The Importance of Naptime

Naptime is a vital part of every Mommy's day. And there is a time in the life of all moms when you realize just how important this time is. That is when your child(ren) stop napping.
That is the point that I am at right now. On any given day, there is only a 50-50 chance of Elf taking a nap. Luckily, she loves to read, and is, overall, a very well-behaved child. So, even though she doesn't always sleep, I can generally count on her having a quiet time of at least an hour. Longer if I put on a show or a movie for her. At 3.5, Elf is also old enough that I can leave her to play on her own if need be. Which often is.
So why is naptime so important? What do I do? From the point of view of the kids, I must do something very interesting, as they seem to feel like they are being left out of something when they get put in their rooms for naps. Trust me, kids, if I could sleep for two hours or so every afternoon, I wouldn't ever give that up!
So what do I do?
Laundry, dusting, cleaning- any housework that I can do that is relatively quiet. Sew or work on some other craft. Knit. Write my blog. Drink coffee while it is still hot. Excercise. Sit on my butt and write my blog. Play games on Facebook. Google random stuff, like whether it is possible to buy Dinex diner supply mugs in non-bulk amounts (because these are the best mugs ever) Pin things on Pinterest.
In other words, I try to cram into two hours all the things that, before kids, I could do whenever the heck I wanted. (Ok, not really, because I had a job, but I also had the energy to get up at 5:30 to go to the gym and still stay up until eleven or so and get whatever I wanted done)
Naptime in this house is coming to an end. Which is a shame, because Elf doesn't start kindergarten for 2 more years. So, in the meantime, I try to get the kids really tired in the morning, convince Elf that she has to rest and read for a portion of every afternoon, and- here is the bad mom moment- leave the kids in their room, even when I know they are awake, so that I can finish up a project or get a (much needed) shower.