Ooh, what to do?!!!

[KellyC]

Typically as I'm just about to return to work 3 days a week (or maybe because of this!) Zander's nap routine is all over the place and I'm unsure what to do.

It seems to me that he's in between wanting 1 and 2 naps.  He's ready for his morning nap between about 10.30 and 11.00 (wake-up is usually around 7am) and if I let him sleep longer than 20 minutes I struggle to get him down again until almost dinner time and he ends up going to bed late.  However, if I wake him after 20 minutes he still seems really tired, even though he's only had a catnap in the mornings for quite some time and he used to wake happy and refreshed.  This morning my mum had him and apparently he was hysterical when she tried to get him to nap at 10.30 even though he was rubbing his eyes and seemed tired.  She ended up having to give him a dummy (that's another post I think  ) and he was out for the count but miserable when she woke him after 20 minutes as per my instructions.

I've been looking at the routines for babies 13 months + (Zander will be 1 next week) and I'm tempted to try for a 2 - 2.5 hour nap starting at 11am with a split lunch as I think this is what he's wanting to do.  However, this will not be possible for the 2 days he's at nursery as lunch is at 12pm and on one of the days he's at home we have a baby group at 11am.  Should I perhaps try this routine on the other 4 days but something different on the days it's not possible?  Any suggestion for the other days?  I find it most baffling that he gets tired in the mornings after a good night's sleep but can happily do a long stretch in the afternoon, is this usual?  I'm also a bit worried that if he naps at 11am and not again he's going to end up in bed super early and will then be awake super early the next day.

Thanks
Kelly x

[Mom to M&M]

Hi Kelly! I do think it's quite normal for LOs to get tired in the morning, even after a good night sleep. My DD is the same way - she needs a nap after 3.5 hours TOPS (sometimes closer to 3) in the morning or it's complete meltdown mode - but she'd be OK with 4.5 hours in the afternoon. Go figure. I know there's not much you can do with the nursery issue but can you move the time of the baby group so at least you can try the long nap/split lunch thing for the 5 other days? Maybe on the days he goes to nursery he can doze in the car on the way there which may be just enough to keep him going until lunch/afternoon nap? Along the same lines, if he takes a long nap from 11-1 or 1:30 perhaps you can get him to take a 20 minute snooze in the car or stroller around 3:30 or 4 just to tide him over? This is such a tough age and transition...

[KellyC]

Hi Karen

Thanks for your reply.  Today Zander slept until 7.30 (good start!) and I told nursery just to put him down when he was tired for as long as he wanted.  (Yes really, I said that!  )  I had to collect him at 9.30 because he'd been upset all morning and had a temperature so bless him he's been home with me and he went down to sleep at 11.  Hopefully he'll have a long nap and sleep off whatever's making him feel poorly but it also means I'll get a good indication of whether this routine will work for him.  I'll take him out for a walk in his pushchair this evening so he can take a catnap if he needs it.

Kelly x

[Mom to M&M]

I hope he feels better soon!