My toddler stopped napping. My sweet, sweet toddler hasn’t had a nap in a month! A month! I didn’t expect this to happen so soon! No naps?! This is all new territory for me! My boys didn’t stop napping till they were 3 and half! My daughter is only 2 and half! I should have gotten another year of naps! A whole year gone! Just like that. No warning. Just gone. All gone.

My days are completely different now. I have no time to work alone now. Trying to balance work with a toddler that doesn’t nap is proving to be difficult right now. I feel like I should probably be better at this by now, she is my 3rd child after all. But I feel like I’m barely able to keep my head above water when it comes to this balancing act.

You would think that without napping that she would sleep better at night, right? NO! She doesn’t! My daughter hates sleep! Keep in mind this is the same toddler that when in the car for 26 hours driving to Florida only slept from 12-2am and then from 5-7am and didn’t sleep again till that night when we got to our location at 10pm and was happy the whole time!

My daughter got the no sleep DNA or she’s not human,  or something I’m not exactly sure! My daughter hates sleep. And I love sleep. I miss nap time. She doesn’t. Not even a little bit. I miss it for so many reason, mostly for the random times that I got to sleep too. Sleep is beautiful. Sleep is wonderful. Why does she hate it?

Why can’t my daughter nap again? I am clearly in denial here about this. It was the only time of day that I had time to myself to think, shower alone, read, work, just be alone, without it being like 11pm at night. And now… that is gone. All gone.

I may be in total denial about it, but here is the thing, my daughter doesn’t nap anymore, and we get even more time together and it is beautiful.

My day are completely different now. My work, my plans, are all on the back burner right now. It makes me sad, but I am also so completely over the moon thrilled and happy that I get this extra time with my daughter. She is growing up so fast, before I know it she will be in school. This extra time with her is such a gift. She has really thrived in the last few weeks without taking her naps. Our relationship has changed. She has really blossomed into this new sweet little person.

I am sure at some point I will find balance with her being awake all day and my work. But right now I am just enjoying all the extra play time we have together.

The days go by too fast. Tomorrow isn’t promised. I am so thankful for this time with my daughter, even if some days I could really use a nap and wish she would too!

~ Michelle