on breaking out of nap time jail

Even though Joshua is too young to really play with another child, we go on a lot of "play dates". I'm sure many other moms agree - they are how I keep my sanity most days. I can have a conversation with another adult (albeit interrupted), I'm forced to put on non-pajamas and get out of the house, Joshua gets some interaction with people that aren't me (my extroverted little baby gets bored with just me all day), and being outside helps avoid the "I live in a beautiful climate but I prefer my air-conditioned little house" guilt.

It is so easy to get locked into what I like to call "nap time jail". Don't get me wrong - I LOVE nap time. It is another way I keep my sanity most days... even just the measly two and a half hours (total!) each day where Joshua is safe, in another room, and not demanding every ounce of my attention (and patience) can be sanity-saving. Nap time is when I can re-charge: I can take a shower, spend some time in the Word, catch up on email, take care of the dishes that are mocking me every time I walk past the kitchen, or (on particularly stressful days) take a nap myself. Thank you, Lord, for nap time.

But it is so easy to feel trapped in my house because I need to so carefully protect that time. It happens like this: I don't even try to run errands before his morning nap, so it's already after 10:30am. I need to run to the grocery store, but don't want to go right before lunch with a hungry/cranky baby. But I don't want to go between lunch and nap time with a tired/cranky baby. So I wait until the afternoon. Then I have to squeeze the errand in between nursing, end-of-school-day traffic, and dinner-making (since an early bedtime for baby makes for a pretty early dinner-time for the family)... making sure to pack a diaper bag, snacks and water for Joshua (snacks are the key to an almost-tantrum-free grocery store experience), making sure both of us have outside-world appropriate clothes on, and trying to wrangle a wiggly toddler into a carseat... A lot of times it's just easier to stay home. 

But the days that I do venture out and meet with a friend... are so worth it.

Watching Joshua (kind of) interact with another baby... relating to another human being about things that seem trivial but are actually pretty significant in my daily life (cloth diaper laundry detergent)... even just not-talking because we're chasing around our kids with another person is refreshing.

Remembering that while these at-home-with-young-kids days may feel messy, and mundane, and sometimes maddening... God doesn't require me to do it alone! Not only does He provide the wisdom, strength, and patience I need each day, He has placed me in community with other women who can relate to the struggles, joys, and exhaustion of this season.

Thank you, Lord, for play dates.

*All photos in this post were taken by the wonderfully talented, Nicole Eastman. Thanks, Nicole, for letting me share them!*