Good Morning! I have something that REALLY works for me. During the busy, wonderful, sunny days of summer, I make (yes, make) my kids all take a 1 hour siesta after lunch!
Friends ask…how do you make them do it?…Is it mean?…what do they do?
Well, I have children ranging from 4 to 22. Actually, my 22 year old does not take a siesta. He’s old enough to want to, though:) I started the whole siesta thing to help my 2 1/2 year old, who would NOT take naps, get some rest during the day.
I simply told her to get all the books, crayons, stuffed animals she wanted to take into her bed and play IN BED for 20 minutes. I set the timer and visited her from time to time. The first week was hard as she kept getting up, but similar to a bedtime routine, I just kept leading her back. I raised the timer little by little until I had…GASP…an hour of freetime…During the day!!
That also got me time to catch up around the house.
For the summer, though, I just started making MYSELF take the 1 hour siesta as well. It is wonderful. For the first time in 20 years, I am caught up on my journaling and bible reading. I warned the older children that this is important to me and I should be nicer as a result:) For wonderful ideas on journaling, see “journaling as a creative experience” at Ann’s lovely Holy Experience blog!
Now, my teenagers are resting/reading/etc for the time as well. My daughter loved the idea, while the boys, at first hated it. I caved for my one son, who only rests for 30 minutes…but still. For one hour most days, my home is a peaceful haven!!! 
(We do skip siesta on days when we cannot be home directly after lunch, however, most days we eat at home, so it works…)
PS: Every once in a while, we get this result, which is ok too!
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