There's no NAPPING in parenting!

So as many other parents have discovered  sleep becomes a rare commodity at certain points in parenthood. Sleep and let's be honest at times even those OTHER things you used to do in bed before the adventure of parenthood began. I am definitely one sleep deprived parent. I'm lucky if I get a night's sleep of seven hours; most of the time it's probably closer to a little over six hours. And my four year old has informed us she is "always going to sleep with Mommy and Daddy. Forever, Mommy!" Check in with me in a couple years to see how that one is working.

And after how last weekend went I'm see why I don't nap much anymore either. If you do try to squeeze in a nap you better do it with one eye open! At least if you have my children. First, why is it when you want to lay down on the couch or even in bed with them in the morning, they all of a sudden think you are a jungle gym? If we do ever find a rare moment alone for those OTHER things, I'm not sure if Kenz and Ave would have another sibling after all the times they've jumped and landed in some important places and I don't think a mammogram can hurt any worse than the smashing my chest has taken from being the jungle gym or trampoline that they think I am for whatever reason.

If they do decide to not trample all over us while we're trying to catch a little extra shut eye, then silence is NOT usually a good thing either. Once I woke up to find all my tampons pulled out of the applicators and a path of them leading to Averi's room. Curious to see what I would find I followed the trail to find them all tied together and hanging off Averi's dresser. "Like a Christmas ornament," was Nate's assessment of the situation."Got to give her points for creativity I suppose." Another time, I found her head covered in diaper cream. She thought it was shaving cream and was lathering up her head and face like daddy does when he goes to shave.  Let me tell you washing diaper cream out of a full head of hair is NOT easy.

So needless to say it's been a long time since I've attempted a nap, but this weekend Nate and I were on the coach on one side of the basement and the girls were around the corner in their playroom. I was fighting another cold that seems to keep coming back (because I don't get any sleep I think) so I maybe dozed off for thirty minutes but Nate stayed awake the whole time. But Kenzi kept shoving her butt in my face and eventually we got the whiff of poop so since he hadn't heard Averi in a bit and Kenz needed to be changed we both got up. Me to change Kenz and him to check on Averi. Except Averi was nowhere. She was not in the basement, she was not upstairs. She'd done this once before and she was just hiding so I didn't get too concerned at first. Except after five minutes of searching for her and no Averi I was starting to get that parent panic. She loves the outdoors so we started checking outside. At first we didn't even see Bettis so started to worry maybe he got out and she thought she needed to bring him back. Our yard is fenced and the deck gated but she could get out if she really wanted and anyone could get in if they really wanted. So parent panic was setting in big time. Nate called and called for her and finally he saw her. She was laying on the ground against the door that leads into the kitchen. Bawling! Because she went outside and then when she tried to come back in all the doors were locked. We were in the basement and didn't hear her to answer the door. I don't know how long she tried to get in but she got scared and ended up on the ground next to the door and crying there was where we found her. So after we all got over being scared, we of course gave her everything from the stranger danger talk to you don't even go out in the backyard without mommy or daddy.

That should have been enough excitement for one naptime but no. Shortly thereafter I found that our heaters are not like the ones at the old house. Barbie became a casualty of the playroom. She somehow in the crazy mess the playroom became during naptime ended up a little close to the heater. Her hair ended up charred and her limbs started to melt. It's either our heaters or Barbie is a fire hazard. Either way I learned the two should not be close.

So between my daughter that never wants to go to bed at night and then has to not only sleep with us every night but take up a majority of the bed, and all the mischief my children manage to get themselves into, I'm thinking I'll just be functioning on mimimal sleep the next couple of years. Or I may just master really sleeping with one eye open! Either way the lack of sleep and smashed body parts are worth it..