How to balance the length of the two naps on 4-hourly EASY?

[Bryony]

Hi! I was wondering if anyone might have any pearls of wisdom?

We've recently (one week ago) changed from 3-hourly to 4-hourly EASY.  Katie pretty much just "did" the change herself by suddenly staying awake much longer, so I then let her sleep to 2 hours each nap and we dropped a feed and the afternoon nap.

However I am not sure how best to balance the two naps. Katie always sleeps like a log on the first nap, and I always have to wake her at 2 hours. I have no idea how long she would sleep if I didn't wake her - all day I think!  But then the lunchtime nap she often wakes at 45 mins (which she tended to do on 3-hourly EASY too). I can usually get her back to sleep for another 45 mins or so but she doesn't sleep nearly so well in general on the lunchtime nap. 

So, my question is - should I cut the morning nap a bit shorter to see if it helps her sleep better at lunchtime?  I read somewhere that it's better for the longer nap to be at lunchtime. Or should I assume that she prefers to have a longer deeper sleep in the morning and let her sleep longer than two hours, and then have a shorter nap at lunchtime?

Our schedule is usually something like:

7am E (allthough she is usually awake already and talking to herself in her cot since about 6:30am)
8:45 or 9:00 nap (dependinng how tired she is) - for 2 hours
11am E
12:45 or 1:00 nap - usually with 45 minute wake up and usually eventually going back to sleep
3:00 E
5:00pm catnap - usually 30 mins or so in the buggy while we go for a walk
7:00- 7:30ish - bedtime

She goes down for naps and bedtime really well - a few minutes of moaning then sleep.   She is on about 2hrs of A time at present but this is sometimes longer than this and sometimes shorter depending on how tired she seems.

And as her A time increases further, should I be reducing the morning nap or the lunchtime nap?

Any thoughts?

Thanks 

Bryony

[malialeanne]

Hi there. My dd is the same way--she sleeps like a log in the a.m. (and is also in her best mood first thing in the morning, so it's easy to keep her up for her entire A time). If I let her sleep as long as she likes in the a.m. she'll take a shorter p.m. nap and it's really difficult to extend it. So we wake her at 1.5 hours in the a.m. order to preserve the afternoon nap. You're correct that this nap is the one to protect, as it has the biggest effect on nightime sleep. I actually aim for around 1.5 hours both naps, since 2-hour naps affect my dd's night sleep, but they work for a lot of babies.

I also have to really strive to keep her up for her entire A time midday, as she kind of droops around this time and acts sleepy. However if I put her down too early she gets a short nap, so it doesn't help. 

[Bryony]

Thanks Malia!  That's realy helpful

Yesterday I really tried to extend the A time before the lunchtime nap - she got a bit overtired but then she slept thorugh for a solid 2 hours (when I then woke her).  So I think I will wake her at 2 hours for the morning one for now, and then try and keep her awake a bit longer before the lunchtime one in the hope that she gets another 2 hours. Then in a few weeks when her A times get longer, I will try reducing the morning one to 1.5 hours or so.

Thanks again!

Bryony