13 month old NWs and waking early again!

[JessicaNoel]

My 13 1/2 month old has been waking at night and around 5:45.  We went through the same thing about 3 months ago.  It started about 3 weeks ago after he got a cold.  Most nights he will sttn but the night wakings are happening more often.  He will wake up and be sitting there screaming.  I'm trying not to pick him up, so the last couple time I have just laid next o his crib with my hand on him.  The first night it took an hour and last night an 1 1/2.  He will lay there fall asleep, then wake, then babble, then fuss and it takes forever for him to fall back asleep.  The last week he has also been waking up crying at 5:45-6 am.  I keep thinking he's teething because he gnaws on his hand all day and is very fussy and clingy.  He has also been struggling with naps some days.  Our day usually looks like this

6am-wake
6:15- nurse, sometimes falls back asleep til 7
10-1030- nap depends on wu, but try to not start until 10
11:30 nurse
2:30-3- nap depends on wu, I wake by 415
415- nurse
730-745 bed

Usually his naps are an hour.  His morning nap is much easier lately than his afternoon. Any advise would help. 

[JessicaNoel]

I just wanted to put down his a times......morning 3-15 to 3 1/2, afternoon 3 1/2- 3-45, bedtime 3  1/2-4 hours.  He alway wakes at different times so I try to do these a times.

[Buttonbobs]

Hi honey, it could be teething at this age, but also his A times are quite short for his age average. That together with the symptoms you have described sounds like he might be a little UT at BT. It could be time to move closer towards having one nap.

Have you seen these threads?
From 2 to 1 nap transition (10-12m and older)
Average A times- BOOKMARK ME!

I would probably keep that morning CN where it is but cut it shorter - perhaps let him sleep for 20 mins and then go for the second nap at the same A time as you're doing now and then a full A time before BT.  If he's awake by 4pm then you could try BT at around 7.30/8pm

What do you think?

[JessicaNoel]

I'm just nervous to cap his naps because he has never been a good napper.  He has been taking short naps again.  He just wakes crying in the morning and after every nap, even if he takes a 1 1/2 nap.

[JessicaNoel]

What should his morning A time be if I want him to take a long morning nap, short afternoon nap? His morning nap has always been easier.  Lately waking after 40 min. crying though.  He is also sooo clingy and fussy during the day. He just doesn't seem like the same happy baby lately.

[Buttonbobs]

You would need to push the morning A time out quite a bit - it's a little hard to tell from you EASY but perhaps try extending the first A fifteen minutes every three days until you get a longer nap. Then you can go for a CN in the afternoon.

Sorry it's hard right now, he does sound OT from the short nights. Hugs

[JessicaNoel]

I have never done a CN in the morning, he usually starts his nap at 10- 1030 and I let him sleep.  I only wake him if he goes past 11:45.  I have never been good at knowing what his A times should be.  Do you remember what you Lo's were at his age?  I feel like he needs a new schedule but don't know where to start.  Sometimes his day starts at 6am but we cuddle until 7am and other days he goes back to sleep until 7 am. I'm not a morning person so I don't like getting up until after 7.  The morning nurse and cuddle time are nice.  I just don't know how I want to approach the one nap transition.  Thanks for the advice.

[Buttonbobs]

Oh I see, I misunderstood your post. I thought he was sleeping from 10 until 10.30. Sorry

In that case, you'll need to choose which nap to cap a little shorter. So if you want to stick with a long am nap, then let him sleep as long as he wants in the morning and do a slightly shorter A time after that nap so you're putting him down slightly ut and aiming to get a shorter nap in the afternoon. The go for BT sometime after that. It's a bit trial and error to work out how much A he'll need after a short nap. My DD always needed the full A time but I see lots of others managing well with half an hour less than their full A, if you see what I mean.

[JessicaNoel]

Ok, I'll try for a long am short pm.  He slept through last night.  He has been a sleep through a couple, wake a couple kind of baby, but for the last 3 months he has been mostly sleeping through and taking good naps, util this little blip.  Thanks for taking the time to give me advice.