8 month old one long and one short already?

[brenda2]

G - if her first nap is only 1 hour 10 min this is a sign that she wasn't tired enough to take a longer nap.  i bet if you push the A time longer in the morning she'll take a longer nap a bit later in the day, which will help with only having 1 nap.  we have had several days with only 1 nap and when she does this the nap is sometimes 2.5 hours or longer which helps to make it to bedtime.  then we have a week of 2 naps to recover from the 1 day of 1 nap!

[G and G]

Thanks all. I was lucky enough to get 2 naps yesterday.
I did keep her up a little longer before her first nap, and then I woke her after 1 hr 20 min. Usually if I wake her before that amount of time she is cranky and gets OT quickly. But since she can handle a lot of A time her second nap was not until 3:30, and I woke her at 4:30, put her to bed at 7pm.
This can get tricky, so I'd love some suggestions. Anytime I put her to bed after 6:30 (or 6:45 at the latest) she wakes earlier in the morning! I guess I could have shortened her pm nap down to 45 min, but then we are really cutting into her day sleep.
When she wakes from her second nap, I BF her, give her some solids, we play, go for a walk, bath, final feed and bed. It is A LOT to squeeze in before bed and A LOT of food. I am not sure how to make it all fit in! 

[brenda2]

how old is she now?  at around 9 mo you drop a BF.  so she should be having 3 milk feeds during the day and 3 solids meals, and at around 11  mo you add in 2 snacks to the mix.

something like this (adjust timing as per your routine):

7 awake and milk
8 solids
10-11:30 sleep
11:30 or 12 solids
2 milk
3:30-4:30 sleep
5 solids
7 milk
7:15 bed

you may need to add in snacks too mid morning and mid afternoon.

[G and G]

Thanks Brenda. That helps. I will do a post over on the eating boards to get some more info. DD is almost 9 months - I can't believe it!
She is fighting me like crazy on the naps, but I may try one nap and see if it will get her back to two naps the next day like it did for you!

[lashwish]

I think its 8 month craziness.

My LO just started messing her schedule all around. Im losing my mind. AT least you're getting a long nap in morning, if Im lucky she sleeps an hr, when she's not fighting it.

My DD can't go to bed before 7 or she's wont go to sleep, at least last nite she wasn't having it as I was trying to make up for lack of usual sleep. Just in last week she's cut her sleep down from avg 14 hrs to 12

[Krissy18]

Hi Everyone..
Ive been MIA due to my hard drive crashing a week ago!
anyway I started this post and Im glad others have chimed in

DS seems to be alternating between taking a 2 + hour nap in the AM and a 35-40 min nap later on OR he will do 1 hour 15-30 min and then another 1 hour 15-30 min in the PM. So what is up with that now?

There has also been some crying before naps which is a little unusual for him. I let it be because its more of a whiny cry and doesnt last very long and the nap ends up going ok afterwards anyway.

The wake up time is also going all over the place from 630 to as late as 8 one day.

Here was the routine yesterday..

630 WAKE
10:05-1205 nap (I woke him)
4:20ish- 4:50 nap (he fought this big time. I put him down at 330 and he took almost an hour to fall asleep. Was this OT or UT? who knows...I think UT and didnt wanna nap.)
Bedtime was 830 as usual and this is the time he has been falling asleep lately.

Total day asleep has gone from about 13.5 hours to 12.5 lately.

Please commment

[G and G]

Seems like you are getting along ok? My LO always refuses a catnap - I think it is too late in the day, and it does not matter if she is UT or OT, she knows bedtime is around the corner. Maybe yours is the same way?
Actually, right now DD is refusing ALL naps and I am clueless, exhausted and frustrated! I feel like the worst mom in the world!

[~*~Little Miss Sunshine~*~]

Seems like you are getting along ok? My LO always refuses a catnap - I think it is too late in the day, and it does not matter if she is UT or OT, she knows bedtime is around the corner. Maybe yours is the same way?

This certainly describes my ds!!

Krissy - it looks like things are actually going well.  As for your LO taking an hour to fall asleep, maybe the winddown wasn't sufficient.  I can't really see it be UT as 3.5 hours of A time seems like a lot so it could be OT, but like pp said, it could just be the time of day. 

My ds also goes through phases where he'll cry before he goes to sleep.  This doesn't usually last more than few days and while it is frustrating, it will end.  It could be teething, or maybe your LO is just uncomfortable.  Who knows...but it should pass.

[binxyboo]

Just lurking along if you don't mind xx

[brenda2]

i think 1 long nap and 1 short nap is great.  we've been doing that for a few months now and it's working really well.  i limit the naps to ensure i get the next one.  like no matter what time she goes to sleep in the am i don't let her sleep past 12 or else she fights the pm nap and it ends up being too late.  then for the pm nap i never let her sleep past 4:30 no matter how long that makes her nap (sometimes 20 min only) because then she'll be in bed too late.

sounds like you're doing great.

[rinajack]

Just dont' want people to feel like they are failing if they don't get a nap.  Every day is different, and it isn't the end of the world.  My 11 mo didn't nap today, I think he had a belly ache.  He is coping remarkably well, despite my initial concerns.  And even if he DOES have a bad night, it won't last forever.

[Krissy18]

well, today was day 3 of this afternoon nap mess

it went like this and i would really like some help in fixing

night before tonight he was asleep at 830 as usual

wake 700
nap 1030-1145 he woke on his own
i tried for another nap at 3:15
he fell asleep at 330-340, then up and fussed till 420, slept till 430, up and fussed till 440 then sleep till 455 and woke up screaming..

tonight asleep ok by 830 as usual again

i really hope someone is online to help before tommorow...maybe i should limit the morning more?

[brenda2]

i would let him sleep longer for the morning nap since you are getting a good one there and then push pm nap later and keep it short.  even if you put him down at 4 and let him have 30 min that would be fine.  i think he'll be early to move to 1 nap anyway and then you just make that morning nap later and later until it's at around noon and lasts about 2 hours and then you're home free for 1 nap 

[Krissy18]

The thing is, I dont even see one yawn all day anymore so its hard to read him. Like yesterday..he did 3.5 hours in the morning so I assumed he would do the same if not more in the afternoon right..so I put him down at 3.5 hours, he fell asleep at 3.75 hours for 10 min and then all that that I mentioned in my other post of sleeping on and off  so was he UT or OT I have no clue!

How do I know when to start pushing the AM nap later and later..? My goal is to have him on one nap if I can before I go back to work when he is 11 months. What should my plan be?

[Krissy18]

ok here is how this morning went.
bedtime last night at 830
woke at 720 a little later than usual i guess because yesterday got messed up a bit

nap at 1050 this morning 3.5 hour A time, slept for 35 min, up and cried for 10 min, then down again for 25 min till 12pm and i woke him. he did not seem happy but since he slept in this morning i was thinking he would REALLY fight this PM nap today if i didnt wake him..so he slept an hour total.

i am thinking to put him down at 330? that would be at least another 3.5 hours Awake?