Nap time on the go

lmbrandt

If you have "scheduled" nap times for LO, how do you handle if you will be out of the house during that time?

Our son takes two naps a day, typically from 8:45/9-10:30 and 1:45/2-3:30.  

Today I met up with my best friend and we went to the zoo.  She has two kids, little girl who is 4, and a boy who is 15 months.  So obviously, her kids can stay up longer than my son who is about 8.5 months.  Her son still takes two naps a day, but of course the times don't line up with my son's.  I feel like sometimes it is so difficult meeting up with friends because I feel so limited because of naps!  When at home he takes pretty decent naps, so I hate missing out on that.  If he's in the car, he may fall asleep for a little bit, but it cuts his nap SO short.

Do you just go about your plans and know that it will just be a bad napping day?  

I hate how it always stresses me out because he starts to get fussy when tired, and then I start to worry about the sleep he's missing out on.  But I also don't want to always miss out on doing fun things!  I hate always feeling like I have to rush home to make it in time for a nap!  Just curious how you ladies typically handle the situation.

LoveLee85

Well, I totally understand the never being able to find matching nap times with others! My LO naps in a carrier or his stroller. He can sleep through ANYTHING! If I didn't leave he house because it was nap or bottle time, we would never leave. Or, if it's a longer trip it's a car nap for LO. Then I might drive around extra if he needs extra nap time. 

tlc11934

My kids have always napped on the go.  It has made them flexible sleepers.  We disregard nap time when we have plans and they sleep in the car or fall sleep earlier that night.  Unlike some of my friends' kids who can only fall asleep in their bed, my kids fall asleep when they're tired.  Same with DD.  

Id say scrap the routine and just have fun!  

missliz53

When we are on the go, we throw the nap routine out the window. She sleeps in the stroller or the car or on me when she gets tired enough, but with 2 naps a day it would be too hard to go anywhere fun if we had to be home for them. I bring a pacifier and a receiving blanket along. 

Today she elected to skip her morning nap, but she passed out in her stroller and then slept on the way home from visiting my grandma and her little cousins. 

aharders89

We also hav flexible nap times when we're on the go. She won't sleep in the stroller, but she'll sleep in her car seat so we'll just drive around for a while and let her snooze. Or if we're out somewhere walking around or at dinner I'll wear her and she usually sleeps through whatever we're doing! 

amp61470

He is a good sleeper and will sleep in the car or his stroller. It's funny because I don't have set nap times. I put him down for a nap when he is tired. Granted it's usually about the same time every day but he isn't on a schedule at all, and that's fine with me. It also means very little stress there. 

rebekahrathe

I support a good schedule because I'm type A and I like the consistency. However I don't want to miss out on life because of a nap schedule. On regular days I plan out grocery shopping and other errands around her 10am and 3pm naps. And other days I just roll with it! Saturday morning we are going to my nephews baseball game so she won't get her proper nap, she will sleep in the car but depending on her I might put her down earlier for her afternoon nap....I adjust accordingly. I try not to go more then 2 days off the schedule because I like it and it makes my life easier. That has worked for us so far...and some days if we are busy out and about I know she will be more tired  but we are usually doing fun things that I know are good for her. At the same time I've let her schedule get us out of things I'd rather not do, haha!! But speaking of naps I'm working on planning her first birthday and I'm having a hard time picking a time. Who knows what her naps will be like in 4 months from now, not to mention all the kids who will be invited and who also nap! 

LoveLee85

True story: my two year old nephew pretty much missed his entire 2nd birthday party celebration because he was sleeping. We all laughed about it but it was funny as people were looking around for him, my sister would casually say 'oh he's asleep and once he's down it could be hours. Just enjoy yourself and eat!' LOL 

ElleMF728

If its just us I try to plan play dates and errands around DS2's schedule.  However, there are definitely days when we just kind of go with the flow and make it work. They are getting more to an age where a late nap or extra short travel nap isn't quite so big of a problem. 

callistosmile

I keep a swaddle sack in the stroller to help him pass out. He's starting to hate the ergo though and it's a battle to get him to go to sleep in that. He'll only occasionally fall asleep in the car seat since we only do short trips under half an hour. Unless he's super cranky in the morning we just go do stuff and delay naps a little bit it do them on the go. 

Growingapepper

We go about our day and LO sleeps when she's tired. A lot of times I find myself stuck sitting down while everyone else moves around because she often will fall asleep in my arms while nursing. She also tends to sleep while in the car or in her carrier. So sometimes I plan to drive during her nap times or will keep her in her car seat carrier while shopping because she likes sleeping in there. It all does affect how long, how often, and what times her naps are (sometimes less sleeping time, sometimes more) but LO is flexible. She almost always ends up going to bed on time, even if she's had a lot of long naps that day. And it's never a huge problem getting her to sleep when she's extra tired.