Required: Nap Time & Quiet Time

Hallelujah for Quiet Time every afternoon!!!!  I seriously don’t know what I would do without it.  I get my emails answered, make necessary phone calls, do a photo project, write a blog, start supper or even read sometimes!!!

   As a mom of 4, I have stopped feeling guilty about taking that time and am embracing it as OK and necessary for my Mommy Morale.  We are all refreshed and ready t0 play again after quiet time, Mommy included!

Even Saprina and Sophie take naps in the afternoon. I think they like the quiet time too!  🙂

   We chose to do this from 12:30-2:30, so that most of the time, everyone is awake by the time we need to load up to get big sis from school.

   On weekends, Destiny is required to lay down and read for an hour.  We want our kids to love to read, plus this helps her meet her Book-It requirements for the month, and keeps her quiet while the others rest.

Tylan is almost 5 and rarely falls asleep anymore, but he still has to pick a spot and rest and looks at books.  Sometimes it’s on the couch, across the foot of my bed, or under a chair.  As long as he rests and reads, I am not picky on location!  🙂  He is required to lay 1 hour and then play quietly with cars the second hour until the other children wake up.  During the first hour, if he comes out of his spot, I add 5 minutes to his reading time.

 At 16 months old, Paxton still takes 2 naps a day. The key for him, is to only let him have an hour-long nap in the morning, so he’ll still go down at 12:30.  I have to really watch my time because that hour goes fast!  

  There is a natural transition that we seen happen at our house from baby with two naps, to toddler with one nap…..

 

  When we start to notice that our morning nappers are fighting their afternoon nap, we cut down the 2 hour morning nap.  We do this until we find the right mix that still allows for a good afternoon nap:  From 2 hours to an hour and a half, then an hour, then eventually 45 minutes, watching carefully which time frame still allows for a 2 hour afternoon nap. 

  Tylan kept his morning nap for a long time as a toddler, even just a 20 minute power nap helped us get through morning fussy time.  It was perfect because it didn’t mess up afternoon nap schedule.

He’s not a toddler in this photo, but I liked this one.  🙂

  Then there is little Miss Avery….who has decided she no longer needs naps every day. 

That’s because she is so angelic…..

NOT!

  She really does still need quite time or Crabitha comes out!!

  When I was a mommy of 1, and Destiny was Avery’s age and transitioning out of afternoon naps, I fought tooth and nail to keep her sleeping every day.  (She was a bear if she didn’t!)  Being a mom of 4 has helped me to be a bit more laid back about this transition, so here are the rules:

~Avery may read books until she falls asleep.

~She may not come out of her room until I give her permission.

~Is she sleeps, she gets to stay up with the big kids.  If she doesn’t she has to be the first one in bed. (WHICH SHE HATES!)

When I was making her lay there and try to sleep, she was not taking a nap at all anymore!

  Now that I let her read, sleep is sneaking up on her, and she is napping 8 out of 10 times, then coming out cheerful and ready to play.

  SCORE!

If you are looking to schedule your baby, which turns into scheduled toddlers and good sleepers, make sure you check out Baby Wise! We swear by it!

  I had 2 Baby Wise babies, and 2 not:

~ Destiny slept all night long at 5 weeks, we scheduled her from the first day home from the hospital on. 

~Tylan nursed every hour and a half, so I was unable to schedule him like I wanted until later, he slept all night at 5 months. 

~Avery came into our family 17 months after Ty,  I was exhausted and did not even try to schedule.  She did not sleep all night until 9 months!!!!!!  (I really thought I was going to die from lack of sleep! Seriously!) 

~Then Pax came along and I was bound and determined to schedule him based on how tired I was with Avery’s non-schedule. Guess who slept all night at 7 weeks? Yup! My scheduled eat-play-sleep baby.  LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

 I know it’s not for everyone, but I love schedules and anything that makes me feel organized, so this fits my style of parenting to a “T”!

Uh-oh, quiet time is over, and everyone is waking up, gotta run!

