Afternoon naps

One of the things I miss most about being a stay at home mom are the afternoon naps. They're usually between 3 to 6pm and after the boys have been tired out by their post lunch play.

Why do I think I miss these nap times so much? Firstly, I lie in bed with whichever child I put to sleep for almost the entire nap. Sometimes I fall asleep, sometimes I don't. If I'm not asleep, I get to watch them sleep. At night, I don't usually bother to keep awake to watch them :)~ When they wake up from their afternoon naps, they're usually in a good mood, and there isn't a rush to get to the next activity. Maybe it's just something about napping in the middle of the afternoon and waking up at dusk.

For me, there's something about just being home with the children in the afternoon and having absolutely nothing to do but to be with them. And it seems so frivolous on the surface, but so crucial to the development of the child or to the relationship between child and care giver.

Thankfully, I do have a wonderful boss at the moment and the work is relatively meaningful so I look forward to working on weekdays. But still, I do miss these wonderful afternoon naps.

It's tough being a working mother. Wait, it's tough being a mother, period. Even stay at home moms running their own businesses struggle with time management because they can't give as much time to their kids as they'd like. I have to constantly remind myself why I want to work. I want to contribute to the household income and help provide for my kids. I want to be contribute to the workforce by applying myself and doing well at work assigned to me. I think I do appreciate my kids more when I get some personal space for my self development (i.e. work or hobbies).

What can I do to cope? Focus on the present. Tomorrow is a Monday and is a working day for me, but I still have more than 12 hours at home with the kids. I need to focus on that.