The key to sleep

People, I figured it out. I know the magic answer to getting your child (well, maybe my child) to take a REALLY good nap. Zachariah has been sleeping now for 3 1/2 hours! Yes, I said that right. (And just as I typed it I hear him awake in his room. AHH!) Regardless, he did sleep 3 1/2 hours this afternoon.

Here's what I did. Got him up at normal time this morning and went about our typical routine. About 11:00 when we usually eat lunch, I got him ready and we headed out for lunch. I took him to a local pizza joint. We had their buffet. (I suppose this part will only work if your child is a good eater.) I filled him up with veggies, fruits, cheesy bread, potato wedges, pizza, and dessert bread/pizza. Have I mentioned before that this kid can eat? (I wonder how he's still so skinny. It does explain the height though. He has to expand somewhere.) Anyway, he ate a lot. We'd been there for an hour by the time he finished eating. At home lunch would take 1/2 hour, then he'd go down for a nap right after that.

So at this point we were running about an hour past his nap time (he's very flexible about naps). He was happy and well-fed, so I wanted to walk around the craft store for a bit. He was up for it. We were in there for a while, and I noticed he was getting really sleepy. When I asked him if he was ready for a nap, he would nod and then lean his head on his shoulder and pretend to sleep. In the car I kept making him talk to me (counting in Spanish) to stay awake. We were only a 10 minutes drive from home.

He stayed awake. Then he was ready for a nap. And he took a LONG one. See, I think that's the key to success. I don't think I can do this every day, though. It's worth remembering in case I need it.