Naptime, anyone?

LittleMum's having a hard time taking naps. Or maybe, what I really mean is I'm having a hard time because she's not taking naps... ? I consistently put her in her room in the afternoon for "sleepy time," and then we hear her for the next several hours playing and singing at the top of her lungs. It's quite hilarious, actually. Sometimes I go in and try to get her back to bed, and at other times I enjoy the concert-through-the-door. She makes up her own stream-of-consciousness songs. Sometimes I shake my head and think, "Where did that come from?"

Naptime is when LittleMum's room gets totally messy because she pulls all her toys and books out. I know, sleeping experts say that the bedroom should be for sleeping, but where do we put her toys, then? The living room? Eventually, we'll get our basement finished and perhaps have a playroom down there. And actually, when LittleMum was a baby we did set up a play area in the living room for her. We put this huge quilt out on the floor and stacked her toys against the back of the couch. I'm sure our family and friends just shook their heads at our design sense. I even immortalized it in a yoga DVD I made for my sisters. There's me, doing yoga against a backdrop of baby toys and LittleMum's high chair facing Baby Einstein on the TV. Seems more like a comedy than an exercise video. I guess it's okay; I mean, I'm sure I won't be marketing my yoga video any time soon.

So, we keep the toys in the bedroom, she gets her alone time and Mommy gets a little break, and we simply have her clean up her toys as an evening activity. No harm done, I guess.

One thing that makes me nuts, though, is that, too often, she poops in her diaper while she's in there. I don't know if she just takes advantage of the privacy (I've heard that toddlers often will make an effort to poop in private as they figure out how their body works), or if she's just on a particular pooping schedule. To try to prevent it, I ask her to go sit on the toilet several times during the morning and hope that she'll go before naptime.

Yeah, potty training has its ups and downs. I hear these stories of moms who potty train their toddlers in one day or one weekend, and I know there are books out there to help us newbies. However, it's a challenge thinking constantly about LittleMum's bodily functions so I can help her figure it all out. I'm a bit too distracted, perhaps.

It's not stressing me out, though. At least, not much. One pediatrician issued this reminder on his website: "I've never met an adult who wasn't potty trained." How do YOU know, Dr.? Maybe there are more diaper-wearing adults than we realize. Seriously, I'm sure we will figure it out before too long. I'm inclined to follow LittleMum's lead on this one. I'll ask her, remind her, celebrate with her and put stickers on the chart when she's successful, and wait for her to decide it's time to wear big girl panties. I hope it's soon, because having LittleMum come out of her bedroom during naptime with a poopy diaper is not so fun - that leads to bathtime instead of naptime. And I'd prefer naptime.