5 mo - nonstandard nap durations?

[decemmie]

Hi,

I completed the 4 -> 3 nap transition about 3 weeks ago alongside some sleep training to beat the 45 min nap monster.  It all went reasonably well but I have some tweak questions to ask.

1 - LO seems to need resettling at the 45 min mark for the first nap of the day about 1/2 the time but then will either sleep to the 2 hour mark (as per ideal schedule) or sometimes sleeps through to 2 1/2 or 3 hours.
2 - the 2nd nap of the day, which ideally would be another 2 hours, is usually only 45 mins but he wakes up happy and smiling - house rules are then that he's allowed up - ?!
3 - the 3rd nap of the day, which would ideally be a cat nap late afternoon, should in this case be another 2 hour nap, right?  He struggles with this and I usually only get another 45 mins, occasionally extended to 1 hour but he wakes crying and thrashing and can't be resettled.

Should I persevere with getting that 2nd nap lengthened and the 3rd nap back to cat nap length or are there many people out there who manage to have the short nap in the middle of the day?  I would love it if this was workable as it seems more functional since he can take a short nap in his stroller etc and we have a longer day to do things out and about - but I don't want to work too hard at it if it's not likely to be successful

decemmie

[brenda2]

hi
how long is his first A time?  waking half way for the first nap may mean that the first A time needs a tweak - either shorter or longer.

i would limit the first nap to 2 hours max.  longer nap here is probably why you are having trouble with the next 2.

2nd nap length will probably improve once you limit the first nap.  yes, if happy and smiling i would get him up, he's probably well rested from the monster first nap.

if middle nap is short it's ok for third nap to be long but will need slightly longer before bed in that case.  we often had that with no troubles, but it is better to do a catnap here because this is the nap you will eventually drop at about 7 -8 mo and it will be easier if it's usually a catnap.  ok once in a while but wouldn't make it part of your routine.

total daytime sleep in a 12 hour day should be about 5 hours which he may be already getting if that first nap is so long.