The History of the Nap and Gone Fishin'

My freshman year of college, I learned a valuable skill. Actually, I believe it was my dear friend Jill who taught me this life-changing practice: the art of the nap. You see, before I went to college, I was never really a napper. To lay down and get all drooly in the middle of the day was not something I was into. Or so I thought. But when Jill would lay down and get snuggly after class, what was a girl to do? There was no good TV on in the afternoon (Springer was on at 11, and it was all downhill after that). So, I would reluctantly get myself a blankie and lay down on her little pull out couch. She had the routine down pat...close the blinds, set an alarm, and then simply sleep. Just like that. At first, this was just impossible for me, but I gave it the old college try. I would lie awake thinking of everything but sleeping. I would toss and turn, and think about homework and laundry and Ramen noodles.

I even began to doubt the nap. Was this just a waste of time? I was never even really tired in the middle of the day. What was the point? But again, I persisted. I would learn to nap no matter what, damnit. I then began to think of it as a "sympathy nap". I really wasn't tired, but Jill was, so I would nap in order to sympathize with her feelings. I am so selfless. Fortunately, this plan worked! Success at last!

Now, as an adult, I have a whole new appreciation for the nap. Although I rarely have the opportunity to nap myself, this has become a very important part of my life. When Emily began refusing a nap at age 2, I was devastated. How would I survive? Life as I knew it was over. Now that Emily is at school, Ethan is the main napper in my life. I have once again gained 2 and half hours of uninterrupted time each day while my dear boy slumbers. On weekends, the entire household has taken to "family naps" where we pile pillows and blankets on the floor, and encourage one another to sleep, or at the very least, sympathize with one another's desire for slumber. One thing that I have learned is that this is rarely successful unless everyone under the age of 6 has spent at least 3 hours blowing off some steam. This is a serious prerequisite to the family nap, or it turns out to be a complete disaster. So, this weekend, we went on a family field trip in an effort to have some fun and blow off some steam.

The Easter bunny generously gifted the children fishing poles, and my Mom gave the kids these stylish and snuggly fleeces, so we decided to give them a try. I think it may have been too cold for the fish, but by the time we left, both kids had dirt under their fingernails and leaves in their hair, so it was definitely a success.

At first, they were all gung-ho about the fishing adventure:

That lasted for about 15 minutes, until Ethan decided it was more fun to throw rocks, so we ventured down stream and left the fishing to the more patient half of the family.


And, about 15 minutes later, Ethan had a rock throwing partner, and Andy was the last fisherman standing.


That was our cue to take a nice walk in the woods, and visit the playground

Then we took them home, hosed them off and took a nice long family nap. I am happy to report that the kids were so tuckered out that this plan was a rousing success. A big thank you to two very important people who made this day possible, my Mom for getting the kids such snuggly fleeces to wear on our fishing trip, and Jill for teaching me the importance of resting ones eyes midday.