woke up. The next day her nap was closer to two-and-a-half-hours, and I had to lop off those last three activities along with a couple bookmarks. The next day’s nap was closer to two-hours, meaning I had to pare my afternoon internet surfing to the really important sites (general sports news and Cubs news). A shade over two hours is barely long enough to be considered adequate time for one nap, but I tolerated her crankiness and toughed it out that night, much like girlfriends and clueless parents everywhere are toughing out the new Dukes of Hazzard movie. Finally these last couple of days her naps have been just over 90 minutes, and that just isn’t long enough; that doesn’t even give me enough time to blog.
These past couple of days I’ve had to supplement my blogging time and her napping time with an extra nap in the evening. She’s actually accepted her bonus nap pretty well, falling asleep quickly and without too much fuss; it’s nice to know I’m not always forcing her to do something against her wishes. Unfortunately, these last couple days, just as she dozed off somebody has woken her up, and when I say “somebody” I mean “the dog.” The dog has an awful habit of barking furiously when people, other dogs, or especially threatening small animals are at the door, walking near our house, or simply unlucky enough to be in her line of sight. When Abbie is awake, this barking is a minor annoyance that results in, at worst, a headache and some window screen damage. When Abbie is napping, though, I have to rush to the window or door, grab the dog by the scruff of her neck, and scream in whispered tones for her to be quiet while praying Abbie stays asleep. Sometimes she sleeps right through it; other times, like the past two days, she wakes up crying, and I soon join her in tears because I know she’ll be irritable for the rest of the night and I still had stuff I wanted to do. Two days ago, a maintenance worker knocked on the door just as she dozed off. Yesterday, Ellie came home in an exceptionally menacing manner minutes after she fell asleep, setting the dog off more than usual. Tomorrow, maybe hostile squirrels will hoard nuts in an intimidating style in the park across the street.
For today, though, things are going better. We’re approaching two hours into her nap, and Abbie is still asleep. That means I still have time to blog. Now if only I had more to say.
posted by Matt at
9:26 PM
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