Toddler Support Thread for 2-1 Nap Transition Continued

[Nauvoo]

Gavinsmum, one day I just had it with two naps because it was making our routine so hard so I knew it was time to make the switch.  So once I got a good wake up I went for it.  We were also having EW with a routine like yours.

We had a great 12.5hr night last night.  LOVED IT!!!  I did W2S again today, for her nap, at the 1hr mark and she woke 1.5hrs into the nap but quickly went back to sleep and slept for 2hrs 5min.  YAY!!!!
She woke up very happy and looked very rested.  It generally takes her awhile to wake up but not today.  Once out of bed she was ready to go.

[gavinsmum1]

I haven't tried one nap since before he was sick, so almost a month ago!!  I think once the time change arrives on Sunday night, Monday morning, we're gonna give it a shot.  I know he can handle the 4.5 hours A time now, so I may just start alternating between 1 nap and 2 nap days until it starts getting more difficult with the two nap days.  Jesse's particularly sensitive to OT, so I've got to be smart about it!
We've had two good days on the 20 min am/long afternoon nap, but this afternoon he was taking longer to settle and after 15 min I checked him and he'd pooped!! Then of course he was not happy about being changed and then some WIWO came about, so he's now settled 20 minutes later than I'd hoped.  We'll see about this nap!

[hjrmom01]

nauvoo, great job on the 12.5 hr night!  I'd be loving that for sure!!!

After 3 days of 3 hr naps and STTN, H went back to a 2 hr nap and then a crappy night Woke at 11:15, 12:15 but settled himself both times...then woke screaming at 4:45. A dose of Motrin and Tylenol and he was back to sleep in 20-30 mins but was so unsettled and then screamed when I left. Unfortunately I had to get ready for work so I couldn't stay in there. He did end up going back to sleep around 5:30/45 and slept until 7:30. DH said he slept from 12:30-2:20 so I had him in bed at 7. Hoping for a decent night.  I'm thinking maybe teeth as the other side of his bottom left molar has finally cut.  I'll be happy when he is done teething!!!

What A time do you all do after a 2 hr nap? 

[*Jo*]

ugh i have molar issues at the moment, up to 6 NW's the last three nights, which im sure are the molars, either that or OT from one nap days! either way its no fun at all!

[Nauvoo]

Alyssa,
On a good day (like today We do 4hrs 45min for first A time and then do 4hr 45 - 5hrs for 2nd A time.  This seems to work for us.  However, when we get short naps the last A time is usually over 5hrs.

[gavinsmum1]

Okay, the time change allowed us to get a later wake-up and we went for a one nap day.  It went pretty well.

woke 7:10
nap 11:40-1:25 ( I was hoping to put him down closer to 12, but he was yawning his face off and obviously ready for bed.  I didn't want to push it too much!)
bedtime- probably around 6:30 or 6:45 if he can handle it

My plan is just to give it a few days and see what kind of naps/wake-ups I get the next day.  The days where he's woken earlier, then I'll just do two, but I'm going to try to avoid that as I think he just needs to start getting used to the longer A times and having that one long nap.  Here's hoping for a wake-up tomorrow that's somewhere around 7 am!!

PS I think even after three rounds of antibiotics (two different kinds) he's still got that ear infection.  He's also cutting his third tooth and another one's threatening an arrival soon on the bottom.  This is the worst scenario for attempting one nap, but you do what you gotta do!

[Flightmommy]

Gavinsmum1, we're in the same boat....Caleb had an ear infection mid jan and that took 2 dose of antibiotics to heal it. Even so, at his follow up appts ( in feb), the doctor said there was still some residual redness, but he couldn't tell for sure because Caleb was crying so hard, which he does all the time when they look in his ears. So we went back at the end of feb to check again, and we got the same results....residual redness, but possibly due to crying!!???
  So then he started teething, for the FIRST TIME ( both front teeth and molars at the same time ughhh), and this weekend, he's been running a mild fever of 101...super fussy, whiney and wouldn't settle tonight for bedtime, which is extremely rare for him..i never have to go in there, he's usually really good at settling on his own. So, something is definitely up with him and i'm suspecting that his ear infection never fully healed and it's creeping up again...putting a call in to the doc tomorrow am!
  Oh, wait...i haven't even mentionned the worst part yet....our nanny has CHICKEN POX!!! and Caleb was with her all of last week as i was preparing for my return to work (training and requalification stuff, etc), which was supposed to be this weekend and never happened since i don't have a healthy nanny right now!! Really, i don't remember ever hearing of an adult getting chicken pox, but i'm just terrified about Caleb getting it. I called our doctor on friday and he says it's almost certain that Caleb will develop it, especially since he's not yet vaccinated and it's just so contagious...it's just the last thing we need right now, with all this teething and napping issues and my return to work!!

