Help with dropping 3rd nap please?

[marshmallow]

I think DS is ready to move to 2 naps, so I'm wondering how to do it. His current schedule is:

7/7:30am wake
9:30/9:45am nap for 30-40 mins 
12:30/12:45pm nap for 1.5hrs
4/4:15pm nap for 30-40 mins
7:30pm bed

So do we drop the last nap and leave the rest as is, meaning he's awake from 2pm - 7:30pm?

Or do I push the first nap back, thereby pushing back the second nap? If I do it this way I assume it will be gradual - so if initially he naps from 1 - 2:30pm, then do I let him nap again later until he build up to more A time earlier in the day? Or should he be ok to stay awake from 2:30 - 7:30? And if I let him nap, what time and for how long?

He's 7.5mths.

Thanks.

[becky1969]

Hi!

This was about the age we dropped 3rd nap too, so I think your instincts are right.

I have a feeling 1st nap is so short because it's not late enough.  At this age, we except somewhre between 3-3.5 hours o fA time.  You're only giving him 2.5 max, and as little as 2 before nap.  He's probably just not sleep enough.  So let's move 15 minutes at a time every 2 days until we get around 3 -- see how he does there (if nap starts being closer to 1.5 hours in other words), and i fafter 3 days at 3 hours A time you still are getting short nap, then we'll move 15 minutes at a time every 2 days until nap is longer.


So, ideally here is what we're moving towards:

7 am wake

10:00 nap (1.5 hours)

11:30 awake

2:30 nap (1.5 hours)

4:00 awake

7 pm bedtime

Make sense?


Go slow with extending A time before each nap and you'll have more success.  Like I said, 15 minutes every 2 days at the fastest.  If he's just acting really tired, take him to his room for quiet activity to extend his awake period.

[marshmallow]

Thanks for your reply.

It's honestly not that I'm only letting him have 2hrs A time - he's rubbing his eyes, giving out, etc, if he's awake any longer! He's generally awake 2.5hrs in the morning before 1st nap, but he can't stay awake any longer than 2.25hrs before lunchtime nap (and he's still napping for 1.5hrs).

As for length of the morning nap, he would never ever nap for longer than that, despite lots of tweaking with his routine :-( When we've kept him awake longer, he still naps for only 30 mins or so, but is very difficult to get asleep as he's overtired.

So if he drops the third nap, he'll have 2hrs total naps a day, is that enough?

[becky1969]

I doubt it, especially as you have such a sleepy bub.

I think you're going to have to hold on to catnap for a bit longer! Just until he can stretch that A time.  I think if he manages to stretch morning A time by an hour, that may push the rest of your day enough that you can drop catnap and just have a slightly earlier bedtime.  It may be another month or so, would be my best guess. But one never knows! Sometimes they stretch A time faster than you expect! 

Enjoy your sleepy bub.  In my experience these little guys hold on to the nap longer than most!  It can be frustrating because it takes so long for them to stretchA time, so you can feel pretty housebound.  But then it pays off once you're down to 1 nap because you get long nights AND long day sleep!

[becky1969]

One more thing.  Sounds like you may have an angel/textbook LO? If that's so, sometimes they have a real tough time changing A times just out of habit.  So, they'll show sleepy signs at their traditional nap time when they really aren't *that* tired and could probably stretch a bit.  To stretch these little ones you take them into their room and do quiet play for 5-10 minutes before wind down in an attempt to stretch.  Not saying this is the case right now, but if in another month you're STILL at this A time chances are he'll be ready to move and you'll have to gently coax him to do so.

Now I'm done.