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Nap Time
Alright, my son just turned one (yesterday) and all of a sudden- I'd say within the last week or so- he throws a fit when it comes to nap time. Up until this time I'd put him down after 2 1/2 - 3 hours of play time & he'd lay there and go to sleep (2 naps/day). Now, he will complain in his crib for up to an hour if I'd let him before finally knocking out. What's going on? Do you think this is the end of nap time? The few days I've given in and let him stay up through his regular nap time has turned him into a cranky zombie by the time 5 o'clock hits!
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Re: Nap Time
I truly believe that kids need their sleep so we will be having nap time for quite a while at this house!!
My kids go in phases with naps. Some days they lay right down and sleep for 3 hours. Other days they laugh, cut up and goof around in their cribs for an hour and a half before they settle down and take a quick nap.
I just keep the schedule about the same for their nap. Regardless if they sleep, they need the downtime. Plus, I need the downtime!!
I would stick with it. It could be a phase that will end in a few weeks. I know a lot of people transition to 1 nap at 1 years old, but we waited until about 16/17 months.
It sounds like maybe he is dropping one of his naps, and not trying to get out of napping alltogether.
Can you put him down an hour later?
Most kids drop to one nap between 1 year - 18 months.
90% of kids will nap in some capacity until age 3, but those naps will go through many, many phases. Most likely at this point your DC is transitioning to 1 nap a day (DS did at 15 months and it seemed like all of his friends did so around the same age). You just need to keep trying different things and seeing what will work. When we transitioned to 1 nap I just kept pushing the morning nap later and later until eventually he was taking his nap at about noon. After a few months of that it moved to 1, and now he naps closer to 1:30/2 PM.
Also, DS has gone through phases of not napping at all for up to 2 weeks at a time. It happens. Stick with it and stay with a routine. Try to enforce quiet/down time even if your DC is not actually sleeping. At your DC's age they definitely still need to nap.
he may be moving to one nap or he may need better transitions before naptime. They definitely get to a point where they need a lot of warning before even small changes. We try to get DD home at 12, done with lunch by 12:30 and then off to nap. She knows the drill but I still have to talk her through it and then really emphasis what we'll be doing after the nap. That's been going on for some time now so 12m isn't too early to start.
When we thought she was transitioning, we paid more attention to her signals and would start her naps around her cues than our normal time. PS the kids in my playgroup all took naps around 10 and 3 when they were younger and now every single one takes a nap around 12 or 1. maybe its just a fluke but it may be a helpful guide!
I agree with others that he is most likely moving to one nap. DD has been on the one nap schedule since around 11 months. It was rough for a month or two while she was transitioning, as she would sometimes fall asleep by 10am and be awake at noon for the rest of the day. By 5pm she'd be melting down. Occasionally she would take two naps, but usually if I put her down for a morning nap, she would refuse an afternoon nap.
Now, it is wonderful, and we have a great schedule. I really try to stick to it so she has the routine and her body is used to it. She goes to bed at 8:15 pm, wakes up between 7:30 and 8am, and naps from 1:00 pm until around 3:00 (sometimes 2:30 or 3:30, but an average of 2 hours).
She's so much happier during awake time now that she has gotten used to it. 12 months may seem early, but some kids just don't need two naps anymore. Try keeping him up until about 11am, and put him down then. Eventually you can move it later and later. Good luck!