10 Month Old Nap Schedule?

Hi

Kids remember a routine from about 6 months old , so if now at 10 months he does not have a routine then it is going to be hard to get him into one , you need to establish a routine that you are happy with and that he knows before you can change it around here and there.

Good luck

K.

My son follows the same routine as a couple other moms mentioned. He's 14 months now but has been on this schedule since he was about 5 months old.

He wakes between 7:30 and 8:30. Eats Breakfast at 9 and then goes down for a nap, usually about 1 1/2 hrs. He eats lunch at 12, then goes down for a 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 hour nap. Snack when he wakes up from the afternoon nap; dinner is around 6:00. Then bed is between 7:30 and 8:30.

Hi K.. Been there, felt like that. You need to do exactly what the previous responder SM suggested that you do. She is right on the money. My daughter is only up about an hour and a half in the morning before she is ready for her morning nap. The morning nap is a continuation of night sleep. Kids need a routine so they know what to expect. He isn't going to be real happy with you for a couple of days, you will probably have to let him cry a little bit. Once he gets the nap schedules in his routine he will be much happier. Try not to pick him up if/when you go in and check on him. Kids are smart little critters and he will know exactly what to do to get your attention. Good luck to you.

At 10 months old my sons all took about an hour nap from 9-10 and then a two hour nap from 1-3. They went down to bed at 7:30 and slept until 7. At 10 months old kids still need about 15-18 hours of sleep during the day. This routine did vary if we had errands or things to do but the amount of time napping was always the same. I do drop the am nap once my kids turn 1 just for convenience. My 13 month old now sleeps at night from 7:30-8 and goes to down for nap at 12:30 until 3:30. Still the amount of time sleeping but just in a longer stretch. Good luck!

Neither one of my children ever had a fixed nap time when I "made" them lay down. As you have been doing, I just let them sleep whenever they were tired and that worked for us. If I felt that they were getting tired and needed to sleep but didn't seem to be headed that way, I might try to get them to do something quieter/calmer (like sit with me and a picture book, or put some slow music on and "dance" with them, or anything that was something they enjoyed quietly)When they got a little older, I would put them in their crib with something safe/quiet to play with and sit in the rocker to read to myself for a bit-usually if they were tired, they drifted off, but either way, we had a quiet time.

I say don't force it and enjoy your time with him.

I failed miserably at a nap schedule with my first until she was about a year old, and then got her into a 2 nap schedule. She went to one nap around 20 months. For my second, I read the Healthy Sleep Habits book by Weissbluth and would put him down about 1 1/2 hours after he woke up in the morning for about 1-2 hours and then again around 115 for 2 hours. He kept this schedule until he was almost 2 and then we go him into one nap. we tried to get him to give up the first nap earlier but he just couldn't hold out. Follow the same schedule you follow putting him to bed. At first mine had to cry a bit, but that usually happened when they were over tired.

You might be waiting too long. At 10 months, my girls were still doing 2 ours up and 2 hours down. Heck, my 17 month old still takes a morning nap, and she is only up for 2 or 3 hours beforehand. By 11 or so, she is thinking about lunch.

So, if he gets up at 7, try to put him down at 9:00 or 9:30. Keeping him up two more hours might overtire him, and he will never go down. Since he is new to napping, keep him very active after breakfast - have him walk around the block or something. Then make everything very calm, mimic your night routine as much as you can so he gets the hint, that he is supposed to sleep. And let him cry a little. Check on him every couple of miniutes, but don't pick him up. If he goes down easily at night, it may only be because he is exhausted. YOu may have to teach him how to go to sleep on his own when he isn't exhausted. If you are consistent, I think it will only take a few days.

I might only work on 1-2 naps at first. But at that age, my kids still took three naps (and slept 11-12 hours at night). Keep trying. I think sleep is highly underrated by most parents. I think a lot of parents let their kids go and go and go until they pass out. They need regular down time. YOu will also appreciate this when you have a 3, 4, 5 year old who can have "quiet time" occasionally. I think sleep is the best gift you can give your kids,,, and your self :) He needs to nap, especially as he gets older and busier (and crankier).

About nap schedules, my kids napped regularly by 3-4 months and most of my friends had their kids on naps by 5-6 at the latest. But it is not undoable at this age. Good luck - it's great that you are on top of this!!

Hi. Yes a sleep schedule is fine. Kids need a routine, and now that he's on the go, he needs to be told when to slow down and rest. Instead of a set time, think of it more as a 'window of opportunity'. That window changes daily.

Ex. my 2 yr old naps from shortly after lunch until 3:30 when she's picked up from daycare. Sometimes she crashes at 11:30 and sometimes its not until 2.

As long as the daily rountine has the same activity order, the activity window is adjustable.
M.