No More Naps - Longmont,CO

we just took my 2 year old's nap away. It was an hour fight to get him down, and then he wasn't going to bed until 9:30~ his bedtime is 7:30! SO we stopped letting him nap, and he goes right to sleep at night now (at 7:30). As an added bonus, he now sleeps until 7:30 am, and he had always woken up by 6:00 am before! It's great. HOWEVER, he does need a little down time still, and I probably will not win mom of the year for this, but I just put a movie on in the afternoon. If you are not anti-TV, you could try that as well. It works great around here.

Hi S.!

I know that it seems just when we get a schedule going that works well for everyone, something changes and we have to start over. My son, who will be 5 in Feb. has "quiet time" in the afternoon when my daughter, who will be 3 in Mar. sleeps. I own a Pampered Chef business and work from home so I have to have about an hour to get things done. I usually pick a movie that is about 1.5 hours long for him to watch. I work for the first hour and then rest on the couch while he is watching for the last 30 minutes. The I do quiet activities with him, like coloring, water painting, or cutting and pasting construction paper. If it is nice we go outside. Some days we have 1.5 hours before my daughter wakes up, some days we have 10 minutes. I just explained to him that mommy has things that she needs to get done and he needs to rest his body. I also set up a jar that when I am done working and resting he can put in a quarter. When the jar is full we take the money and do something fun for him and his sister, like a trip to the Children's Museum. Finally I remind him before I start working that I'm saving to take us on a trip to California and the money comes from my business.

Just remember to be flexible with your own schedule, and when things aren't working well for you, tweak it a little.

My son gave up naps at three. I didn't enforce "quiet time" as he was too full of energy. I just went with the flow.
I got a lot done a little bit here and there during the day so by the time they went to bed I had "me time". I also made a deal with him that since he gave up naps he had an earlier bedtime. Last year he was in bed by 6:50! Every single night and he was tired! He sleeps until 7am so it was nice.
I got time with my older daughter and she was in bed back then at 7:45.
Now they are 4 and 7 my youngest is in bed by 7:30 and my daughter by 8:15ish. It is nice having one on one with each of them at some point during the day.

Your kids will outgrow the endless energy at some point. Last winter my son kind of mellowed out, found playing by himself was fun and I do babysit a few younger boys, so some days he has a friend here to play with. He is so into his action figures, puzzles, playdough or whatever I really don't struggle with keeping him busy. I make sure he gets outside to play for a bit and burn off steam each day! :)

I also got him in a few days a week in preschool last year and this year he is in Pre K. He loves school!!

I suggest if you really need that downtime during the day you put them in a one or two day a week preschool. Giving you a break to get errands ran, relax or whatever.
If you are feeling really tired at the end of the day, maybe making bedtime a little earlier for you too! Everything doesn't have to be done in one day, so if you are tired when they go to bed, just sit down and relax. Good luck!

Bring back the naps!! A three year old is too young to give up naps in my opinion...wait until she goes to Kindergarten. Even your 4.5 year old can still take naps.
I think if I were you, I would work to bring those back. Children need rest time whether it is sleeping or just relaxing reading books(but try the sleeping first!!) I would just stick with it. I train my children to take naps. I have a 2.5 year old that takes naps every day from 1-3 hours a day. I plan on having her take naps for a good long time!
Good luck!!

I had my kids have a quiet time every day until kindergarten. It certainly does not hurt them, and I definitely needed it. I was a better mom for that little bit of time every day. As far as enforcing it, it was no different than naps. There was no option for them. Good luck with how you decide to handle this!

Hi S.,
This is all about routine and consistancy just like any other aspect of parenting. If you and your younger child need the quiet time in the afternoon then you should schedule that in to your day. Just because your older child is full of energy doesn't mean he can't learn to be calm and content for an hour a day. I know many Moms use movies for their quiet time. That way if the child isn't sleepy then at least they are entertained while they lay on the couch or sit and draw quietly etc. But you could also make it "reading" time or just cuddle time. Everyone benefits from teaching children at a young age how to be okay in the quiet times without toys or someone to entertain them. If they are taught to enjoy looking at a picture book or to engage in some other quiet activity then they have a wonderful skill that will carry them through all of the "down" times of life.
Take care,
B.