Hi Meilan!
So good to hear from you again!
On nap poll:
B naps for about 2 - 2.5 hours, although I think he can very well do without naps these days. That's why I don't get too stressed out when he doesn't nap over the weekends. Better that way, then we the parents can have some life some time.
A lot of books I read say that nap is very important if you want your child to sleep well and early at night. When the child has a nap and for how long is also crucial in getting the child to sleep again at night. I very much subscribe to that theory when I really did the observation on both my children. On days when my children don't nap for many days in a row, then the night routine will be jeopardised too.
But every child is different. Some children need more sleep than others, adults alike. So given any chance to nap, I will!
K is one who can sleep 12 hours stretch if the environment stays quiet and dark. And she'll still take one long nap from 2.5 - 3 hours. But when we are travelling, she'll be the first to wake up. Too much excitement for her.
Some children don't really understand the concept of sleep yet, the importance of it. Only recently, B will admit me after a meltdown that he is indeed tired and he needs some sleep, .e. the kids start to associate exhaustion to sleep/rest. It took him 2.5 years to understand he had to nap during the day and sleep at night.
I also think sometimes children just wanna be with us. Staying up late... wonder what the parents are doing... might as well let them know what you do when the kids are sleeping. I tell B and K I have a list of things to do, e.g. nothing interesting like reading, watching telly. But keeping toys, washing up, do laundry fold clothes away, take a shower etc... and finally Mommy can have time to drink tea and have some peace.
There was a period of night visits in the recent months. But it got me so mad one night that I made him stand in the bathroom for 5 minutes and threatened that he could very well stand there till the next morning and that he didn't have to go back to sleep, since he wasn't sleepy at all - so he claimed. After that night, he doesn't pay night visits anymore.
Recently, his tactic of waltzing in and out of his room after we said good night was the umpteen times he had to pee, seemingly. So I told him not to bother coz I would wake him up in the middle of the night to remind him to do it. And no more coming out - reminded him of the toilet incident. That did the trick too.
But most of the time I leave both the kids to fall asleep on their own each in their own rooms. I don't care what B does after that, but he's certainly not allowed to come off his bed after I leave the room. In the meantime, K is still easy. She's still in her cot and sleeping bag. So she knows her routine when she sees these things.
O by the way, I don't let my children play in their own rooms during the day. Strictly for sleeping only.