We are having nap problems, part of which is totally my own fault – but that doesn’t make it suck any less. A few weeks ago when Caroline started fighting naps, I let her pick which bed she slept in. Sometimes it was her bed, sometimes it was Evan’s bed, sometimes it was the guest bed, and sometimes it was my bed. One day she was up in my bedroom and found the iPad under the pillow. Since she was born in a world that has never been without iPads (OMG flying cars are totally next) she unlocked it, found her app folder and watched Mickey Mouse until she fell asleep. I heard her over the monitor and thought it was funny – “Ha ha ha what a clever baby, how cute that she’s watching her show! And also that nap was so easy!”

You can probably see where this is going. I let her get away with using the iPad before naps as long as she was going to bed with no complaints. It was just so eeeeeeasy to say “Naptime, Caroline!” and have her run happily upstairs and jump into bed to lie down. She never made a peep and would fall asleep really fast. Since it happened RIGHT at the same time Evan stopped napping altogether I just…didn’t have the energy to fight it. Trust me, letting technology put my kid to sleep is LOW on the scale of “Thing I Feel Guilty About As A Mother.”

So anyways, this system worked fine – GREAT even – for a while. But for the last few days she’s been spending longer and longer messing around with the Disney Junior app and less and less time actually sleeping. She does eventually fall asleep – around 3:30 – but then I have to wake her up after an hour so she’ll go back to sleep at bedtime. I thought maybe she was just getting to an age where she didn’t need a nap anymore but AHAHAHHA NO ABSOLUTELY NOT. We tried it on Wednesday and she was a wreck by 6:30. Giving her a bath was like trying to wash a rabid cat and twice as noisy. It took her a full day to recover from missing just one nap. But on the other hand, if she’s basically just going to watch TV all afternoon I could at least keep her downstairs where I can interact with her (or, you know, we could do puzzles or she and Evan can run in circles and try to ride the dog. Again).

I suppose the first thing I should do is just STOP letting her have the iPad, but I’m dreading the screaming. There is already a LOT of angry child in this house and this is one the few things we DON’T fight about. But the current system isn’t exactly working either and I’d rather work on changing it now then a month from now when it would be even harder to stop. Any suggestions for my totally, completely, ridiculously first world problem?

So late, so sorry. I’m going to be taking over the linky for Amy since her world is a little crazy right now, so I promise to be a little more punctual in the future.

Sunday:

Family walk to church

FOUND IT! Too bad it’s not very good.

He’s very nonchalant about murdering animal crackers

Monday:

Morning parenting skills: LEVEL AWESOME

Afternoon parenting skills: LEVEL SEND HELP

Tuesday:

Whoa, what is this place??? (Walmart)

We took this stroller in the car for preschool drop off, even though we never got out of the car.

Caroline has a sleepover with her friends every night

Wednesday:

I should have just left them in the this cage, er, crib all day

She’s worried because of the sound of a rabid cat being murdered coming from the next room. It’s just her brother having a tantrum.

So peaceful. So unlike my life.

Thursday:

Asters, asters everywhere.

We had a playdate to pick up acorns. Then Caroline sat in her friend’s new carseat in the living room. Kids are weird.

Hey honey, you’ve got a little something right there. It looks like a growth.

Friday:

Really happy to be dropped off for school.

Pet stores – like having pets without any of the work!

My salad, right before I abandoned it and chased two naughty children out the door.

Saturday:

Bloggy friendz in mah state!!!

Really happy kids with $4 worth of yard sale toys

FOLIAGE, Y’ALL.

Today is a holiday even for the Navy so we’re going to do ALL THE FALL THINGS we didn’t get through this weekend – cider and chowdah and pumpkin picking and hayrides. The number of photos I’ve taken already verges on ridiculous, so I’m aiming for ludicrous by tomorrow night.

p.s. I am ALSO going to head over to my friend Jenna’s blog to enter her giveaway for the new Tinkerbell movie and some swag from Disney. My pixie child AND my 3 year old are totally obsessed with fairies and we’ve already seen The Great Fairy Rescue waaaaay too many times.

Link up with your camera photos – one day or ALL the days – below! You can put the code on your own blog so more people can join if you want, but please at least link back so people can find us if they want. I’m late this week but I’ll have this up by Saturday night in the future!

Times I went to Stroller Strides: FIVE.
Times I chased 2 toddlers around the Aquarium: THREE.
Number of cupcakes I ate: ZERO
Number of pounds lost: ALSO ZERO. In fact, I was up .8 pounds.

I’m only a little depressed now but on Thursday night I was REALLY depressed. I’m pretty sure it was due to the gourmet grilled chicken, sauteed apple and sharp cheddar grilled cheese sandwich I had for lunch (worth it) and next week I’ll see a loss. If I can make it through tonight’s playoff game without stress eating my weight in ice cream. Go Pats!

