anyone want to chat about the 2-1 nap switch?

[OliverRowland]

Oh my goodness, I am so sorry for the rough time everyone is having.    It really is tough with one youngster...I cannot imagine doing it with 2!   Chin up, this 2 shall pass!

[texasmom]

Hi ladies,
Well Collin finally recovered, but it took over a week.  I left naps alone while he was sick. 

I wanted to ask, though...  There have been very few times that Collin has refused an afternoon nap.  Our problem is that the time doesn't work out. 

Meaning...
If he wakes at 6:15/6:30, he isn't ready for a nap until 10ish.  Then if I let him sleep 1.5, that puts us at 11:30 or later for wake up, which puts the afternoon nap starting at 3ish and lasting until 4:30 or later, in which case he is not ready for sleep by 7:30.  Is this a reason to cut a nap? 

[texasmom]

Thanks, Stacy!

[OliverRowland]

Brooke, that is what happened to us when we first started the transition.  There just didn't seem to be enough time in the day for the naps...then he would shorten up the night sleep and keep daytime sleep the same....not good.

[texasmom]

Well I am ticked.  I guess I spoke too soon.  I have tried twice now for an afternoon nap today, and it's not happening.  I'm frustrated partly b/c DH is out of town, and I get sooo tired if I don't take a nap in the afternoon.  (1st trimester  )  So now he has been awake since 11:30 and will go until bedtime.  And I never know when to put him down.  6:30 rather than 7:30?  But you know, a lot of times, he doesn't seem to be able to fall asleep early.  Well, it's going to be a looong afternoon/evening. 

Sophie,
Yeah, that's what seems to be happening with us too.  Thanks. 

[OliverRowland]

Gosh, we had a 1 nap day today.  Ds woke at 6:50am which is later then usual (5:40-6:00), so I didn't even bother to offer am nap.  And he did fine in the am and I had him asleep at 11:45-2:15 (with a small w/u which was easy to resettle).   Usually he sleeps t'ill 3pm on 2 nap days so I thought I ought to get him to bed earlier.  But NO, (this has happened before on one nap days after a good single nap) he wanted nothing of it.  He wasn't unhappy or anything but just didn't seem ready.  He ended up asleep at his usual bedtime! 
Does anyone else notice that with bedtimes?  That they seem to do well with longer A times after a solid 1 nap?

[becky1969]

OliverRowland - when Owen started moving to 1 nap consistently, is A time increased REALLY quickly. It could just be that he's ready for longer A times after that nice 2.5 hour nap! Congrats on that by the way!! WTG! When we first started having 1 nap, he'd only sleep 1.5 hours (I think his body thought there might be another nap coming later!).  Your answer to your bedtime question will come tomorrow: if you had NWs or EWs, then you'll know he was OT by bed, and that you'll need to move it up a little (try 15 minute increments). If he sleeps well, then you may be on your way to 1 nap! Yay!

[OliverRowland]

becky1969, good to hear you say that about the A time as i think ds could really handle more A time, but I am too chicken to challenge him.  We rarely experience OT...usually only when he is sick.  We have had EW for ages but not due to OT, but i think more from his needs...has always been pretty chipper with an ew....granted he has had some pretty solid day sleep! 
Right now I have only been doing 1 nap days when he sleeps later which isn't very often (3x over 3 weeks).  Not sure when to try them more often if he doesn't sleep late.  Last week he started shortening his pm nap on his own!  Is that a sign?
ps Owen is beautiful...what a lovely photo!

[Carmela's Mom]

Anyone's 1 year old only handle 2 hours "A" time in the morning?  I'm realizing I think that the reason Joey is so cranky in the morning is he is really tired.  I haven't even thought of putting him down after only 2 hours but he's been getting so cranky in the morning and I finally realized its around 8:30 each morning!  So I put him down today at 9:15 and he went RIGHT in.  Not a peep otherwise!  I think I'm going to let him take a normal nap and see what he does in the afternoon. 

I've heard that if I put him down too early in the morning, he'll wake earlier.  Anyone find that to be true?

[Carmela's Mom]

Well that was strange.  Joey showed all tired signs at 8:30 so I gave him snack, changed his diaper and put him in his crib at 9:15 am.  Usually when I put him in his crib, he cries for a few minutes to settle in, and today he didn't do that.  He was silent for 15 mins so I thought "wow how easy".  Well 9:30 he starts talking to himself.  So I guess he never fell asleep unless the phone ringing woke him   He's not crying and is quiet again so I'm going to leave him be. 

