Dear Summer: Welcome!

Dear Summer,

    You were born two days ago, on August 2nd, 2011.  The time was 6:22pm and we had just gotten to the hospital about 20 minutes before that.  One push and you were out!

    Since it's still fresh in my mind, I might as well go over how the day went.  12 hours before you were born I was still asleep in bed.  Around 8am I told Daddy that maybe he should stay home from work, to be on the safe side (since he didn't want to go in anyway, as we thought you would have been born already).  Late in the morning the whole family went and did errands.  We went to the grocery store, Sabine got her hair cut, etc.  Daddy thought I was crazy to be out and about, but it wasn't even that bad until about noon.  I wasn't even sure it was going to be the day until a couple hours after that when we'd gotten Sabine down for a nap.  I cooked an early dinner, vacuumed the house, and Daddy was getting so mad at me because even though I was having contractions, I couldn't just sit still.  Sometime after 5pm I called MamMa to tell her maybe she should come by to take your brother and sister.  Then I went in the backyard to tell Daddy I'd called you and I started weeding the garden.  That's what I was doing an hour before you were born!

    I think I was just afraid to sit still because I was so scared of what was coming.  When MamMa and Papa got here I didn't want to leave your brother and sister.  I kept giving them hugs and telling them I loved them.  And Daddy was getting more mad because he wanted me to get in the car.  And then when we were partway to the hospital is when I realized you were going to be born very soon.  Just like when your big sister was born, I had to have Daddy drop me off at the door, but this time I made it inside and could still talk.  I couldn't sign to admit papers though, I was shaking too hard!  Inside the delivery room the nurses were being very vague, so in retrospect, I think they realized you were ready to be born, but they were trying to wait for the midwife to get there, and not make me too scared about her not being there.  The same midwife that delivered Sabine walked in and one push later, literally 10 seconds, it was all over.  I can honestly say it was easier than and not as painful as my last birth.  I feel like I won the gold medal in the Childbirth Olympics.

    You are so tiny, Summer!  You were 5lb 7oz, 19 in. when you were born.  And I was a week late with you - I don't know how you go to be so tiny.  Jacob was 7lb. 7oz, so you are a whole two pounds lighter than he was at birth.  Sabine was 7lb 5oz, which is the exact reverse of you, a fact that will make it easier to remember these new statistics.  All of us girls in this family have S names, not something that was particularly planned.  We girls also have only 2s in the day of our birthdays; Sabine is June 22nd and I am October 2nd. Oh yeah, same month as Daddy's birthday, same day of the month as your mother. Anyway, numbers are important to me, so I've been doing a lot of playing around with them in my head the past couple days.

    You're coming home to a full and loving household, little baby.  We have four rabbits, two dogs, and now three kids!  You have one big brother and one big sister, just like I do.  You and I are both the baby girls of the family; it's going to be nice growing up, you'll have lots of people to do stuff for you.  It probably won't be very quiet, but I promise it will be very fun!  You will learn to love being outside in nature, eat lots of healthy foods (you'll probably also develop an amazing appetite for ice cream), read tons of books, and chances are, you'll be one active kid, just like your siblings. You'll grow up with a deep respect for our planet. You'll be introduced to the Tickle Spider and The Bull.  You'll run circles inside our house and always have someone to try to catch.  You'll quickly discover the joys of snuggling in bed with a warm body next to you, and I promise we'll find a place to fit you when there's already a full bed.  You'll get lots of shoulder rides from Daddy.  Jacob will dote on you he'll share his construction vehicles and tools.  Sabine will teach you lots of songs and encourage you to dance.

    I'll keep you ever so close to me and will probably be over-protective; and even though I can't imagine it yet, I know I'll let you go out in to the world when it's your time because you'll teach me things too.  You'll teach me about parts of my heart I didn't know could exist, and I'll learn (perhaps painfully) that I'm capable of things that I thought were impossible (like letting go).  I can't fathom these things yet, but I know they'll happen because I love you with an indescribable fierceness that, surely, can overcome any obstacle.

This is the life...

Laying in bed this morning, I pretended to still be asleep as Jacob and Sabine were snuggling with each other.  I had been working on teaching her to say, "I love you" and she's finally gotten the hang of it. I heard Sabine say the magic words, "I ofv ouu, JeJe." and little parts of my heart started shooting all over the place.

