*This post is a part of the Sunday Morning Coffee Thoughts on my Facebook @messymama18. Like my page and join in on the conversation each Sunday as I discuss motherhood, toddlers, SAHM life, parenting with anxiety, Target, and so much more.

Morning Coffee Thoughts

If I could do one thing during the day, it would be to take a nice, long, quiet nap. A nap with no interruptions, and no concerns about things not getting done or a toddler pulling at my fingers because I’ve got important duties to take care of. Oh, but would I love that nap so very much. A quiet space with mindful music in the background. A waterfall off in the distance. A cool breeze slithering through the windows as I dream. This is adulthood: Daydreaming about naps.

It’s funny how kids take naps for granted. Like, there is so much to explore and play. There is no time for naps. Naps are insignificant to the amount of excitement going on around them. Oh, to have that sense of ambition each day that we jump out of bed, proclaiming, “It’s today! It’s time to play!” Oh to be a child.

Dear Kids, do you not understand that naps are so very important. Yes, naps are important for our kids, but did you know they are important for you too? Grab a cup of coffee, take a seat, and let’s discuss why Naps Are Important in this edition of Morning Coffee Thoughts.

Naps Are Important

For Kids

Naps are important for kids health. It is the right amount of down time during the day to rejuvenate them and rebuild their energy. It gives the brain time to take a break, and it allows the body to heal itself.

Naps also prevent crankiness. I am pretty strict about nap time with my kid because I know it will keep her in a good mood; therefor, I will be in a good mood. It limits the amount of melt downs. If nap time doesn’t fit into a busy day I make sure my kid has an opportunity to rest, whether it’s in the car or in her stroller.

Down time is important for their growth and development. Important things happen in your child’s brain when they are napping. This means naps help kid brains retain information and improve memory.

Yes, it’s true, our children may not understand these benefits and it doesn’t make nap time any easier. Knowing why naps are important for us grownups though, may help us stick to our guns when it comes to maintaining a nap time routine.

Important For Parents

Kids are relentless fire balls of energy, loaded with car batteries that never seem to die. And when they start to slow down, they re-charge by sucking the ever-living life out of us until we’re coffee guzzling zombies. This is my hypothesis when it comes to their ridiculous levels of energy.

This is why we desperately need our children to nap, so that we gain a few minutes to take a deep inhale and sit our asses down. We’ have been chasing, negotiating, wrestling, and lifting for multiple straight hours. Yes, you are exhausted and now you need a break: nap time!

We put off important tasks all day because we have to to give our undivided attention to a fire rocket. Now that our adorable spaceship is nestled cutely in their sleep, we get to wash the dishes, clean up that pile of throw up that’s been sitting all day, and grab a snack.

Naps also allow you to take in a calm moment of serenity, and watch your little blessing sleep. You watch them, wondering how magical it was to create such a beautiful little creature, and you suddenly remember why you became a parent in the first place. Not something you usually get the chance to do when your racing around behind them.

Naps help our kids grow into healthy beings, but they also give us our sanity back, right at the moment when we feel like we are hanging on to our last little bit. So get those suckers off to dream land and find your moment to breath. Happy Napping!

Check out my Sunday Morning Coffee Thoughts video on why Naps Are Important and follow me on Facebook for more coffee conversations every Sunday.

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*Disclaimer – Statements made in this post are of my own opinions, views and thoughts. I am not a professional and should not be regarded as such.

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I’ve read all the “how tos” and advice on sleep training a baby. There are many ways to help a baby learn how to nap during the day and sleep through the night. Suggestions such as letting the baby cry it out, creating a bed time routine, not making eye contact if the baby wakes up in the middle of the night or keeping baby in the crib. All great advice and probably work well when parents stick to their routines, but I have a picky baby who has no tolerance for methods.

Like every mother, I believe my child is unique. She’s spunky, she’s goofy, she’s full of personality, and boy, does she know what she wants. She is everything you could imagine a little girl should be; resilient and bold. All the ingredients necessary to grow into a strong woman. Exactly what I had hoped for from the moment I found out I was having a girl. A wonder baby who will grow up to be just like her mama. What I had not taken into consideration, however, was I too would be on the receiving end of resilient and bold. A price I will have to pay.

So, when it comes to methods, wonder baby is not having it. She likes her bottles warm and prompt, her diapers dry, and her sleep well thought out; meticulously planned and choreographed. If you don’t get it right, prepare to spend the next few hours trying to figure it out.

Her sleeping “ritual,” changes daily and usually takes me a couple of rounds before she’s sweetly dreaming away. It’s like a game of chess with the strategic thinking, and check mate is a dozing child. I have read that the best tactic is to place a drowsy baby down and allow them to fall asleep on their own. This has worked, on some occasions at least. The books say not to move baby or pick baby up if she wakes up in the middle of the night. The best method is to avoid eye contact and pat baby’s back to sleep without picking her up. This too has worked some nights, on other nights a muffled fuss usually accelerates in to curdling screams until I sooth her with music and rocking. Some nights, all she wants is her bottle. Sometimes it’s all three and other nights I’ll have to throw in a dry diaper. It’s all about balance.

In my home, letting her cry it out is not an option. There are a few times when I have had no choice, like in the car, and I can’t pull over. So sure, I believe it works, but I personally hate it. There is something inside of my soul that twists and makes my heart tear apart every time my daughter cries. Even in the car, I’ll talk to her or sing to her to let her know I am not ignoring her. I do not judge the Mama’s who have chosen this method. We do what we need to do when it comes to our own families and we don’t need other people putting in their input. Believe me, I get it.

Some days it takes mere minutes to get her to nap, other days it takes eight hours and I’m driven mad with frustration because I can’t get the formula right. Quiet days turn into long exhausting nights and vice versa. Other days I get lucky and I nail her soothing demand at every eye rub. I have tried sticking with the best practice methods during each nap and bed time, but my headstrong little girl hypothetically laughs at my attempts to be an exemplary parent (more like cries,) and I’m back to playing an enervating chess game with a six-month-old.

If parenting was graded on your success rate of best methods, I would have failed it miserably. I am learning that being a parent is hard enough as it is without all the optimum techniques on how to be a decent one. I’m just trying to get through one nap struggle at a time.