Lately I’ve been dreading the days when I’m responsible for putting Laurel down for her midday nap.

I know this sounds terrible, but lately she’s been ramping up not down during our pre-nap routine. And sometimes this translates to particularly inciting behavior, such as dropping her milk cup over the crib rails and hitting me squarely on the head while I’m trying – probably unsuccessfully – to keep my cool and read her a story.

A new issue, no doubt a byproduct of potty training practice, is that she wants to strip off her pants for nap. It’s not so much the temperature I’m concerned about, but this weekend while she was all revved up, she stripped off pants, then later had a poop and (responsibly, I suppose…) removed her diaper. I know I should be happy about her increasing independence but cleaning up soiled linens during my highly anticipated midday rejuvenation time is about as savory as the prospect of returning to work with my former boss.

No doubt I’ll feel guilty about this confession after today’s midday break (it’s been blissfully silent upstairs for the last hour…), but such is parenting life. It’s not all puppy dogs and unicorns, as Auntie Sha-Sha says.