After a little bit they found out I was awake, or rather, they didn't care whether I was or not and just started climbing on me.  Each arm was filled with one of my kids as we laid there chatting with one another.  Hands down the best part of being a mom.  Then Jacob said aloud what I was thinking, "Ahh, this is the life!" he exclaimed.

Day 58: Zach and his crazy kid

Ok so I just realized it's Zach's birthday (no, not just now, I'm doing this 5 days ago and post-dating) so I had to come up with a photo of him. So here he is, carrying Sabine in the Ergo Carrier (Kevin and Bethany, take note), and walking with Jacob and Marisa to go miniature golfing. We took those crazy kids mini-golfing twice on that trip and I swore I'd never do it again. They cannot control themselves when they are together. Anyway, the picture is adorable, and how about Jacob in his calf-length baseball socks? It was a phase...

Day 52: Farmer Jacob

We've been doing a lot with cardboard boxes this summer - we always have. Currently we have a deluxe cardboard house residing in the front room. Just days after its assembly, it received a back addition, and is patiently awaiting the arrival of a two-car garage. But in the meantime there was this tall, narrow box that was just asking to be turned into some useful. So when Jacob requested a farm stand last week, I knew just the box. You can't tell from the photo, but this thing is complete with inner cardboard baskets to hold all the veggies from our garden, a cash register, a shelf, and a fully functional back door, as well as a full functional open/closed sign. That's part of the challenge of my photo assignment - it's hard capturing what I want to show in just one picture.

Jacob is really proud of the farm stand I built him and we've been playing pretend farmers' market all week. I had to make him cover the front if it for this photo because he went and wrote his first and last name all over it before I got a chance to take the 'internet safe photo'.

Now I won't pretend this farm stand game has been all fun and games; I have been doing a great deal of whining about playing along, as well as no small amount of yelling when it comes time to clean up after the fun's been had, but I will say that when someone asks about how I like being a stay-at-home mom, this is the exact kind of thing I have in mind when I tell them, "Well, we have no money and are totally poor, but I wouldn't miss a minute of it to go to work and be without them all day long." We may be forced to make our toys out of cardboard boxes, but at least I'm the one who gets to be present for the evolution of the box.

Day 50: Her Girl

Sabine and I have a line that we say - I ask, "Who's my girl?" and she says, "Me!" Now Sabine's got a girl of her own. I ask her, "Who's your girl?" And she answers with a coy smile, "Honey..." This refers to Baby Honey, so named by Jacob when he was Sabine's age. He would sit and rock the doll while repeating, "Honey, honey..." to sooth her. So when I asked Jacob what her name should be, he said Honey, of course. And yes I know when it's used as a term of endearment, it's usually spelled hunny. But honey, as in the sweet golden nectar, just fits better.

Sabine doesn't talk as much, actually, I should say she doesn't have as many words and her speech isn't as developed as the 'norm' for her age, but really, she doesn't stop 'talking'. She just started saying Honey a couple weeks ago, and she's been saying Baby for a long time now, it's one of her favorites. The words come out more like this though, "Bebe Honny," so it's just the cutest thing to hear her say it.

Anyway, this photo is from a lazy morning the other day. We were still in or around the bed, and I think Sabine must have been asking to nurse. I'm trying to limit the nursing these days so I probably suggested that maybe Sabine nurse Baby Honey instead. After requesting her Boppy, she did just that. She actually sat there for quite a long time, very peaceful and quiet. I recognize that vacant look in her eyes from my own many, many hours of nursing wee little ones. She's returned to that activity each day since and it's rapidly becoming a favorite around here.

I actually think it's quiet healthy for a two year old to have an activity where they can sit and be still like that, lost in a pretend world; something they can use to reign their crazy toddler energy in with. I think it useful tool to have in learning self-regulation. Sabine is not the first child to nurse Baby Honey. Jacob actually started the tradition and logged many hours breastfeeding Baby Honey, as well as other stuffed animals. And who knows what happened before then because she was given to me as a gift way back when I was Jacob's age.

Day 39: Hanging the wash out to dry

Last week I walked out onto the deck for something and was struck by what I saw. It's a bunch of doll clothes and tiny baby clothes that Jacob uses for various members of his gang. I did not put those things there, which can only mean on thing: Jacob did. Sometimes I get so mad at him and so upset when it seems like he's no longer a sweet little boy. How I needed reminding on this day that he's just a sensitive kid and is just as likely to be hand-washing doll clothes in the sink as he is to be getting into something he shouldn't be.

