2 Yr Old Won't Take Naps

Read Elizabeth Pantley's "No Cry Sleep Solution For Toddlers"
It's different thatn the previous one by the same name for babies.

Wow! You must be worn out!
She should take anywhere from an hour to 3 hours nap. Waking her up too early actually compounds your problem because overtiredness actually makes a kid LESS likely to nap (something about seratonin levels in the brain). Have you taken a look at her whole diet daily routine? (ha, ha...with a 12 month old too, you're probably just now coming up for air). Does she eat a lot of sweets? Is she taking any medication (like a decongestant) that would act as a stimulant?
Are you trying to make her nap at noon, when really she's not tired until 3:00? Maybe look at how long she's been awake in the morning, rather than how long she slept the night before. If she wakes up at 7, a reasonable nap time would be 1:00 (about 6 hours after waking...and about an hour or so after lunch began). My (lucky) friends who have kids that sleep til 8am don't put theirs down for a nap until 2:00 or 3:00.
If your problem isn't timing, but it's nap time "behavior" you'll have to come up with some different tactics. Our daughter had a phase of coming back out of her room all the time. Finally we got the baby gate out and told her if she came out of her room, the gate would go in her doorway. She did, and we put the gate up. She threw a fit for a while. We told her that we'd take it down when she got in her bed and was quiet. We've had to use it one time since. We kept the gate leaning against the wall in the hallway as a reminder for about a two weeks. Just tonight I put it back in the garage. If she has a lovey or blankie, you might take it away for nap time "offenses."
A friend of mine actually put a safety cover on the inside doorknob on her daughter's bedroom door to keep her in the room at nap time because she had a habit of popping in and out. Her daughter will play in her room sometimes for up to 2 hours before finally napping!

I do a combined of the responses so far with my 19 mo old. I do lay down with her to help her "wind down" so she will sleep. Sometimes she will just crash and others I have to keep laying her down while she's getting fussy at me but after about 5 or 10 minutes she gets sick of trying to fight it, realizes she's tired, snuggles me and finally falls asleep, then I sneak out. I also try to make it as much like night time bed as possible (darken the room as much as possible, turn on the fan for noise etc.) I also notice that if I put her down a little later in the afternoon(unless she's showing me the cranky I wanna sleep signs earlier) she tends to sleep better and longer. That and if I give her a small snack like some rasins or a cheese stick before nap it seems to help too cause then hunger or thirst doesn't cause her to no sleep or to wake up after only like 20 minutes. I also have noticed that when she plays outside sometime in the morning she is more tired and easier to put down for a nap as well. Good luck!

How long has this been going on or is i just a few times? How is his eatting patterns too? What is his usual nap time and has any other sleep pattern changed? When does he wake up and what time do you put him to bed? What area do you live in? I have a son tat turned 2 in April. I am in Kaufman. N.

My son started fighting naps recently too (30 months). What works for him is I tell him to lay down on the couch and give him some warm milk, and I turn on a video very quiet, to where you almost can't hear it. I stay very quiet (usually working at my computer, which is also in the livingroom), and he is usually asleep within a few minutes. I then wait 15-20 minutes to make sure he is in a deep sleep and then carry him into his room.

This has worked better for me than forcing him to lay down in his bed. Sometimes he doesn't sleep as long if I do that, or he will refuse to go to sleep at all. Another tip, try to get out and have some kind of activity for your daughter to do in the morning to get all her energy out. I've noticed sometimes when we don't go out and do things (play at the playground or go to the library), my son just doesn't seem to get tired enough for a nap.

Hope this helps!

Try establishing a routine. Also, children like soft music when going to sleep. If you have her an established routine, this should help. Try to make appointments during nap time.

There is a great book called Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby. I can't remember the author, I'm not at home right now or I would look. Anyway, it's a great book and I have used it many times with both my boys and still do. At first I thought the ideas would not work, but was desperate and decided it wouldn't hurt to try. The ideas have worked everytime!!

Good luck

When my kids were this age they to did the exact same thing. My kids always napped better about 2/3 p.m. I too layed with them till they fell asleep, which I would also fall asleep for about 30Min. They slept for about 2/3 hrs. If she is still in diapers, change her diaper before you put her down for a nap. Glide/rub your hand over her ear repeatedly or rub her back. For some reason the ear thing worked on my daughter and the back thing worked on my son. this worked for me as a child and it worked with my kids too. Also keep it cool with the ceiling fan on med/low if you have one with a light blanket. hope this works.

Hi, I don't know if this is feasible, but could you possibly lay down with her until she falls asleep? If your 12 month old naps at the same time, you could all just pile on the bed and sleep together. I'm sure you could use extra rest, as well. My son is 23 months old, and he won't sleep unless I'm in bed with him. I usually don't take a nap, since there's so much to do, but it only takes a few minutes to lay down with him, and he's out. Hope this helps!