Family Fun in the Sun

It was a HOT weekend to say the least. Along with the sweltering heat, we had TONS of events and things to do. So, it’s easy to say that we spent our entire weekend outside … in the heat.

I know, I know. What am I complaining about, right? My children absolutely love playing outside no matter how hot it is. They are red-cheeked and sweating within the hour and can’t be persuaded to come inside — even for ice cream! We had so much going on that neither of my children were able to get a nap in. That meant that my 2-year-old would soon start to get cranky and my 6-year-old would soon turn into a little diva.

However, that wasn’t the case. That’s how it usually turns out when they have not had a nap, but they wanted to stay outside. So, we kept their water bottles chilled and full and continued to play outside everywhere we went — the park, Nana’s house, Granny’s house, a birthday party, our house …

It’s not until it gets close to dinner time that our 2-year-old, Seth, decides he wants to take a nap. There was no asking by us if he wanted to go to bed, he simply said, “Go to bed.” I thought to myself, poor little guy has finally decided he has had enough fun for the day. But his chosen nap time was right before dinner and he didn’t want to stay up for it. He should get up within an hour or two, so I wasn’t too worried about it. But, he didn’t.

My little guy slept and slept no matter how many times we came into his room to check on him and slowly try to wake him — turning on lights, putting toys away, etc. He wouldn’t budge. He simply rolled over and continued to sleep.

Uh oh, so this means he’s going to wake up in the middle of the night bright-eyed and bushy tailed! Low and behold, 2:30 a.m. rolls around and he wakes up. Smiling ear to ear and ready to play again. So, Daddy puts him in the bed with me and he (Daddy) heads to the couch. Soon, Seth says he wants a drink. I tell him to go get Daddy to get him something. He leaves the room and comes back smiling. He starts to tickle me, play with my hair, rub my back (because he knows that I am tired). I asked him if he got something to drink and he just giggled. Then he whispered, “Daddy sleepin’,” and giggled some more. My husband had went to the couch to go to sleep, I thought he went to watch some TV.

Seth continues to try to get me to play and I just kept whispering to him it’s time to sleep. He finally goes back to sleep about two hours later.

So much for having so much fun during the day. We must make sure he gets his nap in sooner rather than later. I don’t think I can handle him sleeping in the bed with me. That’s something neither of us are used to.

I guess, the point of the story is to have your family fun in the sun, but remember the heat will take the energy out of your children sooner or later … and they will crash. Make sure they can get a nap in, if they still take naps, and keep them hydrated. It’s going to be a hot summer!