It's all a matter of my own perception. I have to remember that Jacob's motives might not always seem to be good ones, but more often than not, they're going to lead to a scene like this. The times when I freak out on him, I'm just not seeing things clearly - his motives are the same, I just don't like the end result those other times.

In the mix here are some of my Cabbage Patch Doll clothes from when I was a kid, a newborn Yankee shirt that Pilchard likes to wear, scratch mittens, newborn bibs, Bunnies By The Bay bunny slippers that both my kids wore, and the teeny, tiny knit cap that Jacob's sister came home from the hospital in.

Day 33: Simple Pleasures

I get so locked into being anal about the house and keeping it clean, that sometimes I have to stop and consciously make a decision like I did on the day I took this picture. I told Jacob about how when I was little, running through the sheets drying on the line was one of my favorite things to do. And then I encouraged him to try it. I think he thought it was a trick, that I would yell at him for not having the common sense to ignore my stupid suggestion. But he did it and each run through he stepped it up, eventually getting out his bike and doing crazy stunts through the sheets.

Day 30: Harry's Little Sib

We hung out with Beckie and her boys for most of the day today. It afforded me lots of opportunities to take pictures, and get some more of her belly. Beckie is such a good sport about letting me take her picture, today she even let me get some flesh ones and gave permission for me to use one on here! Don't you just love this picture?

Day 25: Dirty Bean

I'm falling behind again with these daily pictures, so today you're getting a picture from last month. I love it for its obvious reasons, the mud, the spaghetti sauce, but most of all, I love it because it shows how far I've come as a mother. I would never have let Jacob get this dirty when he was Sabine's age. Well, that's not true for the dirt, we've always been dirt lovers, but I mean about the food. I don't even think I was letting Jacob feed himself at this age, for fear of getting this dirty. Now when the kids get dirty I tell them that's how they know they had a good time.

Day 23B: Family Recipe

This is the day we made blueberry muffins from the 'camp berries' - that's what I call the wild berries we pick. Once a year I try to make blueberry muffins while being true to Nana's (my great-grandmother) recipe - which has been made into a wall hanging (pictured to Sabine's right on the counter) by someone in the family. This is no small feat for me because it means I have to stock things like white flour and sugar, and use butter instead of substituting with applesauce or adding all kinds of other grains. I love the naturalness of this photo - Sabine hanging out on the counter, eating batter off of a wooden spoon, wearing nothing but the apron my aunt just made for her. It's how I imagine what my mom would have looked like baking with her grandmother all summer long deep in the NY Adirondacks...

Day 15: Sabine in Black and White

I don't really have anything 4th of July related to post today, but I wanted to do something special, so here's this classic-looking photo of Sabine when we were down at Tom and Chris's in May. Sabine ran around au natural for a while, and at one point plopped down in the walkway to pile rocks all over her legs. Perfect childhood moments.

Day 4: Set in her ways

This photo is from a couple weeks ago, but I had to post it because it's hilarious. I know some people might not find it funny to post a picture of their kids crying, but when my kids are grown I not only want to look back and see their smiling faces, I want to see the full range of their emotions. I'm an advocate of taking pictures of your kids in every kind of mood and from every different angle. I can't stand it when people take photos and aren't happy unless their kid is smiling angelically.

This was after a long romp in the mud, though I can't remember what exactly she was so worked up about. I just love the smudge under eye and Reggie in the background wondering what the heck was going on. Sabine's been doing a lot of this lately - that is to say, tantruming. I had been telling people, "She's practicing for when she turns two." Since she turned two this week, what better way to represent that by posting a picture that shows what will likely be the way she spends most of her time the next several months?

Let me count the ways...

Sometimes I post on here and the time stamp says something crazy like 4:20am because I'll change the date or time so things show up in chronological order, and they're not all bunched up in one day in reverse order. I don't know how to explain that without writing entire paragraphs so you'll just have to believe me that I have a good reason, and it has to do with being extremely anal.

My point is, right now I am live blogging at 4:20am because what just happened next to me is the best thing in the world, and it's happened before; enough times that it was infinitely worth it to go get the computer, and with bright light hitting my eyeballs (risking the chance of me ever being able to fall back asleep), attempt to tell the world about the best kind of love that exists - at least in my world.

My kids, especially the older one, find numerous ways to aggravate me. There are so many different methods; each coming with its own particular course of action for inflicting irritation. However, I'm coming to realize that for each of these annoyances, there are at least as many different ways to love them.