[gavinsmum1]

Flightmommy, that's terrible!  It just seems like everyone is getting a dose of bad luck.  All the families I live near have experienced prolonged sickness, etc.  Poor Caleb, it's good that you're going to have him checked out again, but not so good about the possibility of chicken pox. So sorry to hear that.

We're back at the doctor's this afternoon.  Our one nap day went splendidly all things considered, but the night was terrible.  He was up all night again.  The best night he's had in the last month was having only two NW.  Most often it's more than half a dozen.  Now, as to be expected with prolonged exhaustion, I'm sick with a cold.  Poor DH has to take 2 days off work just to help out.  Something is still seriously wrong with Jesse for him to wake screaming in the night and start banging on the wall.  We've had to move him into our guest room in the basement and sleep with him there, he's that disruptive to the rest of the family. 

I'm starting to understand the whole getting that A time just right for the one nap days.  Today I put Jesse down for nap after 4 hours 20 minutes and he woke after 1 hour 20 min.  UT I guess?  That seems to be the consensus on this board.  Yesterday I pushed him 10 minutes further and he slept for 1 hour 45 min.  HMMMPH!!  I can't believe he's handling A times like this when he's up all night and down with what appears to be his third virus in a month.  HOW CAN ONE FAMILY BE THIS SICK!?!?!

[Tao]

Hello All,

My Sophie is 11 months now and while she is not quite a year yet, I keep wondering if maybe she's ready for one nap. We started 2-1 transition since 9 months and her A times have jumped like crazy lately.

For the past few weeks our routine (though not really routine since every day was inconsistent) looked like this:

6 a.m Wake
9:30-10:15 Nap
2:00-3:00 Nap
6:30 BT

Things seemed to go pretty well, although there were more days where she would refuse PM nap than days she would actually take the p.m. nap and the suddenly she got an ear infection+teething for the first time. Things went a bit crazy thereafter and I haven't been able to really get back on track. She started refusing BT too as I think she needed more A before BT so she would fight it and finally go down at 9 p.m. or so! She has been sick for 11 days now and is still extremely stuffy. Anyhow, our days have been looking like this:

6:30 Wake
11:30-1:00 Nap (as she refuses her a.m. nap, because of more A time needed I think)
6:00 BT

*My question is, how do I know if she is ready for 1 nap? Should I keep trying 2 naps and maybe just lower a.m. nap to 30 minutes? I was a bit hesitant to do this before because she would still refuse p.m. nap sometimes even on such low a.m. sleep. The problem is that my DH is SAHM and he brings her to my work at 10:30 for so I can nurse and see her. However, on the way home she falls asleep in the carseat no matter how much talking and distracting he does.

* If he can't keep her up after 4.5 hours of morning A, does this mean she's not ready for 1 nap? She only ended up napping for 1 hour today but 1.5 hours yesterday. I know she will be OT just on one nap.

* I'm wondering if I should keep trying the one nap to see if she'll adjust since it's only been two days.

Thanks for your advice! This 2-1 transition is all so new and hard to figure out =).

Much thanks!!!

[hjrmom01]

Christine, I would cut down that first nap to 30 mins for sure.  We got down to a 15 min am nap before we tried one nap days.  I think 1.5 hrs for a one nap day is too short and for us usually means OT.  Your day may end up being longer but what about
up at 6
nap 9:45-10:15
nap 1:15-1:45 until 3:15 (you'll have to watch to see when she gets tired after cutting the nap to 30 mins)
bedtime around 7

As H's A time lengthened and we had to keep cutting down naps, our days got longer and longer.  If you want to try some one nap days make sure you throw in PLENTY of 2 nap days to recover!

flightmummy, sorry to hear that Caleb is still sick and could end up with chicken pox!! Poor baby. Sending lots of *stay healthy* vibes.

Gavinsmum, sorry to hear that Jesse isn't well either Hope he gets on the mend soon.

