To Nap or Not to Nap

Good morning! Let’s talk a little bit about sleep! It’s been a big topic of conversation in my world lately.

C has quite a few baby friends around his age and it seems everybody is hitting that point where the morning nap starts to disappear. I’ve gone through various stages of mourning (no pun intended), but I’m starting to be excited about being able to have a more flexible schedule in the first half of our day. However, we still have a few remaining issues. First is that C is still an absolute monster by about 11 if we blow past the morning nap all together. I know that with time that will change, but right now it’s tough. Second, is that it affects the afternoon nap, and not in a good way. When I mention that we’re losing the morning nap most people seem to think that we’ll get a longer afternoon nap. They are wrong. C is his mother's son and seems to find joy in being a little contrary. My husband thinks that “little” might be an understatement. No morning nap consistently results in a shorter afternoon nap. It’s very frustrating. For reference I’ve included our schedule since C was about 3 months below:

7am - Up

8am - Breakfast

9am - Nap (1-1.5 hours)

12 - Lunch

1 - Nap (1.5-2.5 hours)

3:30 - Snack

6pm - Dinner

7pm - Bed

Here’s how we’re working with the change. C eats a really big breakfast at 8am. This morning he had a cup oats with chia, flax, and blueberries and toast with almond butter. If you haven’t figured it out, I think food can fix everything. Then at 9am I hold him and rock him (sometimes nurse a little) for about 10 minutes and then put him in his crib with a few simple toys and books. I tell him, “I love you. Have a little rest. I’ll be back to check on you in 30 minutes. I’ll be right outside.” This might seem silly to say to a 1 year old, but it’s a very important part of the process. I leave the room calmly even if he’s crying. I leave him for a half an hour and if he’s still awake I get him after that time has passed.

When we first started this there was definitely some crying involved, but usually the distraction of the toys took over pretty quickly. Now he goes in pretty happily and “reads” his books. He seriously “reads” them outloud. I have trouble pulling myself away from the monitor. It’s too cute. A few weeks ago he would fall asleep after only a few minutes of play. Now it’s unlikely that he will sleep at all, but it still gives him the quiet time and alone time that he and I need. Every once and awhile he’ll still fall asleep. Otherwise he has a half an hour to himself to be quiet and I get to make a second cup of coffee and spend a few minutes taking care of myself. Win win. I will say, the big breakfast seems to be key to making this process work.

If he doesn’t sleep at all we bump lunch to 11:30 and he goes down at 12. All the kinks certainly aren’t worked out yet, but this has helped us to handle the transition.

All this change is causing him to be a grumpy bug in the afternoon, but I’ve found that music is my saving grace. When C is super grumpy I hold him and dance around the living room. He LOVES it. If you stop by and catch us dancing it probably means that the laundry isn’t done, the dishes aren’t washed, and I’m probably behind on a few different articles. You know what? I don’t care. I’m watching my baby transform into a little person before my eyes. As I type this he is scooping rice and chicken with a fork for the first time. I have no sadness about him growing older, each new milestone fills me with joy and each day is better than the last. However, I also treasure every moment I get to hold him in my arms and dance like we did when he was a newborn. I know I won’t be able to do that forever and his head on my chest, or his infectious laugh as we bounce around, fill me with the purest form of joy I have ever known. The dishes can wait.

These transitions have caused me to spend some time reworking our schedule and trying to find a good balance between Connor’s needs, Tiny Sprout Love, and Mom’s needs (yes, they matter too!) so dinners have been relatively simple. Here’s what I’m eating tonight, as I type these very words, now that C is down, Scott is at a meeting and I’ve found myself all alone with my computer and a plate full of food!

I haven’t been grocery shopping in 2 weeks and I went on a walk with a friend in the beautiful weather instead of cooking tonight so I went with a super simple “cheater” dinner that still makes for an awesome meal. Details below.

Last Minute Dinner

1 package Gluten-Free Pasta - Pastene pasta made with with corn, rice, and quinoa is my current favorite

1 jar Mezzetta Tomato Basil Sauce - Mezzetta is the only sauce I’ve found in my grocery store that’s made with only whole ingredients. Exactly the things I would put in if I made sauce. No additives. It’s delicious. You could use any sauce, but I highly recommend this one.

1 glug Garlic Infused Olive Oil - If you don’t have this in your house you need it

1 package frozen spinach

You just mix all these together and serve with a pile of parm cheese on top. My tip is to defrost the spinach under running water while the pasta water boils and the pasta cooks. If you do that you can throw it on the hot pasta with the sauce and mix it all in.

On the side I made my favorite cornbread from The Newlywed Cookbook and served the whole thing with a giant pile of greens from our farm share from Heron Pond Farm. It was certainly not the first time they’d saved a mealtime. For the cornbread I subbed yogurt for the buttermilk and it worked just fine. Since, again, I haven’t been to the store in 2 weeks. Whatever, I’ve been busy dancing with my son. How much longer do you think he’s going to let me do that? Worth it.