pesky afternoon nap

[~Emma~]

oh so sorry I just realised your LO is only 6 months...this was what I was doing at 8/9 months!! oops!!!

 I do have issue with this but I do believe that she is truly a low sleep needs needs bub so could possibly be more like a 8/9 month old in terms of that. Thing is with her too though that OT comes out of nowhere, we can be ticking along just lovely and then tis like a whirlwhind strikes.

 Tried the 2 x long naps and she only ever will go down for the PM when she's way OT and its like a catch up...or maybe my A wasn't long enough? I do go by her cues when I have tried the 2 long naps.

I just wish I could get to 3 naps let alone 2! Im stuck with a 16 wk old baby that just wont drop the last nap and its getting sooooo tricky now!! oh the joy - and my word do I feel your pain cos its just not possible to see clearly when you have 2 is it!!

 This was Brodie! He was still on 3 naps at 8.5 months! High sleep needs. I cant believe at the time I was stressing about it!!  Sometimes though you just have to take the plunge, drop the nap and try to mop up the OT as best you can. Easy said....

 

well, that's not good!  She was just so upset and I tried and tried to get her to sleep but she just screamed harder and harder. Wouldn't take her paci. Anytime I'd get her to calm down she'd be quiet for a second and then start up again! It's now 3:20 and she's laying with me in my bed NOT going to sleep.....way too OT and just staring around under the blanket I have on her head. So....maybe 3 hrs is too much? Or it's her teeth???

 Yuck Erin. What happened in the end? This is like D in so many respects, you miss the window and there is not a chance. I never know what way I missed the window by either. Is she low sleep needs? Maybe 3 hours was too much. Are you medicating before naps? I know you can get her down at night giving her motrin so maybe teeth are playing a big part here.

[hjrmom01]

How'd your day go, Emma? 

I have NO idea if C is low or high sleep needs. Don't know what her needs are  How awful is that? Nearly 9 months and I still have no clue! I sometimes get caught up in "well she's 8.5 months so......oh, but she's only 6.5 adjusted so maybe....." 

I ended up abandoning nap. I was too frustrated and she just sat there blinking and not sleeping once I finally got her to stop crying. Once I put her in the carseat to leave she was shrieking and kicking (but again, she did that all Sunday and she only had 2x30 min naps). Either OT sounds or she is very spirited! I went to the grocery store and put her in the wrap and she finally did fall asleep--not sure when but when I peeked in at nearly 5pm she was asleep. I think it was after 4:30 so it was hardly a good nap. She cried before bed, too, but she was asleep by 7:45. Cried out a few times before midnight, settled herself at 2:30, paci and Motrin at 4:45, settled herself at 6:45 and still sleeping at 7. Ooops spoke too soon, she's crying out.

It seems like just last week she was doing 2.5hrs between her am and pm nap.  But she doesn't look tired at all at 2.5 hrs. I think it's going to be trial and error for a few days. And today I will try something before nap to see if it's pain. And if this keeps up, I'll have her ears checked, too!

Oh, one thing, Emma. When you were trying two long naps with D you were using her cues?  Don't forget that by 6months their cues can be pretty unreliable. Rubbing eyes, yawning...they can be bored....and sometimes these tricky bubs can show tired signs at OLD naptimes!  Just keep that in the back of your mind    I forget, what personality is D....touchy, spirited, textbook....??  I think C definitely has spirited in her (oh joy  ) but can't really pinpoint her through that quiz.

[scucci1979]

how's it going Emma? 
Our girls sound so similar.  If you are trying the short am nap, can you maybe let her have a day or two of a long morning nap to prevent OT and then go back to the short am nap, or does that just make things worse.
I am still trying to figure out what is best for A. I have no idea and she is almost 9months. I think she is lower in sleep needs. Def different from Madison. Madi was doing 4hrs of day sleep at this age. A is doing a little over 2.5hours.    

[hjrmom01]

well so much for getting back on track. H had preschool this am and I had to take C...we got home at 10:30 and C cried all the way home. Tried to feed her and get her to sleep and she's missed her window (it's now 10:45).  So now we're really screwed for the rest of the day. 

[scucci1979]

I always thought sleep would get easier as they get older!! 

[hjrmom01]

or a bit easier to figure out with the second....SO not true here! 

[~Emma~]

So today went like this

 NW 4am - tried to resettle, ended up feeding at 5
 
 Start day at 6

 Nap 1 - 8.30 - 9.30
Nap 2 - 12.30 - 3.30
 Bedtime 6.45pm

 I know an awfully long PM nap but she was jsut so tired from the EW, didn't really go back to sleep as such just dozed on and off. I was also hoping to eek bedtime out to 7 but sje could actually have gone to bed sooner. So 4 hours of daysleep, i hope it doesn't reflect badly in the night.