~T

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I {Heart} Library Day

  I love, love, LOVE to read and want my kids to be good readers too.  We promote this by limiting TV time to an hour a day, and requiring quiet reading (or looking at pictures if you can’t read yet) every day during nap time. 

  I could go on to list 1,001 reason that I love Library Day, but I am pretty sure the photo below says more than I could ever articulate:

Do you hear that?

SILENCE, except for the occasional turned page.

Where is Paxton you ask?  Oh making mischief I am sure.  Let me go find him…..

“Paxton!  What are you doing on the train table?!  And why must you destroy the kids Nativity set everyday?” 

  Guess its time I put down the camera and go read Paxton some books………

I {heart} reading!  🙂

~T

Be sure to head to Post 2 today for the weirdest recipe EVER:  Coyote Poo!

God’s Word

    So, did anyone else feel the Earth move Saturday night about 11?  We Kansans are TORNADO folks, we know exactly what to do in that circumstance, but an EARTHQUAKE?!  Woah.  Scary stuff.  Apparently Oklahoma had the largest Earthquake in it’s history, 5.6.  Now I don’t know enough about Earthquakes to tell you if Kansas had an earthquake too, or if we just felt the tremors from OKC.  Or an aftershock?  Not sure it was that either, since we felt it simultaneously.  No matter what it was called, it was scary and I believe, a sign of the times…..

Matthew 24:7-8  “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.”

  Jesus IS returning to take His followers home, are you ready? 

Salvation is as easy as ABC:

Admit you are a sinner, in need of saving.

“There is no one righteous, not even one … for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Romans 3:10 & 23

Believe He died on the cross for your sins.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

Confess that Jesus is Lord of your life, and Change your lifestyle so it reflects Christ in you.

“If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9

  If you choose to take these steps, contact a church or trusted friend to pray with you, for you and guide you through your Bible as  you dig into God’s word.  Such promises found there!

  On to today’s already-scheduled post, which just happens to be about God’s Word:

  It is my hearts desire for my children to dig into God’s word as they learn to read. So, you can imagine how my heart leapt for joy, when this is the sight that greeted me after school one day….

Destiny reading my Bible.

  She is fascinated to see what I have highlighted. She also loves to have me give her references to look up in her own Bible. Over the summer she added an New Living Translation Bible to her birthday list, she liked it better than her NIV.  Dale and I both love that translation, so we found her this darling pink one:

This inside is really great too, neat illustrations and mini-devotionals. 

Immediately she began digging into scripture and highlighting passages that spoke to her. 

“Mommy,” she says, “God is changing my heart, I can feel it.  I WANT to read His word!”

Oh my goodness, this brought tears to our eyes!!!!  She is GETTING it! And starting the habit at such an early age, praise the Lord!

  The biggest part of helping my children understand who God created them to be, is encouraging their relationship with the Lord.  I know they will never fully understand who they are, until they understand who God is.

A Parent’s Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for this treasured child of mine. Although you have entrusted them to me, I know they belong to you. Like Hannah offered Samuel, I dedicate my children to you, Lord. I recognize that they is always in your care.

Help me as a parent, Lord, with my weaknesses and imperfections. Give me strength and godly wisdom to raise these children after your Holy Word. Please supply what I lack. Keep my child walking on the path that leads to eternal life. Help them to overcome the temptations in this world and the sin that would so easily entangle them.

Dear God, send your Holy Spirit daily to lead and guide them. Ever assist them to grow in wisdom and stature, in grace and knowledge, in kindness, compassion and love. May they serve you faithfully with their whole heart devoted to you. May they discover the joy of your presence through daily relationship with your Son, Jesus.

Help me never to hold on too tightly to this child, nor neglect my responsibilities before you as a parent. Lord, let my commitment to raise this child for the glory of your name cause their lives to forever testify of your faithfulness.

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Proverbs 22:6
“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

What a promise! Praise His name!

~T

Be sure to click over to the next post for today:  A yummy soup, full of veggies, sure to warm your tummy!