In Like a Lion

March has arrived.
In my house it has been like a lion.
The week has been a wild one. It has produced a toddler who will not nap (21 months old) and I was having a really hard time with the transition. Perhaps, selfishly, more than she was.

Naps were the time of the day that I relaxed and recharged. If you are a parent you know that having a toddler is quite demanding. Literally speaking. They are demanding you to get up and meet their needs NOW. Not later, or in a little while, they want it like Veruca Salt, that want it and they want it NOOOW! The winter here has been rough. Rough on this stay at home mom and her little very active toddler. We have been stuck in the house and we are praying that the warmer weather will begin to show some signs of life and start melting the over 11 feet of snow that has fallen in the last month. As I write this there is more snow expected for tomorrow and at this point it is like a cruel joke.

Going through this change brought back a lot of those feelings that I had during those hard early months of motherhood. The not sleeping during the day was causing some sleep disturbances at night. I felt like I was drowning. I searched the internet for help. I read that naps are needed for brain growth. I read that new studies say that they don't need naps. I read about keeping the routine the same and putting her down for the nap anyway. I read not to do that. Others also shared their advice. It was just like being back in that new mommy phase. I was confused and cried. I cried a lot.

So, I was having a hard time. I am better now about it. Why the change? I began to realize that it just means that she is growing. She is smart enough that if she really needed the nap she would give in to it. I have started a "quiet time" now instead which at this point buys me a mere twenty minutes alone, but like when she was an infant, I hope that over time she will be able to commit to one hour. Because that's what I want and I want it now.