My child (almost 13 months old) is in a day care with two other older toddlers (one is 17 months old and the other is almost 18 months old). The nap schedule has been two naps a day - one 10:30 ish and one 3:30 ish.
About a month ago the day care center told us that they were going to transition all three kids to one nap per day. The older kids are showing signs of readiness, according to the teachers. I told them that I didn't think that our child is ready and that at home she takes 2 substantial naps - one usually 3 hours in the morning and then another that is usually 1 to 1.5 hours. They tried it one day and it was disastrous for our little. The next day, the teacher asked me how it went and I was honest and told her it didn't go well. She apparently didn't like my answer. The teacher went into a long tirade about how naps at home are different, telling me that this is a group care, and that if they don't get to transition to a one nap day then the kids would be cooped up inside all day and not have any outside time. It was an awful conversation and I felt like I had done something wrong. I kept on being honest, and they luckily decided to wait until after the new year and transition then.
I do not know what to do. I do not think she is ready. I don't know if she will be in one month, but she may be. I want what is best for our child. I do not want her well being compromised, and I definitely don't want nights to become tougher! It’s about the biological need for two naps versus one.
Naps at different times of the day serve different purposes in mind and body development at different ages. I have read that morning naps have more dreaming, or REM sleep, which makes them important for young babies who require it for early brain development. I don’t want to rush the process if our child is still benefiting from this important sleep time.
The teacher continues to pressure me, trying to convince me and citing reasons and examples of our babies readiness to transition. I do not see it at home, and I think that she is not ready, and that is all I can say. We have a parent conference this week, and the teacher has now approached me two different times - feeding me stories of her "readiness" and warning me that we will be discussing this at the conference. I feel like I am being bullied.
Yesterday, she slept a total of 1.5 hours total in naps. She was a complete wreck when I picked her up. We are trying to do a 7 pm bedtime. Last night it was a little later because I had to grocery shop after work, then make dinner, and do the bedtime routine... It's hard to fit everything in!
Any advice would be much appreciated!
