The beginning of the end

Ian finally embraced the concept of taking one nap a day in his bed (generally one hour long) at the age of 2 1/2, and it seems that he is now in the process of giving up that nap. Over the last couple of weeks that nap has been getting shorter and shorter most days. There have been a couple of times recently where he took a really long nap (upwards of 3 hours!), but the majority of the time his nap has been 15-30 minutes long lately. Fewer of his naps have been taken in his bed because if we are traveling anywhere after 11am, he falls asleep in the van. I've tried waking him up once we are home and putting him down for a nap a couple of hours later, but he can't fall asleep a second time. Now I just let him sleep in the van in the garage if this happens. The problem then is what to do when Oliver takes his nap. Ian is a noisy little guy, and I don't think the concept of a quiet time in his bedroom during Oliver's nap will work. I'm thinking of letting him play in the basement (would be viewed as a treat) during the time he's awake but Oliver is sleeping, and if he takes his nap in the van, then I think I'll let Nadia play down there also and let her skip her quiet time.

Once the kids are older, I'll reinstate quiet time in their bedrooms (they could play or read a book), but I don't think it will work out well at this point with Ian, if I expect Oliver to sleep in the room next to him anyhow. I do find that I need a bit of downtime myself, particularly on the days when Paul doesn't get home until after they are in bed. Having one hour to myself (to do my devotions or cook dinner or blog or clean, etc.) is very helpful when I have sole responsibility for the kids for 13 hours a day. Since the weather was nice today, I let Nadia and Ian play in the backyard while Oliver napped because Ian fell asleep on the way home from ladies Bible study. Nadia gave up her nap last summer while I was in the hospital shortly after she turned four years old; so I guess it makes sense that Ian will be giving his nap up shortly as he'll be turning four years old in about six weeks.

The other change that I knew would eventually occur but hadn't implemented yet was to start having Nadia take her bath separate from the boys. My mom gave Nadia and Ian separate baths on Saturday night, and when I went to give all three kids a bath this evening, Nadia told me she wanted to take hers separately, which she had never requested before. It was a bit tricky to shampoo her hair while watching Oliver when he was out of the tub. I need to teach her to wash her own hair. It cut down the amount of time any of them spent in the tub since I divided it in half, but otherwise it worked out fine. I guess now is the time to start working on the concept of privacy between the boys and Nadia. Thus far there really has been very little privacy in terms of bathing, going to the bathroom, and getting dressed/undressed. I knew it was something we'd work on at some point, and it seems the time has come now. Several weeks ago I had started expecting more privacy for myself in regards to Nadia and Ian. Oliver still is in the bathroom with me when I shower and such. Motherhood definitely has a way of stripping you of privacy, but it's just a temporary stage. I know I should feel excited about regaining some privacy, but I'm still adjusting to the idea that my childbearing years are over. I still find myself wanting to experience things (such as nursing) again; so I feel a bit blue when I realize that certain phases of motherhood are coming to an end for me.