The Three Stages of Naps (4 months)

As I have always said from the beginning of finding out that we were having a baby:  you are in constant transition!  Our transition has been in the area of naps.  When she was little she would fall asleep anywhere.  Putting her down for a nap was as easy as well breathing (unless you have asthma or any respiratory issue).  But now our daughter is four months old and has quite a lot to say when we put her down for her nap.  These stages may happen with you as a dad (or mom), you may be stuck on one stage longer than the other, but you are bound to hit one of these stages at some point of putting your baby for their naps.

Here are the three stages of putting our daughter down for a nap:

1. Rebellion Stage

Now that our baby girl can make squealing/bubbles/speech complaints she makes it known that she doesn't appreciate being put down for her nap.  This is the defiant "how dare you" stage.  Our daughter will rebel and "yell" and let us know that we are quite possibly the worst parents of all time.  She likes to take her blanket and pull it over her head or pull it apart in defiance.  This can last between 10-15 mins (depending upon her will power).  We just stay true to the cause and know that she will eventually make it to the next stage.  Be careful, your baby can play you like a fiddle during this stage.  Many times early on we have heard a higher pitch scream or some yell and come in to check on her only to make the mistake of picking her up and getting a smile that says (Ha, no nap for meeeeeee!) and couldn't get her to take her nap.  We paid for it that night.  

2. Pacification Stage

This is the stage you hope your baby gets to.  This is where they self soothe by chomping on their favorite toy, blanket or learn to suck their thumb, hand, forearm or whatever body part they approve.  This is where our daughter realizes that she has lost the battle of bamboozling (I really wanted to use this word) her parents.  She is quiet yet still awake but soothing herself.  This stage is way more fun as she isn't some wild banshee hollering all over the place.  This leads us to the stage that every parent hopes and prays for: the "out" stage.

3. Out Stage

I call this the out stage because this is when your baby looks knocked out.  No movement, usually tangled up in their blanket (due to the rebellion stage) and they are simply out in the beauty of sleep.  This is the best stage because you know that your baby is getting some sleep and that when they awake they will be a better human being and not some grouchy pants.  

Naps are essential for a baby.  I mean as an adult I am grouchy when I am tired and haven't had much sleep, imagine what a baby feels?   There will be times where they simply will not go down and you will have to endure whatever beast you have until they take the next nap.  The great thing about naps is if your baby takes them you can do things lots of different things like write in your blog about how your baby needs to take naps!

The End~