 

I have NO idea if C is low or high sleep needs. Don't know what her needs are  How awful is that? Nearly 9 months and I still have no clue!

 This is how I feel ALL THE TIME about D. i just dont understand what it is she needs!
 

[hjrmom01]

nice pm nap!!!    Making up for OT for sure.  Hope your night goes ok.  At least now you know she can do nice, juicy long naps 

So after C's 30 min OT am nap I tried to get her back to bed at 1:30 (so 2hrs) but she had other plans....took ages on her bottle and then had a poo  I put her in her crib at 1:45 and went to put H to nap and when I came out of H's room at 1:55 C was just drifting off.  She slept....1hr10 mins  What is it with her and 1hr 10 mins  Anyway, I went up and rocked her and at first I didn't think she was going to go back to sleep but she did after about 5 mins or so...and we slept until 4:00    Hopefully got her caught up and back on track. 

See how the night goes for both of us!

[scucci1979]

great nap Emma!
I fear that A will not tackle a long pm nap if I shorten her am nap. i don't know! I don't have the courage to do it yet.  Maybe that is why I am getting so many Ews. I can never figure out her last A time.

Good luck ladies.

[hjrmom01]

how'd your night go Emma?

We ended up with a bedtime of 8pm and she went down like a dream  Unfortunately she only slept until 6:15/6:45. I saw her waking up on the monitor at 6:15 and at 6:50 she's now fussing and crying and it doesn't matter what I do I know she won't go back to sleep  

Why can't I figure her out?!?! She'll sleep 12+hrs with a NW on crappy naps but when she gets 3hrs of day sleep she sleeps 10. So what the last A too long, too much day sleep, or 

[scucci1979]

Why can't I figure her out?!?! She'll sleep 12+hrs with a NW on crappy naps but when she gets 3hrs of day sleep she sleeps 10. So what the last A too long, too much day sleep

this is us.

Last night she had a little over three hours of day sleep b/c of the EW and went to bed at 8am. She stirred at 6am then 6:20am and officially woke up at 6:30am. 

I honestly think it all evens out when they go onto one nap-at least I hope so.
I was looking over my older posts and found one about Madison at 8months. She too would have EWs at this age. Developmental? I think so!

[hjrmom01]

I honestly think it all evens out when they go onto one nap-at least I hope so.

I was thinking the same thing. NOT that I want C on 1 nap at 9 months but things just seem so much easier on one nap!!! 

I was able to get her back to sleep for a good 30-45 mins, though...

I looked back at H's sleep too and she would EW....but at least she was quiet and would stay quiet in her crib! 

[scucci1979]

yup! Madi would stay in her crib quietly or chat a little until I got her during her EWs. Alyssa just fusses and screams. 

[~Emma~]

Why can't I figure her out?!?! She'll sleep 12+hrs with a NW on crappy naps but when she gets 3hrs of day sleep she sleeps 10. So what the last A too long, too much day sleep

this is us.

 Us too, although not quite 12 hours these days but it has been known.

 Sabrina - If you think the short am might work for you then give it a go for a couple of days. it might just work.

 Erin - Awesome that she slept until 4! I tihnk that considering you got her back to sleep you can assume that the 1h10 is OT. I would anyways. I think it would be pretty hard to get a bub back to sleep after a UT nap. Just my thinking though.

 So our new issues aew STILL getting her to actually go down for the PM nap. Its taking forever, well a good 30 mins anyways which makes it hard to get her A right. She had only a 1 hour 20 nap this afternoon after the exact same A's as yesterday.Although I did let her sleep 10 mins longer for her AM nap, surely there isn't that much difference in 10 mins! 

 Other HUGE issue for us is EW. She is going from 6/6.30 thru until 4/4.30. We tried for 2 nights offering water and she was NOT impressed! Last night I thought I'd just feed her from my left ( very low supply side) and pop her back down but it didn't work. She just wanted to suckle for about 2 hours! Perhaps I should just offer her a good feed and hope she goes back down without a peep? I mean it might start the day off with a crappy BF but she will take a very good breakfast anyways. After having a chronic EW'er with B though I really dont want to encourage EW. Just dont know what to do.....

....but at least she was quiet and would stay quiet in her crib! 

 This was B too. He would just babble to himself. Fine by me!

[hjrmom01]

Emma, hmmmm.....I think maybe I'd try the full feed and see if she'll go back to sleep. You'll know if it becomes a habit.  I know with H, 10 mins on her am nap WOULD make that much of a difference for her pm nap. But 1hr20 was always OT with her. 

1hr am nap after 2.5hrs (I did wake her at 1hr)...and she's almost on 2hr pm nap after 2.5hrs A time. She went down like a dream! Now...3.5hrs to bed or 4?