Dropping the nap - what do I do about BT?

[4isstillnighttime]

Sorry, I am sure this is answered somewhere but I just can't find it! My twins are 2.3 and we have up until recently had WU 6(ish!!), nap 1-2:30, BT 7:30. However, BT was becoming a massive battle, and nap time too, so on the days when they are at home I have been aiming for a drive or a walk around 12 and letting them just have a little 30 mins in the car. No battles, they are cheerful when they wake up and they go down easily at BT. Nursery days they have up to 2h at lunchtime and twin 2 (who has LSN) will be up until maybe 10. Which is ridiculous.

The only thing is that we are starting to get EW on home days so I think they are getting OT. Or maybe they are UT.

This is totally incoherent. Basically, I want to know how much earlier I should bring BT on days when they have had a short nap and an early WU. So today - up at 5:30, nap 12:30 - 1:15 ish in the car. Would aim for 6:30 BT and they will lie and chat if they aren't ready to sleep, but is that too late?

I will be glad when naps stop and this tweaking is at an end!!!

[clazzat]

I never got on that well with short naps - mine all went from 45 mins+ to no nap rather than having half hour naps - so my advice might be different from someone who managed to keep a short nap for longer.  When mine stopped napping, or when they had no nap days while they were in the process of dropping the nap, bedtime was between 5.30 and 6, aiming for a 6.30/7 wu (the girls slept until 7 easily, the boy has always needed less sleep and would be awake by 6.30).  With a 45 min nap in the middle of the day, I would think that early bedtime is probably going to compound the early wu, so (if it were me) I would put them down at the normal time on any day when they had had a nap.

What I did do at this stage was introduce quiet time in their rooms - which might be harder twins - where they would lie in the dark and listen to stories on a cd.  It worked really well for the girls, but I found that ds was happier playing quietly while he listened, so that was what he did.

[4isstillnighttime]

Quiet time in their rooms is a good idea. Even if they play together quietly that would be ok. How long did you give them?

I thought I might be making things worse, but twin 1 in particular would struggle to get through a whole day without any nap. But i love having my evenings back and it's really nice to go out for the day and not have to come home for a long nap in the cot. I'll try quiet time if we are at home and if we are out will carry on with a little pushchair nap but aiming for  7 ish bedtime.  And will see how it goes!

Thanks! 

[clazzat]

How long you give them is very much dependent on the child - dd1 would happily stay in her room for an hour an a half, dd2 was very happy for just over and hour and ds would get really grumpy about staying in for more than 45 minutes.  If yours will play quietly together you might manage a reasonable length of time, though.

It is nice when you get the evenings back!

[4isstillnighttime]

Well, they were so miserable this afternoon they went to bed at 6:30, and are happily chatting to each other and playing with the enormous numbers of toys they keep in their beds!! So we will see how they are tomorrow. I would rather get up with them at 5:30 than have another half hour of whinging now!!

Thanks again!