[Nauvoo]

Well we were able to extend out 1 nap to 2hrs thanks to Wendy's advice to try W2S. Thanks so much Wendy.
My LO is doing 11.5-12hr nights, sometimes more and when we started doing a 2hr nap I noticed she is having what flightmommy calls crib parties.  Flightmommy, did you ever find the reason for Caleb's crib parties?  My LO will wake around 1:30 or 2am and play in her crib for about 30-45min.  I talked with a friend the other day who assured me it is normal for kids this age to wake in the night and play in their bed.  I'm not having to get up with her or anything and she just goes right back to bed.  It's not causing OT or anything.  Should I just leave things how they are or do you think her NW's are due to a lot of sleep?  My LO has always been about average on sleep needs.  Certainly not low and certainly not high sleep needs.

[gavinsmum1]

Okay, I tried a two nap day with Jesse yesterday with dismal results.  It took him forever (55 minutes) to fall asleep and he napped only 40 min.  Then it was 4.5 hours until bed and it took him 40 minutes to settle for that.  So, we are officially on the other side.  I have a question for you ladies on the board.  What do you're routines look like currently?  I'm just asking as I'd like to know what I should gauge for A times. 

This is what our day looked like today:

woke 6:30 (still a little early )
nap 11:30-12:45 (this could've been longer)
bedtime (I guess somewhere around 6:30)

I've had days where he's napped 1 hour 45 minutes, which is fabulous, but that was after 4.5 hours A time.  Today I pushed it to 5 hours A time and he napped shorter, so I'm thinking I should hover around the 4.5 or 4.75 hour A time and hope that the nap lengthens a bit.  I did try to get him to lay back down and go back to sleep, but it didn't work.  I'm also a little hesitant to try w2s with Jesse as he often stirs at that time, starts sucking his thumb and then goes back to sleep anyway, so I think I'd only make things worse if I went in and disturbed him.  I'm a little freaked out about the long A times, but I always have to remind myself that DS#1 was doing this at the same age:
wake 7
nap 11-12:30
bed 6:30 or 6:45 ish

Finally that nap lengthened out and we actually shortened A times and moved that nap more to the middle of the day.  Take a deep breath and move through the transition...

[hjrmom01]

nauvoo, glad the nap has lengthened! And so jealous you are getting such good nights!! As for the NW, if she isn't calling for you I wouldn't worry about it.

gavinsmum, sorry the one nap was short How was the night? I'd try staying with 4.5/4.75 and then working from there. When I very first tried one nap I think we did 4.5 and then 4.5/4.75 to bed. Now we are doing 5hrs and then 4.75 to bed.

Last night H had a 1.5 hr NW BOO!  I can see that the other side of one of his molars is going to cut so I'm assuming that was it. I don't think it was UT. He did have a long nap but he was VERY OT for it, woke after 1h20min (classic OT for him) and then I rocked him back to sleep until 3:30 and bed at 8:30. 

After that crap 9.5 hr night he woke at 7:45 and has napped so far 12:35-3 and is still sleeping, but he did wake at the 1hr mark. Will stick with 4.75-5 to bed again.

[nelliestar]

First ever 1 nap day. : ( ....Mummy didn't like it!

Nursery said shall we try him today with 1 nap and I wanted to say no as he is having multiple NW at the mo but I said ok! DS managed to get to 1pm! Amazed! I was really looking forward to him having a good nap and he woke after 1hr 30. : (
So at 5 he was tired ( this is a v short A time which puzzled me) They tried for a cat nap but he wouldn't go. We got home at 5.45 and he was quite happy but obviously a little tired. He went quite happily to bed at 6.45 and went down with no problem. The day has confused me tbh.
I think his NW are teething and nursery wanted to try for 1 nap because they find it really hard to get him down for his second nap - it takes ages.

Any thoughts?

Nell xxx

[*Jo*]

Well one of you ladies can have my child and figure him out please! After weeks of one nap, we went back to two naps for awhile because we were getting the glorious 6 NW's so I figured with molars as well he must be OT so gave a few catnaps in the stroller to catch him up on sleep, did this for about four days and NW's dissapeared and 11 hour nights came back. So he was up at 6.20am yesterday, fell asleep at 10.25am after swimming classes and slept for 1 hour 55mins!! Awake at 12.17, tried for another catnap but wouldn't have it, but boy I know he was tired. So I made bedtime 6.30pm..... Hello 5.45am today! He cried off and on till I finally got him up at 6.15am so I most certainly can't do one nap with a start that early but I can't seem to get back to a good wakeup and he won't tAke a second nap, what on earth do I do?