HI all -
My DD is 2 and she has been in her big girl bed since she was 18 months old. It's a twin size mattress on the floor. She has been a good sleeper and until recently was not one to come out of her bed. Last night she was out of her bed many times - we must've walked her back to her bed some 50-75 times (lost track). She used to only do this maybe 2 or 3 times right at bedtime and then again around 6:30 am (at that hour she would call us from her bedroom door -- "daddy, daddy, daddy!!!") She used to get up around 7 am to 7:30. The morning wake ups is in part to the time change back to standard time. Her bedtime is about 7:30 and she was usually asleep around 8, no later than 8:30. Lately she's been going to sleep at 9:30 and waking up at 6:30. This is a bad combination. When we walk her back to bed, we don't speak to her, we just escort her back to bed. She knows the drill. There's no crying...just walking back.
Her one nap is from 1:30-3:30. lately she's been hitting this one very hard. She's completely out, i think b/c she's not getting all her sleep at night. I know the morning wake up is b/c of the time change, but that with the combined effect of her bedtime antics is jsut driving us nuts.
What can we do? She used to have these HORRIBLE bedtime tantrums and Thank GOD she has stopped. But the jack in the box effect out of her bedroom is not good for her, too.
Please help with any suggestions. I've thought about shortening her nap to just 1 hour so she is tired enough for bedtime (at least until she starts going back to bed closer to 8pm and waking up closer to 7am) and then after that letting her sleep more during her nap if she needs/wants it. I used to leave her in her room for her nap for almost 2 hours and if she wakes up early she is allowed to "rest quietly" in her bed until mommy gets her. But now she is almost always crashed out b/c of her sleep deprivation.
please help!
thanks!