Re: sleeping less and less - 16 mo off track

[Mashi]

Kara we had a one hour nap ending at 1215!!  I tried for a nap at 345 and he pulled my hair and slapped me the whole way to his bedroom -- and not in an OT way, but in a total "don't you DARE!" way. Then at 410 as I was about to put his dinner on the table he started yawning and rubbing his eyes.  Stuffed some food into him, ran him through the bath, poured some milk down his throat and tossed him in his cot at 545.  Giggled and played around until 615

My own fault, really - he was tired at 1100 but not tired enough for a long nap. Shoulda done a 30 minute and then a long afternoon nap.   So no advice from me. Sorry. 

[mmom]

Ahh Mashi, I love the hair pulling! I swear I am going to be bald from all of it.  Will you get an EW from the long A?  I have definitely pushed him until 6 in the past and he has just made up the lost sleep at night.  But given our recent OT situation, I fear that this may not be in my best interest.  I don't know.....

[Mashi]

Ummmm...we MAY get an EW, may not.  We never used to, until recently he would go right through from 6pm to 7am without a sniff. The past couple of weeks when we are in this oddity, we have been getting the wake-ups 10ish hours after bedtime.  BUT he does resettle at them...may take me 30 minutes of rocking him, but he will go back to sleep, and then likely wake close to 7ish again.   That's what happened yesterday and I had it in my mind that he'd had a 13 hour night, when really it was not, as he was up from 430-530, and so I should have done 2 naps today to catch up. But I am stuffed full of cold and not thinking straight.  Need to get better before Christmas!

[mmom]

Mashi, I hope you feel better! I am sure the sleep issues aren't helping.

[mmom]

We got a 12 hour night!!! Woo hoo!!!  DH got mad at me last night because I put our LO down at 5:30.  He refused a cat nap and was exhausted.  So I just put him down.  He didn't fall asleep until 5:50 and woke at 5:50 this morning.

So, now what to do about today?  Mashi, I saw your post on another thread about how 2 naps are making things worse for you now, how you are stuck in a short nap zone,  and how you got out of this before.  Let me know what you figure out/ remember because I feel like I am in the same spot as you!

[Mashi]

I will -- I have been sitting here trying to remember!

I am so glad that last night worked out for you -- and silently tallying a point up for the women's team 

But you are now on an appx 6am - 6pm routine...aren't you?? Which isn't ideal perhaps but keep in mind how far you have come in a month and a half!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[babybarr]

We quite like a 6-6 routine as we have to be up that early in the morning for work - well 6.30 - 6.30 would be marginally better!!  It's funny how people want so many different things and we're never happy!!

Well done on the great night BTW.

Sorry Mashi things are crazy for you.  It's a shame your LO is being difficult with the 2 naps cos that always seemed like a lifesaver for you.  Are you feeling any better?  Lots of vitamin C!!!!

[mmom]

Laura, I used to be happy with that.  To be honest, I would like a later bedtime and we don't normally get 6-6.  Last night was a fluke, since he was catching up on lost sleep.  It is normally 6-5.  I REALLY hate 5.  I would be happy with 7-6.

Mashi, yes a point for the women's team!  DH thought we would get an even earlier waking, which i guess was totally possible.  But all I kept thinking was we have an exhausted toddler and I am not pushing it!

Tonight my LO is sleeping at my MIL/FIL's house. It is DH's birthday and they are having a dinner for him.  Since he goes to bed so darn early and last time it was a disaster transferring him once he was asleep, we are just going to put him down there and get him tomorrow morning.  I am hoping we have a decent day and they have a decent night.

[mmom]

After the 12 hour night yesterday, my LO took a 1.5 hour nap on a 5.5 hour A.  I guess that is all I can expect with a great night.  We had dinner at my in-laws last night and while he was sleeping by 6:30, it was still a longer A than I would normally do.  I think it was 5 hours 45 minutes...so not horrible. I was worried about him being able to settle, because it was so hectic and I tried to do the whole wind down upstairs in the quiet, but he was breaking down at that point.  No one could believe I was bringing him to bed because it was so early and because he looked fine.  But I knew that he only looked fine because he was in the middle of it all and as soon as I would remove him from the situation, he would break down....which he did.  He slept until 5:45 this morning, which is 11 hours, 15 minutes.  Not too bad given the chaos before bed time.

Tonight will not be as chaotic, but it will be harder to have my LO in bed before 7.  So he will be OT for Christmas unfortunately.

[Mashi]

Looks like it is pretty much identical to our days here. 12 hour night on......I dunno, the other day!....and got a 1.5 hour nap on 5.5 hours of A. To me it just screams OT because he's only just made it to 5h of A, but yet the signs all suggest to me that it is UT. 

