Last night, Mark and I reluctantly converted Abby's room to the likes of a jail cell. Only the basic necessities are allowed.
A bed, a desk with completely empty drawers, a closet void of even clothing. Not a single toy brings joy to this room. It is all about function. And all about avoiding distraction for naps and bedtime.
My daughter is 3 going on 13 in so many ways. But despite that, she desperately needs her naps. She is not a "happy" child when she is sleep-deprived. I was sad when we started tying her door shut at times when we couldn't be right there to monitor her safety. And now, I'm sorry that we have had to resort to converting her room into a jail cell. But everyone in this family benefits when Abby takes a good nap and wakes up cheerful. Let's hope this works.
Life lessons from a Mama of two great kids (adopted domestically) and a wife of one awesomely supportive husband.
About Me
- Trista
- We're an active Catholic family of 4, with 2 dogs and 1 cat in the mix. Mark is a self-proclaimed geek. Trista is a stay-at-home mom. Abby is an adventurous 4-year old. Ethan is a caring 3-year old. Casey and Maggie are 2 fun-loving golden retrievers. Sawyer is a stray cat we've adopted. With lucky 7 in the house, what more could we want?
5 comments:
As much as this is difficult it may be a needed step.
By the way, you may need to look into securing dressers etc to walls. If she decides to use her climbing skills ...
Sometimes they have a real problem realizing they need the nap as much as Mom and Dad need them to have a nap. Good luck and know that most parents have faced the same problem. Aunt Sue
we had to do this for Trisha, she hated naps and bedtime and would say after about 5 seconds that she was sleeping done now thank you...and want to get up, just about drove us nuts. Now she loves naps. Keep smiling it will get better.
Love Aunt Mary
oops that was suppose to say done sleeping, dyslexia is a wonderful thing.
Oh my, went through this with both boys! RJ we put into bed with the harness so he couldn't get up when he was little. Ron did not like that. Nate's the worst now, he'll be up still at midnight if we didn't use some threats (If you're playing your video game you will lose it for a month). Unfortunately, Abby's too young for that to work. Good luck, it's very hard to do, and I just hope you are both in this decision together, it makes a huge difference having your spouse's support.
(People like this are part of the reason I have a job too...won't stay in bed but can't stand on their own!)
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