The End of Naps?

Now, it very well could be just the excitement that comes with the holidays. It might not be the end of naps entirely, but who knows. We've had a good run with naps for almost 3 and a half years. That's more than many children in my daughter's playgroup! Lily has been skipping a nap here and there for a few months now. Nothing drastic and nothing to make her hours awake troublesome or frustrating. She just has a day or two every couple weeks where she just isn't tired. It's beautiful what she does though. She never even leaves her bed! I have her trained so well to stay in her bed during that time that usually I never hear from her and don't even know she hasn't napped until an hour or so has passed. She's so good...SO good. Yesterday was one of the skipped days in her schedule. Like I said, it could have been the fact that we got a Christmas tree and decorated it right before her nap. DUH. She was way too excited to sleep, I imagine. Well, for instance, I walked by her door and she's sitting there playing with her lampshade beads and I said, "Hey, sweetie. Did you get a nap today?" Her response, which seemed rehearsed, was, "Yes, I slept here, and here and here!" She then pointed to all the places on the bed she had laid. HA! Next she begins to tell me about all the things that she dreamed of. She held her hand up and counted on her fingers, " I dreamed about bunnies, lions, tigers, bears and alligators, Mommy." As I stifled my laughter I asked again, "Honey, did you really nap?" She looks at me and smiles and says, "No, I'm too excited, can we decorate the tree again??" After explaining that I cannot take all the decorations down and put them back on over and over and over again, she relented and hopped down to go sit near the tree and soak up the loveliness. She's just like me sometimes. And I just love her so much!
This might start the beginning of the end of naps, but I don't mind. She's growing up into someone that I just might like to hang out with an extra hour or two a day anyway. :)

Mamaw and Papaw's House

Is there really anything better than watching your kid wake up in her little brown jammies with pink hearts on them, hair a little awry, dreamy sleep only minutes away from her little head, with a big smile on her face because you're at the best house in the universe? The house with two people who have higher office in her mind than the Sugar Plum Fairy, the Disney Princesses, and Fancy Nancy with all her amazing accessories? That's right, it's Mamaw and Papaw's house. When we're here all I hear is "Mamaw told me I could..." and "Papaw said it was okay..." Now, don't think for two minutes that my parents go around me and spoil her to death. No way. They are totally supportive of my parenting. But my daughter has begun to tell these little fibs to me in order to play me a bit. Do I mind? Nope. I have great memories of being at my Grandparent's houses. Time seemed to slow down. We did fun things and had no time table or agenda. Jammies would come off at noon and we'd find fun things to do until a meal I knew I would like was served and then I would play until way past my bedtime. Who wouldn't love that? So, this morning as I happily pass this legacy on to my child, I am amused for a new reason...Traveling for parents is TOTALLY different! HA! I never knew the packing, the lugging, the adult time tables, the lack of sleep that comes with parental travel. Don't get me wrong, I love it too, but I don't get the sleep I need and I eat too much and I do damage control for an overwrought kid (once the missed hours of sleep catch up to her). So, as I pass on the baton of warm fuzzies to Lily, I take the baton of parenting from my Mom and Dad. Guys, I never realized what you did to make our weekends so breezy. I now know that even though you loved it, you loved seeing ME love it most of all. Thank you. And Lilian, you're welcome.