Anyone else with this problem?
My 26 month old's schedule keeps getting later... and later... and later... I seem to be the only one in my mother's group with a child at this age taking a nap super late in the day. It isn't uncommon to have her down finally at 3, 4, 5 pm which then means she is up until 9 or later! No nap means ROTTEN behavior which makes me out of my mind crazy. We have tried just letting her go without a nap & going to bed earlier but then 4 pm until 7 pm is a horrible time in our house and she still doesn't go to sleep any earlier. Its obvious she still needs the nap.... but any suggestions on shifting the schedule? Putting her down for an earlier nap has not worked. Putting her down earlier at night has not worked. (Oh, and did I mention that I am 8 months pregnant???? I am exhausted and that isnt' going to change any time soon!) Thanks!
Thank you everyone for your responses. I have thought of waking her up earlier but then that would require me to get up earlier! HAHAHAHA. With this pregnancy I am SOOO tired (who isn't, right?) and I can choose to take a nap when she does or use this precious time to get stuff done... I choose the later which means sleeping for 10 hours at night is so necessary for mommy as well as child. So we have still allowed her to sleep in. She has been going to bed super late but I am taking that as a trade. Her naps have been successful for the last week around 2 pm. I am hoping that stays that way! I am certain once this other baby is born my 2 year old will be getting up earlier since mom & baby sister will be up earlier and then I'll have a host of new issues! :) Thanks for all your support & suggestions!
you could try waking her earlier in the day. I have alway just put my kids down @ the same time everyday. no matter what. If someone wants me to do something it works around my childs nap time. My kids go to bed everyday @ 8pm NO MATTER WHAT!
S.,
Your daughter might be outgrowing her naps. You may need to decide what works best for your family - giving her a nap later in the day and having her up until 9pm, or skipping her nap and having a very upset child for three hours. I'm now going through this with my 3rd child. For personal reasons, we skip the nap and go to bed early. I need my "alone" time in the evenings in order to be energized for the next day. When we skip a nap one day, we often get a nap earlier the following day - usually 1 or 2pm. I know that this adjustment is very trying, but it will pass!!
K
Hi there-
I'm 4 months prego with a 27 month old, I can relate. You've got some great advice already just wanted to add one thing I noticed with my little man. I usually give him some juice in his water with breakfast only, but becoming the independent lil bugger he is, he has gone in the fridge and got the juice out later in the day and I've given into his fits & given him some juice later. I started noticing it delayed his naps an hour or two. Since I nipped that in the bud he seems to have gone back to his 1pm nap & sleeps til 5pm! Hope it lasts through this pregnancy! This may not be your issue at all, just something else to think about.
my daughter will be 2 next week. i am having the same problem. i try to keep her out of the house and busy most of the morning and early afternoon. then during our car ride home @ 1:00, she falls asleep. once home i transfer her to her bed and she sleeps for over 2 hours. it's the only thing i've found that works. otherwise she's waiting until @ 4pm or 5 pm to take a nap and wakes up @ 7 pm. just this week i moved her bed time to 9 instead of her usual 8:30.
I had the same problem. I work at home. I am a mother of a 14, 12, 11 and 26 month old. My son woke up one day and decided that he was going to change his schedule and there was nothing we could do about it. He was waking up at 9:30 - 10:00, taking a nap @ 5:00 and staying up to the wee hours of 12:30, 1:00am. Well running my own business and taking care of my other children was not going to permit me to be up that late. So this is what I did. I started taking my son with me in the mornings to drop my other children @ school. Usually he slept in with my husband, being that he owns his own business as well, he could do that. I wrapped him up very well, being that its been so cold lately, tucked him in his car seat, turned up the music and off I went. Even though the drive was a total of 10 minutes, having him outside definately woke him up. When we get home, I immediately feed him breakfast, watch a little tv, and begin our day. By 11:30, I would lay with him in his bed, turn the lights off, shut the curtains and asleep he went. No more than a 2 hour nap. I pick up my 9 year old @ 2:10, so off we went and if he wasnt awake, he should would be as soon as we took off. By 8 he's ready for bed. Bath time, keep the house a little quiet, and off to bed he goes.
The key: As difficult as it is, keep him busy. Keep him or her active. I know its difficult with having to work at home but theres lots of stuff they can do. Playing outside, painting, coloring, keep tv to a minimum even though its such a good babysitter. With little ones, they need a tight schedule otherwise they will run your life. Try it, before your new bundle of joy comes into the world and turns your babies life upside down.
Children are such a gift. And its up to us to guide them, even when its hard. Be strong, things will work out, you just have to make them.
Hi S.,
I also chose not to give my 3 year old naps. He gets very grumpy too, but I need my own time at night. We have three boys and he is our middle child. Also the most rambunctious of the three! Nights are very difficult for us, but I would personally rather have a grumpy kiddo than one up until midnight!
Good luck to you and congrats on the baby to be!
R.
maybe you can try this, if she sleeps into the late morning, try waking her up earlier say 6 or 7am, then maybe by 1 or 2ish she might be ready for her nap. if anything have you tried just putting her in her room and closing the door she may cry for a few minutes but then get wore out and fall asleep. My daughter is 2 1/2 she still takes her naps but like you they have become later in the afternoon, she is up lately around 7:30 8ish, her bed time is 9pm no if's, and's or butt's about that, but she use to take naps at around 12 ish but lately it been about 2 or 3 before she finally goes down. i know what you mean about the whole later then usual thing, but give it a try by waking her up ealier in the morning,(that is if she isnt already waking early) hope this might help
Have you thought of perhaps waking her up in the morning instead of just letting her sleep until she wakes up? She may then be tired enough to take a nap in the late morning/early afternoon and might help you change her schedule more easily.
If she is consistently going to bed late (9pm or after) she is probably sleeping in until about 8 or 8:30, right? Wake her up at 6:30 or 7 - children this age need anywhere from 10-12 hours of sleep a night plus a 2 or more hour nap - so then her body will still need some sleep to have that daily allotment.
I'm over 8 months pregnant and my daughter is just over two years too. She does the same exact thing. Today she didn't get a nap b/c we were too busy and became a monster at the end of the day. However, I find just adjusting things back towards normal seems to work. We're not very rigid about her nap or bedtimes, though generally we shoot for 2 pm and 9-10 pm. Most kids seem to be in bed much sooner. It's actually kind of nice for us because she is more flexible when something comes up and her nap or bedtime is delayed. Is it hard to have her up later for you? Does she fall asleep in the car or stroller? Maybe you can get a nap out of her earilier by trying something you know she can't resist, like a car ride at one, just to get the schedule back. Or wake her up earlier. Or, though you might not want to, let her stay up a little later some night, and she will most likely want to nap earlier the next day. My girl has gone through little phases where she stopped napping entirely, and gone back. They fluctuate. Kids are not clocks, I suppose. Good luck!
My daughter did the same thing. What i finally did was put her dwon for a nap on the couch. I think the issue was that she thought she would be missing something. So i would lay her down make it somewhat dark in the room and go about my day. She falls asleep a lot sooner on the couch then she ever did inher bed (for naps). It did take a few time to so this and sometimes she fights but then i just tell her "ok then you will have to go to your bed and take your nap there" I also made sure to tell her that the couch was for naps and her bed was for night nights. I also would make sure to only let her sleep for an hour anything past this she would have a hard time going to sleep at night. If you do try this make sure to put some pillows at the bottom of the couch. Hope this helps.
