Always tired, need naps? need earlier bedtime? help!

[The Tickle Momster]

Dd is 5.75 and ds is 4.5. Neither naps unless they fall asleep in the afternoon in the car. Since the weather has gotten warmer and we are outside most of the afternoon they are getting way too tired. Dinner and bedtime are awful. We do a rest time with me reading a book for each of them and one of my choosing, then a movie for a bit. Bedtime is 7 pm but they are ready around 6 many nights. What can I do to adjust the schedule, get their rest/sleep needs met better?

We have room darkening shades and curtains in the bedrooms. It is light here until 10 pm most of the summer. I would love to get them a nap every day and let them stay up and enjoy the cooler evenings and more time with daddy. But if they don't sleep they can't stay up.

Moving bedtime earlier would seriously cut back on how much they get to see daddy. He gets home just after 5 and we try to eat dinner around 5:30.

Any ideas for us?

[Close2MyHeart]

how about instead of having a movie int he afternoon, they can sit quietly to look at books or play puzzles, etc? I do that w/ NJ (5) and he often falls asleep still because he's been so tired lately too. I've found that movies make him stay up and not get as rested.

[MoongardenMama]

I had this prob too. DDs were getting cranky around 4 or 5 pm and the older one would often fall asleep right before supper which gave her a second wind just in time for bed. :/ I adjusted things a bit and it is ALOT better. Is there any way you could move your major outside time to the morning hours? I don't know what time they're getting up, but we started getting up earlier so we could spend a good few rambunctious hours of play time outside before lunch and then nap/quiet time directly after a noon-ish meal. We would go outside *after* quiet time too, but it was around 3, right before we came in to start cooking for dinner. Might something like that help?

[The Tickle Momster]

Hmmm, more early outside time. :think That might help. We do spend most of the morning indoors, cause that's when I have the energy to get going on house stuff. The kids are old enough to be in the back yard on their own. That might be a good idea, Sarah. I'll have to try it next week.

Most afternoons, we are outside after rest time, but if I can keep them in for a while longer it might help.