Overtired in Evening/Late Afternoon

[Mom to M&M]

Wondering if I need to lengthen one of DD's naps. She will be five months old next week and on a 4-hour EASY (well usually more like AEASY). We've worked through the 45-minute nap issue by extending awake times so she is currently napping well.

However, she recently started to roll from back to sides and is actually attempting to crawl (without getting anywhere) while on belly. With all this extra activity/exercise both during A time and overnight (after 3am she gets restless and rolls in crib but keeps going back to sleep), she seems exceptionally tired lately.

I don't think I need to shorten A times since she is still falling asleep easily - but am wondering if I should make her middle nap longer if/when possible.

Here is her current routine (times generally vary by half hour or so depending on wake times):

Wake: 6:30 am
Eat: 7 am
Activity: Until 8:15
Windown and then Sleep by 8:30

Wake: (10 am) she usually will sleep 1.5 hours or sometimes 1.25 here - waking on own happy
Eat: cereal and pears at 10:15
Activity: Until 11:15
Eat: Bottle at 11:15
Activity: Until 12 and then windown and asleep by 12:10

Wake: 1:45 (Sometimes she wakes on own here after 1.5 hours, otherwise I generally wake her)
Activity: Until 3
Bottle: 3pm
Activity: Until 3:45

Windown and Catnap by 4pm - will generally sleep 45 minutes
Activity after catnap until bedtime includes more cereal/pear, walk depending on weather, play with DH, etc. Bottle at 6:45 and then bedtime at 7:15 or 7:30

This was all fine except the past few days (coinciding with the rolling, etc), she has been REALLY tired and cranky in the late afternoon and overtired screaming by time for last bottle.

Would it make sense to try to lengthen her middle nap to closer to 2 hours if she can/will? Meaning days she is still sleeping after 1.5 hours let her go longer? I used to do that but then sometimes she would refuse the catnap and be miserable by bedtime. But maybe now with the increased activity she could take a longer middle nap and still manage a catnap?

Also, she has been sleeping through the night for over a month now - no DF. She is totally out of it until 2am or and then restless sleeping from 3-6 am often (I hear her off and on tossing and sometimes talking to self on monitor). Is this likely a matter of being overtired? Or too much daytime sleep?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated. Sorry this is so long!

[Colesmom]

Hi there,

Looks like you've got a good little sleeper there!  Way to go

I don't think there is any harm in letting the second nap go to 2 hours long.  It's worth a try for a couple of days to see if she'll still fights the catnap as she did before.  If she does go down for catnap, it may be a touch later and you may need to wake her after 30 minutes to maintain an appropriate bedtime.

Another option might be to bring bedtime back by 20 minutes or so.  Is that possible? 

As for the restlessness from 3-6am...as long as she's not crying out for help I wouldn't worry about it.  I think it's perfectly normal.  Their sleep is deepest until midnight and gets lighter and lighter as they approach morning.

HTH

[Mom to M&M]

Hi Traci. Some days I am able to bring bedtime closer to 7 or 7:15 but often it just doesn't work out eating wise - she needs a good amount of time between her food/bottles to eat well.

Will try today to let her take up to 2 hour afternoon nap if she wants to/can. If she does then refuse the catnap, I guess I have to keep the second nap at 1.5? Maybe that will work (letting her sleep longer at second nap) because she often starts getting cranky midway through the A time after that nap and before the catnap.

One can hope...Thx.