Early Risers & Naps (XP)

jld49

For those of you with early risers (that's before 6am in my book), what advice do you have for shifting from one to two naps? He's almost 18months old! 

 Since my guy wakes at 5:30, many a day, I'm having a hard time keeping him up til, let's say 11, 11:30, for one good, long nap.

Normally he's been taking a nap around 9 and another around 1/1:30. He started resisting his afternoon naps in the last month or so (sleeps 1 to 1 1/2hrs in the morning nap) and is also shortening the afternoon nap to 45 minutes. But when I tried to keep him up last week for three morning in a row he had no problem staying awake, but each day his one nap was progressively shorter--- and---here's the kicker: each morning he woke up earlier and earlier from his night sleep. By day 4 he was so exhausted at 9am I let him nap and he slept almost 2 1/2hrs

Was that a mistake? Do I just need to let him lose sleep in the short run to organize for a good long nap in the middle of his day? What are your experiences? 

Jenny952

My DD is the same way... 2 naps because she wakes so early.  Sometimes if we have stuff going on in the morning, her first nap isn't until 11, and then she'll sleep for an hour and that will be it for the day.  But other days by 9 she is spent.  I found that as long as her naps total an hour-an hour and a half, then nighttime sleep isn't affected.  I just can't let her take her 2nd nap too late.  My DD is 18 months old too, so I'll be watching this post to see what others have to say!

caseycritchley

Ds almost 17 mnth takes 2 naps and he really needs it still i think. Up at 6:30 or 7 nap around 9 and then at 2. If he doesn't he is irritable. I say jyst let lo have 2 unless u feel like its not a benefit anymore. Sorry no help

alstumb@gmail.com

My son started transitioning to one nap around 12 months, so he could move into the toddler room at daycare. They started by only letting him sleep 30 minutes for his morning nap, then take a regular afternoon nap. Then they just cut out the morning nap all together. He was waking up at 5:45am and they managed to keep him up until 12:00 for a nap. It was definitely harder for me to do on the weekends, because they kept him busier at daycare. He would usually fall asleep in the car on the way home from daycare, at around 5;00pm, and I'd let him sleep 30 minutes, then wake him up. He would still go to bed at his normal time, 7:00, he just needed that little nap to help him make it through dinner.

bluejetta

We had similar schedule heading into the transition to one nap.  DDs am nap was getting later though and making it too hard to have two etc.  She wakes at 5:30 most days (sometimes a glorious 6am or horrid 5am) so I was worried keeping her up later.  We took it slow over a month and inched back her am nap to 11:15 and left it there a couple weeks and did early bed time (6pm) or short 2nd nap every few days.  It took two months to totally make the switch.  That was around 15 months.  When she is sick she will still sometimes take 2 naps. 

At first her one nap was only an hour and that was rough but it gradually lengthened.  Her nap is still earlyish at 11:45 and she still wakes at 5:30 but now her naps are usually 2hrs and sometimes more so she is rested. I did find that until her nap got to 11:30 it was often short I think partly because it wasn't late enough but I didn't want to rush it as you say given the early wake ups.  Overtired is inevitable with these nap transitions.

You may find you go back and forth a bit or that your LO isn't quite ready for one yet. 

jld49

I'm absolutely not opposed to two naps! I'm just not sure I can sometimes read his cues and as he always wants a morning nap, it's the afternoon nap that at time he resists which makes it a long stretch of wake time from when he wakes from that am nap 10:30am until bed time6:30/7. And he gets "messy"if he's awake for that long... There is the dilemma!

jld49

Thanks for sharing! This is so helpful!