sleep is falling apart here

[*Becky*]

yeh, you are right of course, it just takes me a while to process how it will work for H. I'll be back

[katie80]

I agree with the 6:30 pm bedtime, Becky, because really that was 7:30 pm only a week ago.  I know most people will say it only takes a week or so for our bodies to change over, but really that's not been the case for C at all in her short little life, because she's pretty touchy when it comes to sleep.  And yes, even if he wakes at 5:30 am, that's more sleep and a better chance at a longer nap, I think.

I also agree with Clare on the short afternoon A.  Just a couple weeks ago, when I redid WIWO and C never fell asleep, I took her for an hour drive from 2-3 pm and put her to bed at 6:30 pm.  It was probably one of the longest mornings she's ever had, but she slept 12 hrs that night.  She went to bed  just a tad more rested because it was so close to her nap, that she slept through and woke happy the next morning (a VERY rare event)!

Just more food for thought!! 

[*Becky*]

i went for 6.45pm as he was watching fireworks and he did 12 hours - best sleep since clock change. i think somewhere between birthday and clock change we went a bit haywire and he def got way OT. I just hope we get some better naps than 1 hour otherwise it will all happen again.
I swear he reads these posts as it was literally a few days ago that i was thinking i had his timings worked out and now no clue again!
after the good night am thinking of an active morning with lots of fresh air and then maybe bed for 12.30pm?
katie - maybe they are always touchy when it comes to sleep, i thought he had grown out of that a bit but does not seem so.
bx

[clazzat]

Glad you got a good night, and hope you had a decent nap too.  I must say that I have found at this age that it does seem to become even more important to make sure that they are active and out in the fresh air a lot to help them sleep.

[*Becky*]

nap was only 1.15.
Not sure whether he needs more or less A time.

Today was
A - 6.45am
S - 12.30-1.45pm

I recently pushed him out to 6 hours as he was faffing about a bit at nap time but today he fell asleep much quicker after a shorter A time and a good night BUT then did a short nap. Any ideas?

[Tweakster]

I'm inclined to say 6 hrs after such a good night, maybe even more.  I think 12 hours is a lot of sleep and really think 1 hr+ nap on the back of that is actually great!

[*Becky*]

yesterday was
A - 6.45am
S - 12.30-1.45pm
Bed - 7pm

Today
A - 6.45am
S - 12.45 - woke up crying after 45 mins and managed to resettle for 25 more mins.

Not sure where I am going wrong. He is clearly tired even with the good nights.

I know it does not seem that big a deal but 45 mins - 1 hour is not enough for him, I can see it in him.

He did go to nursery this am and am wondering whether it is just so stimulating and that is the problem. He does have a good wind down though?

[Tweakster]

So you are napping him when he comes back from nursery?  If he just started I definitely think that's a factor.  Heck it's still a factor for us and he's been going for 8 mths!

[*Becky*]

well the nap problems started a week ago and I think that was a result of clock change and birthday parties. He got way OT.

But yes he did start on friday so does 2 mornings. He did a 1 hour nap friday but then even over the weekend it was an hour and 1.15.

Going to be tricky if he is not able to nap well even on the non nursery days.

[Tweakster]

Yes it will be tough - I can totally relate to that one :-(  I think you need to bring the nap earlier if you can, what time is he out of nursery?  Even with a good night nursery is a very busy and overloading place, he's bound to be more tired just now.  It's great that he's tacking on to his nights but still, he needs a bit more to get through the day as well.

[katie80]

I think pull back a little too, Becky.  I've noticed that it takes quite some time for C to recover from OT, rather than when she was younger.  One 12 hr night doesn't do the trick any more; maybe because they're so active during the day.  So, with the added stimulation of nursery, my guess is he could use just a bit less. 

[*Becky*]

I can't make nap after nursery any earlier at all as we have to get back home. I already do lunch in the car!

I guess I have to be prepared for it 2 x a week but he needs to nap well on the other days as a few days with bad naps and we will be back in OT land.

[Tweakster]

Ok so pull the nap back on the days he doesn't go to nursery.  You may find that if you let him catch up at nights he won't have the sleep drive in the day - perhaps cap his nights at 11 for now and see if you can still get a longer nap.

[*Becky*]

i think the night catch ups will not last. he tends to do this and then gets OT so does shorter nights. Will pull A back to 5.5 tomorrow and see if that helps.
thanks xxx

[clazzat]

Another thing I would also say is to perhaps not get too hung up on the wind down on nursery days - I just sling E in bed and she goes to sleep pretty quickly, so I think they can switch off quickly at this age if they need to.  I'd say it's certainly worth trying - it could be that the last 15 mins for the wind down is the straw that breaks the camel's back, iyswim?