Anyway, here I am in the family bed, also known as the Big Bed. But it is definitely not as big as some beds other people have for half the amount of bodies. I like to think of ours as the all-the-better-to-snuggle-you size. Sabine woke up, I got up, carried her downstairs because even though it's pre-dawn, it just felt like it was time to make the coffee. With the little one slung over my shoulder, I put together the necessary ingredients and hit 'on'.

I returned upstairs to await the liquid gold and Sabine appeared to be back asleep. So I laid her back down, but then she got all squirmy. The way we appease her when we want her to settle down and go back to sleep is that we gently and rhythmically pat her. I really wanted that coffee so I told her to sit tight and I'd be right back. Of course she was not going to sit tight but I left anyway and heard her pining for me get louder and louder. Then things appeared to get quite, and when I returned I could tell there was no noise coming from Sabine. I thought she had fallen back asleep, but then I heard Jacob doing the instinctual shushing that us parents do, then he whispered, "Mommy's coming right back." When I got closer I saw that he was also patting her. The best part about it is that his eyes were closed.

I can't exactly put words to why this detail made the moment, but it was like this action was just instinctual, like that of an exhausted mother of a newborn just trying to catch any shut eye she can. He just did it because that's what he's been doing her whole life. She's his little sister and he loves her, that is just how he shows it. And the fact that Sabine responded to that action; the idea that she could be just as soothed by Jacob in that moment as either of her parents drives home the meaningfulness of the whole thing.

To see my kids, the two little people I created, functioning in the world like that, independent of me, that's when I love them the best, in the most pure way I can.

I told Jacob how sweet that was and how awesome he is, and scooped Sabine back up. When she eventually went back to sleep (or so I thought), I laid her down again only to have her get right back up, all angry like this time. She was calling out for Jeje (Jakie). I showed her that he was right next to her, said that he was the one patting her. She got all calm, said, "Uhn," and settled in next to him.

So here they are now at the end of this writing, all nestled against one another in matching positions and Jacob's arm is around Sabine. I swear, there is nothing better in the world. If we got to pick our own version of Heaven, you know what mine would look like.

And my biggest argument in favor of co-sleeping is the fact that my heart is so full and big right now that it might actually explode. Seriously, before you put your kids in their own beds and their own rooms, ask yourself why you're doing it. Is it because that's what you've always 'known' it's the way it's done according to our culture, or because that's what is actually best for your family? For us, this is clearly the best.

Cheek to cheek

My children have never gone to sleep easily. Sabine is a quirky little thing and always finds quirky new ways of demanding to be put to sleep. With Zach, Sabine sort of has a routine and that is all good and well, but if he's not around then I have to do it. And there is not much that I hate more than putting my kids to sleep. After all, I'm the one they got the sleepless gene from, so it's sort of useless for me to try to induce sleep. I get in there and my non-stop energy shakes everything up.

Anyway, here's the method she chose yesterday:

She asked to have Baby Honey in the carrier and then stood around swaying with her (which happens to be my default method of getting her to sleep) going "Bye Baby" - which is how Sabine sings Rock-a-bye baby. I think she was feeling the futility of the whole effort and chose to highlight the fact by making fun of my meager attempt.

Sabine would not take that thing off and the one time that I tried to by unclipping one of the latches, she had a Royal Fit that continued for five minutes after I'd put it back the way it had been. So to make a long story short, she eventually fell asleep like this. And even though Baby Honey is still awake in the photo, she looks very happy, doesn't she?

Doll Carrier

Today at the park Sabine was walking around with her little doll carrier on her back. Jacob had brought it so he could wear Baby Honey around the playground, but then abandoned the idea once we got there. Nevertheless, Sabine saw it sitting off to the side and requested (by way of gestures and grunts) to have Baby Honey put on her back. It was the first time she'd worn her on her back (as opposed to the front) but she did a great job carrying her all around and taking her for rides down the slide. She was so proud, and even more proud when another mom at the playground (who happened to be carrying her infant in the same Ergo Carrier - full size) noticed and told me she thought that was possibly the cutest thing she'd ever seen.

I bought the carrier for Jacob a few months ago when I discovered them online. As soon as I saw the doll Ergo I knew I would have to get one because I carry Sabine in the original Ergo. I'd seen doll slings before, but this is the first pack I've heard of for kids to carry their dolls. Anyway, I love my Ergo carrier and highly recommend them! If you want to know more about why, just ask me.

