Naps

They are quickly turning into impossibilities in this house.

Until the broken femur, my goal was to wear Tad out early and often, so he would take a decent nap right after lunch and then go to bed at a decent hour at night. It is nearly impossible to do anything physical with him right now, so wearing him out for a nap is no longer an option.

And if he’s not napping, do you think Ane is? HELL NO.

And temperatures are peaking right around 90 degrees here in the greater Puget Sound region, which is not good. Yes, we have our little A/C unit going, but I have to keep the house cool enough to keep a little boy in a Spica cast from overheating.

Yesterday, I spent some time cleaning his cast and un-funkifying it with baby powder. Still, he’s been in it for three weeks (we’ve hit the halfway mark! WOO-HOO!!), and it does not have that fresh-from-the-hospital smell anymore.

And did I mention we’re going forward with his family birthday party on Saturday, seeing as his hands still work? The Webmaster will get to play Grillmaster, as all the food will be cooked outside. Temperatures are predicted to be as high as 96 degrees on Saturday. I’m even planning to put the Crock Pot out on the back deck to cook. But we’re getting an ice-cream cake – I did it last year, too. I just can’t justify baking a cake in these temperatures.

Back to the naps. It’s not that Tad isn’t tired – he just feels trapped every single time we put him to bed. If it’s nighttime, he might yell, but he stays in place. If it’s naptime, forget it. Ever since he learned to roll and crawl in the cast, he simply shimmys out of bed and onto the floor, where he sits and yells (or stands, gripping the bed for support, and yells).

So I’ve pretty much given up on naps for him right now. It just isn’t worth the fight. The problem is that both children become raving lunatics around dinnertime if they don’t sleep. Ane will sometimes declare that she’s tired and ask to take a nap, but that’s pretty rare. And a couple of nights ago, Tad could barely keep his eyes open over dinner (he finally got his second wind and ate) and almost fell out of his chair.

But sometimes, his need for sleep catches up with him (usually a couple of hours past naptime, but well before dinner), and he just collapses:

Yes, Tad has disgustingly long eyelashes. But when he wakes up, he’s just miserable. He cries and wails, and then I have to hold him for a good long while (and distract him with TV). I theorized to Grandma that he is dreaming about being his normal self – up and about, running and jumping and active – and then wakes up to the harsh reality of the Spica cast. I’d think it would be pretty upsetting.

So, I console him as best as I can with apple juice, loving hugs and kisses, and Curious George DVDs. And I let him take naps on the living room floor. Because when your three-year-old’s life has been turned upside-down and you can’t bear it for him, the least you can do is let him watch his favorite shows and stick a pillow under his head so he doesn’t get rug imprints on his cheek.

Happy Birthday, Dad/Gichan!! We love you!

This entry was posted on Friday, August 15th, 2008 at 1:30 am and is filed under Children.
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