Feeling a bit trapped in the morning because of nap

[Grace's Mummy]

DD is 14.5 months old (almost!) and is on one nap. She has been since she was 13 months. She naps between 12 and 12.30 for an hour and 20 mins or so. If I am lucky, she will nap for an hour and a half.

The thing is, I can't take her out in the morning until she has had her nap. If I do, she will fall asleep. No matter what time it is, if she is in the car or the pram, she will go to sleep. If she does, she then won't sleep in the afternoon.
 
I am just wondering if anyone else is in this situation or has been, and how long it might last.

Thank you!

[*Becky*]

I had to avoid car journeys around 11am as DS would do the same so if we were in the car we would make sure we were back by 11am. It was a bit of a pain but it changed pretty quickly and now at 2 years, 2 months we can go out until about 12.30pm without him falling asleep...as long as the heating is not on!

[Grace's Mummy]

Thank you for your reply. I look forward to the time when we can do that. Perhaps I will experiment with going out early - if she has had a good night! And make sure I am back for about 10.30 or so. I can see how it works. I will wait til we are back in a rhythm, which may be a week or so away because of the teething.
Thanks again.

Does anyone else have experience that they could share?

[Roseii]

Is there anywhere you can go where you can walk, let her drop off in the buggy on the way home and leave her in there to sleep? I used to get great 2 hour naps out of DD1 doing that when she was 16-20m xx

[Grace's Mummy]

That would be great! But the moment the buggy (or car) stops, she wakes up! I would have to walk around for two hours to get her to sleep for that long, and even then, she doesn't usually sleep for more than 30 - 40 mins in the buggy. I guess this is something I will just have to ride out! I was just wondering if this was a common occurance - obviously it is not!

Thank you for taking the time to read and reply. x

[Roseii]

Oh I def think it's a common occurrence hun, at this age the nap is SO important but before you know it it won't be such a big deal if she has a shorter nap or even 2 catnaps whilst you're out and about. I used to take DD1 to the Children's Centre on a Fri morn which was a 20 min car-ride and I used to spend the whole journey home singing to her at the top of my voice to keep her awake so I would get a decent nap!! I think unortunately it is a case of riding it out and trying to find activities you can do in the afternoon or for only an hour or 2, close to home in the morning.
xx

[LucySol]

I used to spend the whole journey home singing to her at the top of my voice to keep her awake so I would get a decent nap!!

LOL,ive done this so many times! Another thing i found that helped was to have a snack ready for on the way home.that helped to keep D awake till we got home.Or get her looking out of the windows for a tree,car,bus anything to keep her awake!

[Tweakster]

Yeah if I had a dollar for every time we had to yell or poke Finn lol  He will only sleep in the car when we don't want him to.

[katie80]

I think it's pretty common too.  Snacks were about the only thing that helped us; poking, yelling, and singing did nothing, LOL.  Probably for the first few months on one nap, I made sure we were home between 10:30 and 11 am.  It's tough, but it does get better.

[Grace's Mummy]

Thank you all for your replies! It is reassuring to know it is common and that Grace isn't doing anything out of the ordinary.

Poking, singing etc doesn't work for G either! She will still go to sleep if she wants to and she doesn't go to sleep when I do want her to!

A snack is a great idea. I do that in the supermarket to keep her entertained whilst I get the groceries. It works a treat. I will try it to keep her awake.

I guess for now we shall stay close to home and be home early so that she doesn't sleep en route. I am having a tough time with sleep generally just now, so want her to nap as much as possible to help with that.

Thank you again! It is always very interesting to hear what other people do.