Emmay told me I should take a picture of Sabine walking around with the pack, and that reminded me I already had a little while back. I'd meant to post them then because it was so cute, but here they are now.

Beach: Day 3

Just outside our room. I wish we'd just done this to begin with. It would have been awesome to have this room for two or three nights and pay a little more. But I'm glad we at least had it for the one night.
Wearing our matching t-shirts. These were originally purchased for me and my mother when I was a baby and had my first trip to Virginia Beach.


We called this the Beach Baby-Sitter. When we found out the kids really couldn't get out we decided to take advantage of the situation and grab a drink at the bar. Don't worry we gave them an umbrella for shade and a drink with a straw. We just had to be careful to make it back before the tide came in.

1 AM: A play-by-play

1:10 am: Zach wakes me, there's pee in the bed. A quick assessment is made on his part. He decides Jacob wet the bed. I, however, am covered in pee. So is Sabine. I wonder how the hell three humans are soaked in pee from only one bladder. I conclude that Sabine has also leaked through her (doubly-stuffed) diaper.

1:11 am: I'm only half aware of the things that are happening because as it is we've been asleep for a very short while. Sabine woke up from what turned out to be just a nap at 8pm. She was awake for the next three hours.

1:12 am: I somehow manage to open my eyes. Zach is going into action. It amazes me how good he has become at the middle-of-the-night routine. I used to be the one who was fully functional in the middle of the night. Ha. Something just struck me - though we are failing miserably in the bedtime routine area, we have gotten this 'wee hours of the morning' routine down pat.

1:14 am: Zach has escorted Jacob to the bathroom and I hear a stream hitting the toilet water. Check. I realize I am sitting up in bed and a new diaper has magically appeared at my side.

1:15 am: Zach and Jacob re-enter the bedroom. I'm still sort of coming to. Oh yeah, I am wet, and starting to get cold. We are arguing about who will change Sabine's diaper. I am wet with pee, and on this night Zach is not. I win.

1:16 am: I find a cold, wet washcloth hanging from the hamper in the bathroom. I don't care where it has come from or what it is wet with. I use it to wipe pee off my skin.

1:18 am: I've managed to change my clothes and Sabine is ready for me. She has a dry diaper on but no clothes. Zach has removed the two, count 'em, TWO bed covers that we keep on the bed so that 'accidents' may go there. Funny, there are still puddles in the bed when the covers are removed.

1:19 am: We question aloud how the hell pee got under the bed covers, then remember whose lives we are living and oh yeah it all makes sense. Why wouldn't that happen? Why bother with bed covers anyway.

1:20 am: I got to the bathroom the get a bath towel. Lay it over the giant pee puddle in the bed. Then lay on top of that. Grumble about how I JUST washed the sheets and hung them on the line to dry two days ago.

1:21 am: I commence nursing Sabine, Zach begins his first attempt at getting clothes on Jacob.

1:23 am: Jacob is sideways in bed, naked from the waste down, kicking and thrashing at Zach as if he's trying to kill him. Zach is repeatedly attempting to put underwear on Jacob.

1:24 am: Jacob has underwear on and Zach throws the jammie pants across the room. Fuck it we both agree.

1:25 am: Lights Out.

Teach me to fish!

What is with these kids of mine and their non-sleeping?? It is 6:30pm, Sabine has been awake since 9:45am when she woke up from a 45 minute nap. Before that she'd woken at 7am after being awake for several hours through the night. Really, she was awake for more hours than I care to recall just being in the bed, awake, sometimes cute, sometimes nasty. She wanted to play, she wanted to nurse, she wanted to slap us in the faces. All of that she did. Zach and I were miserable and yelling at each other because we couldn't figure out what to do but all we knew for sure was that if we didn't get to sleep we were surely going to die. To recap: My 10 month old baby has been awake for the day for almost 12 hours of the day, 45 minutes of that was spent napping.

We can't go for more than a few days before having a really hard night or really hard day in regard to the non-sleeping. I thought we were doing well for a while, she was going down for a couple naps a day at a pretty regular time. And then Tuesday happened. This Tuesday was horrible, I was a horrible mess, Sabine was 16 pounds of cranky misery. We made public fools of ourselves, etc, etc, etc.