I'm confused!  Suggestions anyone?  How does this schedule look IF it works?

6:30 am awake
8:30-10 nap
1:30-3:00 nap
7:00 bedtime

Anyone want to comment?

[OliverRowland]

becky1969: ds woke at 6:15am...so looks like he handled 1 nap well yesterday.  he went down easily for his am nap at 9:45am.  will wake him at 10:15.  when you noticed an increase tolerance to A time with owen was more in the pm?  Oliver has always been a better am sleeper and rarely refuses it but pm suffer more.   Lately he has been shortening his pm nap from 1-3pm where i would often have to wake him to lately as short as 75min and waking on his own.  I am not sure when to test the waters....if I were to try 1 nap on earlier w/u days it would be something like this:

w/u: 6-6:15ish
nap11:00-1:00
bedtime 6:30 (usually 7pm)

I am just chicken to try it!  He generally sleep 10.5-11hrs at night...but i am afraid of early bedtimes = e/w!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
what to do?!?!?!?

[debo620]

Carmela's mom, I'm a bit confused by the rouitne you posted. I don't think it will work because I do not think two 1.5hr naps will be taken by a 1yr old.
I also do think that a 1.5hr nap 2hrs after waking will likely cause EW.
I notice my son gets cranky too 2.5-3hrs after waking. He usually is just bored and needs a change of scenery.

[texasmom]

Stacy,
Thanks.  I ended up FORCING a 45 min nap.  He got soooo cranky pants that I knew we were in for it if he didn't sleep.  So finally he went to sleep at 4:45.  I had to hold him and rock him w/him crying for a little bit.  But he went to sleep, and I woke him in 45m.  He had a NW at 11ish.  I was so out of it that by the time I got out of my room, he had stopped crying and went back to sleep, but I still think he does that when OT.  I don't know what to do b/c he seems to get OT if he doesn't get his 2 good 1.5 h naps.  Before he got sick, I would shorten the am nap one day, and then let him sleep the next.    Is that weird?  I don't know what I'm doing!    It just seemed that he was on the verge of OT on the days I woke him from his naps.  Like everyone has said on here, this is a tough and confusing transition.   I'm not complaining.  I just don't know what to do sometimes.  Today he couldn't go full A time, so I know he is OT.  He is very succeptible to it.  

So, you said 14.5 is a lot for toddlers this age.  Do you know what average is? 

I feel like I am in a totally different place than all of you.  I think Collin kept his catnap longer than most too, though.  Which is weird b/c overall sleep is less than most his age it seems.  I'm a little worried b/c I was going to put him in MDO in the fall - and they only give one nap of course.  He'd be 15 months. 

Brooke

[Carmela's Mom]

Thanks girls.  It mostly did not work this morning.  I'm not sure if he fell right asleep or not, but I heard him at 9:15.  At 9:45 I went in the shower and I can only assume he fell asleep sometime between 9:45 and 10:00.  I woke him at 10:30 and off we went shopping.  He was yawning a lot and didn't seem like he got anymore sleep than 30 mins (he acted the same actually).....so I'm back to my original plan.  Thanks  

Also, Stacy, I posted on the toddler board about Carmela.  Love to hear your opinoin

[UNCMomma]

So...  I jinxed this last week when I told M & N's mom that we were so cool with the AM catnap thing... 

My LO (16 months yesterday) is now needing 4.5 hours A time before the AM catnap.  Is it you Stacy that said that if they can do 5 hours A time, one nap will work fine?  So I guess we're getting closer... She can go several days with one nap, but eventually gets overtired, even with early bedtime.  She can do 5, 6 hours A time easily in the AM, but takes a shorter nap the more we stretch it, and this also results in OT. 

The A time she needs to be the shortest is the one before bedtime, we do no more than 3 hours now which works well.  Even though she doesn't go right to sleep, she plays nicely in her crib for up to an hour and then goes to sleep.  When I put her down for bed PAST 3 hours A time, she cries some before going to sleep.  This is perplexing to me, b/c she's going to sleep at the same time no matter when I put her down, but putting her down later makes her act overtired.  It's like, if she doesn't get a chance to play and wind down, she fusses.  ? ? ? ?  WEIRD.  Anyone else have this?

TIA...