I hate not knowing it all. (insert chuckle)
I need a little advice.
But first, let me tell you a few things about me:
- I'm pretty strict and consistent. I say what I mean. I mean what I say. I expect obedience. I follow through...
- BUT, I try to adapt to the situation when the need arises.
- I LOVE nap time. I'm selfish. Those two hours are my breathing time in the day, especially with Mike not coming home until 7, or not coming home at all some days.
Here's the skinny...
You see this boy? I love him more than socks on a wet, cold day...
Golly is he ever challenging me.
Oh wait, I was gettin' to the "skinny"...
Here goes:
We (or I, if Mike's not home), put him to bed. Up he gets. We correct, send him back. Do this maybe 2 more times (EVEN if Dad corrects him). Sometimes he comes up with an excuse that sounds legitimate...lately it's "I have to poop." Whadya say to that, huh? Especially when he goes when you send him to the potty. le sigh.
Tonight I was all the kinds of proactive in the book.
- Go pee. Check
- Need to poop? Check
- Chapstick. Check
- Water. Check
- Hug. Check
- Kiss. Check
- Music on. Check
- Gentle reminder that if I hear you up I will come up there. Check.
Thinking - DUDE, YOU'RE THREE. KNOCK THIS OFF!
Here's the deal on Xavier. He'd love to sleep till 9, stay up till 10. It's his internal rhythm. I love internal rhythm. His daddy's a night owl. I get it. However, homeschooled or not, I don't feel like this is a rhythm that's conducive to every day life. Opinions on that statement?
So, even when I wake Xavier by 7:30 a.m., I truly don't think he's tired tired at bedtime. Even though we've played outside, etc., etc., etc. Night owl - for real.
He does go down willingly at nap time for 1 1/2-2 hours
So, remembering bullet point #3 at the top of the blog post (RE: my love affair with nap time), what's your mama advice?
Here's what you know:
- He gets constant & consistent correction for getting out of bed.
- He'll lay there for 2 hours awake. Period.
When he's asleep and snugged like a little babe I almost forget about the 3-5 times I had to walk up the stairs to correct him.
Almost....
P.S.
This girl...she lives an average life. Up by 7 at the latest
(yawn...she doesn't understand about Saturdays!)...bed by 8-9...asleep
in 10 minutes even if brother is being naughty. She.don't.mess.around.
2 comments:
Just my opinion. I would cut out naptime. I would much rather have quiet evenings than 2 hours in the afternoon. I get what you mean though, I use to cherish mine. Earlier bedtime might be solution. Our Ian still does 7:30, he just needs it. Our kids never did 10 o'clock bedtime as little tike's. They were ready. Just may two cents.
'Twould be nice indeed to know everything, would it not?! :)
Here's my two cents, take it for what it's worth.
1) I love and need naptime AND I can't stand crabby evenings. Perhaps you could wake him after an hour--or let him sleep 90 minutes at most--whatever you think most appropriate to get him happily through the evening.
2) I wouldn't care if he "lay in bed for two hours awake. Period." As long as he is resting. . .and he's obeying you by staying in bed when you tell him it's time for bed. Have you considered letting him look at books or play with a quiet toy for a certain amount of time and then making one trip to the top of the stairs to say "lights out now"? For example, both kids down at 8:30, N goes to sleep, X is allowed to read/play quietly until 9 when lights go out. If he gets out of bed, he loses that privilege.
Give us an update when you get this figured out! :)
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