When I'm having a day like this my mom and Jamie usually end up baring a lot of the weight. They show up and swoop down like angels to take the baby out of my arms so I can breathe. Tuesday was just a total wash and I don't even want to relive it. Today was Tuesday all over again, and by the way, Zach was working, he's always working. At Jacob's t-ball game today I was about to lose it because Sabine was freaking out screaming really loud as I was trying to put her to sleep and then my mom showed up and gave me my arms back. When Sabine still didn't go to sleep I started losing it again, telling my mom that I'd had plans for after the game and if Sabine didn't fall asleep now she'd fall asleep in the car and that would be the end of our plans.

My mom told me that she would leave the game with Sabine. She would drive to my house and sit in the car while Sabine slept in her carseat and that I could take Jacob to the store like I'd planned. I told her that was crazy for her to do that, to go out of her way like that. I felt helpless, like nothing could make the difference. I still feel like that in this moment, like no amount of working on this sleep schedule thing will make it come true. I told my mom that perhaps Sabine would fall asleep on the way home and she'd get a nap, thus possibly going to bed at a normal time and possibly enabling Zach and I to get sleep tonight, but that would be like giving a man a fish. You know the adage: Give a man a fish, he eats for a day, teach a man to fish, he eats for a lifetime. I want the secret to this sleep thing, I want somebody to give me a freaking clue, tell me what I'm doing wrong, tell me what to do to get her to sleep!!! I want someone to teach me how to fish!

Just so I remember when he's older...

Often times I can't recall the when my kids stopped doing a certain behavior. Some of these things I'm relieved to find out have stopped, but others I really miss. Tonight Jacob has spent a long time with Smitty and Pilchard, feeding them, dressing them for bed and carrying them around as he's gone about the house. Right now I looked over to see him peacefully rocking in the chair with a quilt over his lap and a couple of pointy blue ears sticking out from the blanket.

"Are you nursing Pilchard?" I asked.

He shook his head yes. This is one of those childhood moments I wish I could bottle.

Murphy's Law in action

My life continues to live up to my blog name. Constantly. Tonight Zach went to a party for a guy he knows who's getting married. I was ever so happy to let him go and was positive I'd be able to get the kids to bed myself and would have everything under control. Not so.

The first couple hours went well except for the fact that the kids were still awake. At 8:45 everyone was hungry and still awake. I put Sabine in the high chair and started feeding her tiny, tiny shreds of pretzel, which is what Jacob was having (except bigger pieces). Then I gave her a peeled grape in the Baby Safe Feeder. This two food items were new and I knew I was taking a risk because I am one of those people who feeds the baby only cooked, mushed and approved (meaning they were given on three consecutive days and proven not to be allergenic to Sabine) foods. She downed the food and then started choking. I pulled her out of the chair and with a little help from gravity she threw up the contents of her stomach. Then she threw up the contents of her stomach again on another part of the kitchen floor.

Fun times.

I decided it was definitely time to get her to sleep so I put her on the couch (because we don't have a changing table) pulled off her diaper and started stuffing the new one (note to self: must remember to have diaper stuffed and ready to go before pulling off old one).

Let me interject to say that yesterday I finally cashed in on my Christmas present from my mom: Professional carpet and couch cleaning. The couch and the nice rug in the living room got cleaned. No more food on the couch and no more dogs on the rug. Just a few hours ago I decided the cushions surely were dry and I pushed them back into place.

Can you see where I'm going here? Sabine flips her little body through the air and stands there looking out the window, tapping on it making noise while I'm fumbling with the diaper. Then she makes another kind of noise and I realize she's peeing on the couch. The nice, CLEAN couch! I mean seriously? It just got cleaned! She managed to hit four separate cushions at once because of the place she happened to be standing. Oh the talent.

Oh, and can I also complain about this regularly scheduled napping thing? It's been a couple weeks now where Sabine has been taking these 'regular' naps. It's nice, about 10am she sleeps, maybe for an hour or so. Then again in the afternoon, I couldn't tell you what time though, maybe 2pm. Today, we were at Jacob's T-ball game and Sabine fell asleep at the regular time but when I went to put her in her carseat ten minutes later, she woke up. The 10 minutes was just enough to take the tired out of her so that she wouldn't go back to sleep in the car or when we got home. She didn't go to sleep until after 12pm, which would have been ok if she could have slept for a few hours, but we had to leave the house around 1:30 to meet the guy from Craigslist with the bike for Jacob. So that was a big dilemma. Even though her nap was only an hour I thought she'd stay awake the rest of the day because it was already the afternoon. Not so. She fell asleep around 4pm. That screwed uo bedtime which ended up beingba 10pm thing. So my question is, how do you implement regular naps without being a slave to the clock?