25 minute nap for a 12-month old?? I think not!

[alicialars]

Oh hello... we are back...
DD is 12.5 months, and is now sleeping... well... 25-30 minutes at a time at naptime, once a day. Doesn't matter if it's in the morning or afternoon. Screams after 25 minutes. It's awful.

Can someone give me an idea of your 12mo's schedule, if you are on one nap? Many thanks!

[PeepersMom]

what is your current schedule?

we didn't go to 1 nap till about 14 months but his nap started out pretty early, like 11-1130.  Now he tolerates a little longer awake time so we get to 12-1230.  PJ is a poor napper, too so I can sympathize.

Have you looked into a cat nap in the morning hoping for a long afternoon nap? 

[M and N's Mom]

My DS is 12.5mos and we are in transition with the 2-1 nap.  Right now we are doing:

Wake
2.5h A
30 min nap (wake him)
2.5h A
~1.5h nap
3.5h A
Bedtime

He has never been a good napper either, but this seems to be going alright for now.

[alicialars]

Oh my, we have tried everything. She was a solid 2x day 30-minute napper until December, when her AM nap suddenly went to 1hr 15-20, and then she absolutely flat-out refused a PM nap. Sooooo we tried waking her after 30 min in the AM, which led to - no - afternoon nap. So, I was happy with a long nap in the morning, because she got somewhat rested and I got stuff done, and we just worked through the afternoons (around 6 things get a bit dodgy).

So here is our "schedule":
7 wake
8 solid breakfast
10:40-11 stories and rocking for wind-down
11 nap
11:30-12:30 wake up
(she used to nurse here but has dropped this feeding - I think we're on the way to weaning)
12:30 lunch
1:00-5:30 play time, errand time
5:30 dinner
6-6:30 play time
6:30 bath
7 nurse, stories, bed
she wakes between 5 and 6 and nurses; I put her back to bed and she either sleeps or plays until wake-up time, which sometimes is at 6. There is no rhyme or reason.

I think what might have torpedoed things is that we started going to a baby story hour at the library on Thursday, which went from 9:30-10:20. It's not a long drive home, but she was falling asleep in the car, which I did not want to encourage as I can't get her out of the car seat and into the house and keep her asleep. I'm not going to story hour again until she's more into an afternoon nap. Then on top of everything, a relative here in town had an accident and required hospitalisation and a home-bound convalescence. Since I am the only relative in town and she is quite aged... well, you get the idea. LONG drives to her home. Baby napped in the car. I just ... am going to go bonkers here.

Thanks for the help and support, if nothing else. You are all wonderful.

[rinajack]

Me DD is doing this at daycare too.  Arggggg.

Try not letting that 1 nap be soo late.  Did you move it all in one go?  If you moved it from mid morning, to after lunch in one go, it probably made your lo overtired.

If you need to do that morning one again, do it, then AP a late afternoon catnap (around 4ish we do sometimes). 

On the days where you are out and about, there is little you can do. I surrender on those days, and just let her nap whenever she will give in.  I try to make sure after one of those days I am home for a day if possible.

[rinajack]

My other point is if that one nap is short (as in daycare days) I will fight tooth and nail to make DD take another nap that day

[Layla]

Isabella was doing the exact same thing when she was transitioning to 1 nap. She would take a short morning nap and then nothing in the afternoon. There were even days when she didn'd nap at all (mind you I think it had to do more with the fact that Jasmine was born around that time. I then tried 11am and it would only last for 1hr and then nothing all afternoon and horrible nigtwakings. I just kept trying for a morning nap at 9am (she used to wake at 6ish) and kept cutting it to 45mins. Then I would almost rock her to sleep for the afternoon nap (anything really to get her to take a nap) and eventually she fell for the routine. Every now and then she would not take a morning nap, in which case I would hold her off until 11ish and give her a super early bedtime. I remember her going to sleep during the transition as early as 5ish. The poor girl used to have her dinner at 4.30pm. I would say she is overtired as well. If possible I would say do bedtime earlier to let her catch up on sleep. I know it doesn't work for all babies but it did wonders for Isabella.

hth
Layla