Winterruption

Justin, Clay and I enjoyed 6 hours at a winterruption festival on Granville Island today (apparently a Canadian tradition). We fed birds at the duck pond, Clay had his face painted, saw 6 performances, and ate yummy food. Clay loved the music, dancing, puppets and circus act, though he was a little scared when Justin was picked to participate in a juggling act that involved a flaming jumprope.

***Warning - if you don't care about the ins-and-outs of parenting a toddler, STOP reading here as the following will be terribly boring***

I impulsively eliminated Clay's nap, and so far it has been great! I thought I would hold on to the nap as long as possible as I love the break, but for lots of reasons I had a change of heart. He is 3 now, and is at such a fun age and he loves outings. I was tired of having to rush home at 11:30 to get ready for his nap. It was a 45 minute process putting him down, as he needed someone to stay in his room (I would read my novel) until he was asleep, or he wouldn't sleep. And even though we would wake him up at 2, and bedtime is 8, he would often be awake up in his bed until 9:30. Justin is an early bird, and likes to go to bed early, and we were feeling like we had no evening to ourselves. He was only napping for an hour and a half anyway. Also, spring is just around the corner and the nicest part of the day is during his nap time, and I need all the sunny warmth I can get. So far, Clay is rolling with the change. He seems a little mellow around 1 pm but hasn't been grumpy or had any meltdowns. And the last two nights he was fast asleep by 7:30 - heavenly, and with no trips up and down the stairs for us helping him get settled. And he has taken to the idea of rest time, and stayed on his bed looking at books and playing for an hour. So I still get a little break. Hopefully it lasts!