Sunday:

We found Nemo!

Find a happy place find a happy place FIND A HAPPY PLACE

SNL and blogging during nap time

Someone is a little TOO interested in Daddy's beer.

Monday:

Teddy bear picnic after Stroller Strides

Despite how this looks, it was in fact happy playing

I remember this stage. Dislike.

Tuesday:

One day they will drive REAL CARS and I will die dead of anxiety

I stole this quesadilla maker from a charity yard sale. (It's not really as bad as that makes it sound.)

New favorite: How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night?

Wednesday:

4:30 am toddler wake-up (WHY?????) means more Finding Nemo

This one is titled "Self Portrait - OH LOOK A FRONT FACING CAMERA!!!!!"

There was more than one lobster present at the birth of Christ? (No, but apparently there was a walrus)

The amount of resentment I feel towards my cat for her easy life is kind of ridiculous

At least I know she won't starve to death while I'm gone

Thursday:

I put a dollar in the mall carousel and blew Caroline's MIND

We feel the same way about cheese

OH HAI THERE BELUGA

Friday:

Evan woke up at 4:30 am AGAIN. Aparently he had urgent car-organizing to do.

They have a serious love-hate relationship. It's driving me and B's mom NUTS.

I also remember this stage. At least it's funny.

New toddler app called "Word Wagon" is fun, not at all obnoxious AND educational.

Saturday:

More aquarium, Jelly Man.

Evan has been looking at this toy at Target for MONTHS - today he bought it with his Christmas money, because it was on clearance, down to $18 from $60.

Caroline in a nutshell: sob sob sob sob OH LOOK A CAMERA SMILEEEEE sob sob sob

Right now the kitchen is clean, the laundry is going and I get to stay up as late as I want knowing tomorrow is my day to sleep in. It’s shaping up to be a pretty good weekend – after a REALLY long week – and I’m enjoying the crap out of it. I hope you’re having a good one too!

Did you take any camera phone photos this week? Link up with one or lots using the linky below and grab the code (so it shows on your blog too!) over at Amy’s . It’s really fun!

Twenty weeks of iPhone photos! I’ve gotten in the habit of taking a LOT of pictures each week so I can have plenty to chose from when I share them with you. I actually had to move all the previous weeks to our back-up hard drive because my computer’s memory was full. Whoops!

Sunday:

Even though there is NO ACTUAL REASON daylight savings time should have messed with our sleep schedules, I'm blaming it for the 5 am wakeup that lead to a 10 am car nap anyway.

Providence. Hey, did you know they have an Apple Store there?

Perhaps the last Apple Store in the country to still have iPad2's available. Or at least they did. Before E and I bought the last 2.*

Monday:

It's officially BabyLegs season, now that someone's thighs are full of chub

The snot levels in the house reached EPIC proportions. At least he doesn't mind the sucker.

Hello lover. My birthday present came early.

Tuesday:

I HAD to get out of the house so we went for a walk with the $25 third-hand jogger.

And apparently that’s my only pic from Tuesday. Like I said, poor Little Evan’s head cold was making him miserable and barfy so we skipped the whole week at Stroller Strides. I’m going to regret that on Monday.

Wednesday:

He thought Brutus looked cold and was sharing his blanket.

All full - milk, water and juice. Poor kid was barely eating so I was trying to keep him hydrated.

New outfit due to naptime puke incident. But he was feeling well enough to ask to go outside.

Thursday:

The weather kept getting better! Little Evan played with his car while I cleaned the porch.

Spring flowers on the door mean it's officially spring. Screw the calendar.

Working out pictures, frames and an arrangement to go around the Modern Bird painting.

Friday:

He insisted Caroline's bloomers were a hat. And then tried to hide behind the glass door. My kid is weird.

OMG MOM! SPRING DRESSES ARE SO CUTE!

Sale at the yarn store! That magenta yarn is going to be a shrug. Someday.

Saturday:

Someone celebrating turning 3 months old by taking a nap.

And someone celebrating being almost 2 by throwing his spoon on the floor 50 bajillion times turning breakfast. Oh toddlers.

*I cannot believe we bought TWO freakin’ iPads. I thought even buying ONE was a waste of money until I got to play with it and fell in love. But E still had some of his reenlistment bonus left after we did responsible stuff with it and when you sell your soul to the Navy for 5 more years sometimes you need shiny electronics to cheer yourself up. And sometimes you really hate sharing so you buy one for your wife too.

Did you take any camera phone photos this week? Link up with one or lots using the linky below and grab the code (so it shows on your blog too!) over at Amy’s . It’s really fun!