Anyone want to talk about the 3-2 Nap transition?

[claire2403]

Can I ask What is the recommended amount of sleep for both naps and the cat nap. My dd is 6 months and is still needing her cat nap she can only just manage A time of 2h 30.

[amayzie]

I think you should aim for 2 sleeps of at least 1.5 hours (some people cap at 2 hours) and a cn of around 40- or one sleep cycle...

[beckygatt]

At 6 months Sophia was doing about 2.5hrs A and was still taking a catnap most days, so I wouldn't worry. If its working stick with it for now! Is your lo refusing naps or having any other issues?

[MommyMoulton]

For E who is just over 6 months... we are tossing the CN in and out every now and then... we are at 3 hour a time most of the time... but after short naps etc he gets OT and we force a CN. those days are truly awful so sorry i cant be more help.

[claire2403]

She is getting into the swing of two long naps now as she was having lots of little cat naps I just needed to know how much sleep she should be aiming for without having too much so she won't sleep at night. Shes not refusing any of her naps. And tongiht she managed to stay up a little later and go to bed at 7.15pm usually she would go to bed at 6.15pm as she can't stay awake any longer. Keeping my fingers crossed that she sleeps until 6.30/7.00am. Up until now she has been awake every morning at 6am hoping to break the cycle

[amayzie]

Droppintg the CN should help with the EW.. hopefully!!

[oneplusone]

My LO is trying to drop the CN, but it's torture for both of us! He can do only 2 hrs A time in the AM, has a good nap, does almost 3 hrs A time, another good nap. But He's up about 2:30 or 3:30, then fights the CN and the EBT resulting in him being awake for 3.5 to 4.5 hrs by the time he's asleep for the night. Horrible. Of course he wakes up 30' late since he's so OT, fusses a bit, but I can get him back. How long does this torture last? I really hope he can drop the CN soon and we're over this lastest struggle...

[amayzie]

Sorry noone else has jumped in yet! Must be busy! It is a real pain in the transition but shouldn't last too long in reality (unlike the unreal way time moves when you are in the room with a screaming baby!!)

A long A time at the end of the day is ok while you are transitioning, and there's nothing worse that going for an EBT but shooting too early!! UT MESS!! What time do you end to do BT? We usually kept BT within half an hour of the usual BT and this kept the UT toa minimum...

Also- are you trying to stretch that A time in the morning by 10-15 mins every few days? See what you can do there as it will make it easier at the end of the day. Remember babies sort of get in the 'habit' of going to bed at a certain time.. so he may show tired signs but have more in him!

[*Becky*]

ok we are here....trying to drop the CN. Not easy as we only seem to get one decent nap a day but my strategy is to up the first A time and see what happens.

[oneplusone]

Thanks! Yes it's torture. I'm still offering the CN but he fights it. BTR is bath, pjs, BF, 1 book and into crib. No more than 1/2 hr. Even though we are going for an EBT he still fussed x 30'. Totally OT bc it's 4 to 4.5 hrs from his last nap. I try to stretch the AM A time but he'll have none of it. 2 hrs is his max. He's also rolling in his crib AND starting a wonder week AND trying to drop this nap. Pure torture.

[amayzie]

oh- it never happens in isolation! The fighting the cat nap is the clear sign!! You could try APing a short one- or going for a drive to the shops or something? THe fussing at BT could also be UT if you were still doing a cat nap. I found when we needed to drop it that my guys bed time moved closer to 8, and he's a 7pm boy!

[oneplusone]

I've tried rocking him which had worked but not anymore. I think he's done with the CN in his mind. If he does CN then it's definitely a later BT (8pm), but no CN means early BT (6pm) which is 4 hrs from last WU. 4 hrs is too long! He's super OT! Will his naps naturally lengthen to accommodate? Because that would help with the OT bedtime so much. The first nap is usually 1.5-2 hrs and the second one is 1 hr. If the second one was 2 hrs I think BT wouldn't be such a fight. Yes everything is happening at once. He really likes to sleep on his side and he can roll there, but lately he's been rolling too far and gets stuck on his stomach. Kinda funny, minus the screaming :p thanks again for your help amayzie!

[amayzie]

No probs!! It's hard work!! You sound like you are well on the way- Perhaps that middle A time needs to be stretched further- then that 2nd nap may lengthen, and that combined with  longer A time might buy you even an extra 1/2 hour to bed time!!! remember as you are stretching A times that they might not want to, and you only need to do something low key like a walk around the garden, or a cuddle in the bedroom... I used to get hamish to 'help mummy' on the computer...

[oneplusone]

A walk around the garden would be nice, except it's winter here and typically minus 15. I live in northern Canada, not all of Canada is freezing cold like people believe! His A times are 2-3-4, which isn't BW but another common nap schedule. The first and second nap he goes down pretty easy, it was just the CN he was fighting. Maybe I'll try lengthening both the first A times, the first A time is pretty set because of his grumpiness. I'm thinking 3 hrs is his max for the second one and should be for his BT too. 4 hrs is too long! I thought 3 hrs was normal A time for his age.

[amayzie]

Yeah- 3 hours was what we were doing.. i think i meant that he might be able to handle a little more in the middle if he can't in the morning... And 2,3,4 sounds good- my guy would do that often, except that yes.. 4 is a long time...