We had an 11h15minute night last night as well, with a full hour NW with him in hysterics.  I could hear his tummy gurgling and he had a LOAD of baked beans at dinner.  When he woke this morning I walked into his room to resettle him and all I could smell was poop. He wanted to go back to sleep, I could tell, and just laid there holding my hand forcing me to rub his head and his tummy (drives me nuts when he does that!) but never fell back to sleep.

Thing is, that after these 1.5 hour naps he is still lasting a full 5.5 hours before he will even entertain the idea of bed time sleep.  That's surprising to me.  I am thinking that I may bite the bullet and give him 6 hours of A time tomorrow morning  and see if I can get a 2 hour nap out of him, and then only 4.5 hours before bed.  On paper, to me, it seems very wrong and asking for disaster. It's an A time that is not really suitable for his age, IMO, and I just can not see it getting me anywhere except into OT territory. But, I need to feel it out to see if I am right!

Hope you have a good Christmas without too many sleep disruptions and OS from visits and things

[mmom]

Mashi, it looks like our LO's are doing similar things.  Why are they so confusing!!!  Your poor LO probably had a belly ache. Poor thing!!  Let me know how that plan goes, since I am trying to figure the same stuff out.

Despite how good the last couple of days have been, today is not going well.  Surprisingly, even after a good nights sleep, my Lo fell asleep in the car on the way home.  DH said he wasn't even paying attention and was shocked to see him sleeping.  He thinks he slept about 10 minutes total, but is not sure.  Now my LO is refusing a nap.  He has been in his crib for 1 hour and 15 minutes and was just playing and now is starting to whine.  I am not getting him, but it is not looking good.  Of course he does this on the night that we can't get him to bed early!!!

[mmom]

Yesterday was whacky and surprise, surprise, we got an EW this morning.  Yesterday went like this:
W- 5:45
S- 9:30-9:40   couldn't even believe it....
S- 12:35-2:05  So despite fighting the nap, he at least slept his usual 1.5 hours
Bed:7:30

Wake this morning: 5:20 something  I am so tired!!  But i expected it.  Since he can't nap until 1:30/2 ish, I am going to try and aim for a cat nap this morning.  Everyone kept commenting on how good and happy he was last night and I kept saying he won't be that way tomorrow!!  

[Mashi]

Hope you had a good night last night - DS did not nap well on Christmas Day, 1130-1230 grrrr.  Was a miserable afternoon as he was grumpy. Tried to put him down at 4ish and was not having it so we put him in bed at 530. He was asleep by 540 and slept until 720 this morning! I heard him at 330 but he went right back to sleep, and I'm pretty sure I heard him at 430 as well.  But, a good 13.5 hour sleep and I think he may be back on track. He was tired all morning this morning though, lots of yawning but we were out - got him down for his nap and he went to sleep peacefully at 1200, so only 4.5 hours.  Am hoping for a 2 hour nap today and we will be back on track!

[mmom]

Wow Mashi!!  While it stinks that your LO didn't nap well, it is great that he made up for it last night!! That is what I was hoping for.  I hope today your LO gets back on track.

Yesterday wasn't great, but wasn't a disaster either.  My LO took a 25 minute cat nap in the morning.  Then he played with his cousins for a few hours.  When we got to my mom's, I tried to put him right down before more people got there and he got completely stimulated again.  He was not happy about that, but eventually fell asleep.  He only slept for 45 minutes, which I didn't even complain about given how many times in the last couple of weeks that he refused 2 naps.   We actually ate early this year and DH and I hurried out of there and got him home.  He was sleeping by 6:30 (wake from nap 3:05).  I was hoping he would give us a 12 hour night to make up for the last couple of days.  But he woke at 5:30.

I am torn about what to do about today, because I am sure he is tired and could benefit from a cat nap. But they have not been going well lately.  The only reason I went with it yesterday is because he had a 10 hour night and wouldn't be able to go down for a nap until 1:30.   Plus it was completely OS for him at my B+SIL's house with all of the kids, toys, and people.  Yet, I am pretty sure if I push it to 11, we will be in trouble again.

[Mashi]

Ohhhh sorry to hear things didn't go so well.  Are you still trying to keep him in his crib/bedroom in the dark when he wakes at 530, or are you getting up with him and starting the day? 

I know that what I would do in your situation is not always what works for you - but I would give him a 20-30 minute nap at 930/1o00ish and then as long of a nap as you can get out of him in the afternoon.  He might even take it closer to 1pm...some of that refusal could be coming from trying the nap too late and he's past it by then kwim?

DS was definitely OS yesterday and it's only him and DH and I, but all of the new toys just took his mind away!!