My 2 Year Old's Sleeping Pattern

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but some kids just don't nap anymore after age 2. Most still will, but you seem to have a fighter :) Try putting him down in the eary afternoon for some "quiet time". He doesn't need to sleep, but maybe just watch a movie or lay down and "rest". try to keep him up when he tries to sleep at 3 or 4, waking up at 5 pm will def make it hard to get him to bed at an earlier time. I'm sorry I can't be of more help.. my daughter usually welcomes her nap and goes down without problem.. Although she DOES wake up at 4 am EVERY morning, regardless of when I put her to bed..... Good luck!

Have you tried waking him up earlier? Maybe if he is awakened at 6:30 or 7am everyday, by you, his sleeping pattern will shift a little earlier at night because he's been awake longer. Also, I agree with some of the other advice that says set a routine naptime, and have him stay in his room asleep or not. So if you decide on a naptime of 1pm, put him in his crib at 1 everyday, tell him you'll be back in an hour and he can go to sleep or play. If he falls asleep great, if not, he'll at least get into the routine and maybe start falling asleep voluntarily after a few days. Good luck!

cut the nap in 1/2 keep him outside longer the fresh air tire him quicker

I wish I had some advice for you. My son is 2 1/2 and his sleep pattern is terrible! He wakes up between 7 and 7:30 every morning and doesn't go to sleep until 10:30/11:00 at night. He goes to bed this late with or without a nap. If he takes a nap, its because I have to force him into it. He is very active all day long and just isn't tired at night. I tried waking him up earlier for 1 month and it didn't resolve anything, all it did was make me tired. I also limit his sugar intake. I think the problem with my son is that he gets overtired making it hard for him to go to sleep. I don't know what to do, I am at a loss. It feels good to know that I am not the only one in this boat.

My husband and I also attend church with our son every weekend. Our son goes to nursery as well, he is there for the remaining 2 hours of church. We attend the Sacrement Meeting together as a family. I believe strongely that all children need to exposed to church. By going to church we are teaching our children to do what is right, good morals, etc. There is nothing sweeter than seeing my son not eat because someone hasn't blessed the food. He sits at the table with his arms folded waiting for the prayer. He also cannot go to bed without first kneeling down in prayer. Nursery is so very important.

What I've always done with my kids is put them to bed at 8pm and they are to stay in their beds or at least their rooms, even if they aren't tired and don't fall asleep right away. I have a strict bedtime policy. As far as the naps go, I would put him in around 12:30, right after lunch, and regardless of whether he sleeps or not, go and get him by 3:00. That way even if he doesn't nap you will have time to yourself, and if he does sleep, getting him up by 3:00 ensures that he'll be tired by 9pm. I would let him know that when it's time to sleep you are not going to give in. He needs to know that you are in charge of this and you set the rules. Try to make his room as dark as possible for naps and try playing soothing music, preferably lullabyes or classical. You can even do that at night. It may work to calm him enough to drift off. Hope that was helpful!!

You know you should try that bubble bath that makes them sleepy. Not sure on the name but I remember hearing about it. Set the mood with the lights low candels on (up high) and a warm bath with soothing music. Low lights and soothing music always worked with my kids.

Hi I dont know about you but with my son that was the worst thing having him up that late. It is the only time of the day that I can have time to do things that need to get done. I am a single parent and I work full time so him going to bed at a descent hour is important to our schedule. I talked to our doctor and she said that some children just dont need that much sleep for Charlie his average is around between 9 and 10 hours. What we have been doing is waking him up at 6 am even though we dont leave the house until 745. He does not nap at all during the day anymore and he is sound asleep around 8. I know that getting us up early is hard but it is very rewarding because I work full time we dont get a ton of time together and in the morning we usually just relax and watch tv, eat breakfast and it enables us to start our day without a rush.

Also I want to agree with you about sending your childern to church. I was not raised in a religious home but I am raising my son to be. We go to church each week. It has made an amazing difference in our lives. Not only do we get surrounded by good people it gives him another "family" he can count on. There is nothing better than seeing him pray bow and head to pray to God. That is something that they can not ever learn in school yet is so important to his life. These are the most influential years if their lives and we have show them the right things.

A.,
I had the same problem with my 2 year old son. I just set a nap time and kept at it. Even if he fought me for 2 hours, after a while he got the idea that mommy wasn't giving in anymore. So now for the most part he naps when it's nap time. We still have days though when he won't and we go through the cycle again.

hi A.,
I would like to say that I have a 2 and a half year old boy also and it can be very challenging at times about taking a nap! He does really well at night when he goes to bed, however I am having a hard time getting him to take naps! I was told that when they get this age they start to grow out of naps! So if he does go down good if not don't really worry about it!! About at night what we did that really works is we put a radio in his room and play classical music to him to go to sleep with! We also let play all night and It also helps with stimulating their brains, at least that is what I have heard!! Anyway I hope I have been of some help!! Hope you find what you are looking for! sincerely
R.

Hello, I also have a 2 1/2 year old boy who doesn't nap well either. I'll just tell you what I do. I try to do things w/ him to wear him out each day. Get him to play hard. If I can't do that, I attempt a nap for a timed period and at least make sure he had a "quiet time". I always make sure he is up and moving around by 4pm and then I can get him to stay in bed by 8pm. This little guy gets up at 6am too. If he won't go to sleep at night, I just read a few stories in bed and then insist that he stay in bed in his room. Eventually, he gets bored and falls asleep. I don't allow toys in the bed either. Hope you find something that works.

This sounds like my daughter. she is 16 months old and since she started walking she has been having the same exact trouble that your son is having. I read that it is a way of having controll over something, and it usually happens when the start crawling or walking because they want to be independent. But maybe that is just the way my lil girl is, a night owl. whe I was little I would stay up late and sleep late and I gave up my nap at 2 yrs. Maybe it is just their body schedules. I know you said your son is very into learning, as is Gia, I have a feeling he is the independent type also. I think it just may be the way they are, and they are just not schedule children??.... I am sure you didn't want to hear that!!!!! LOL. But if there are any tricks i would like to know what works because I have tried everything with Gia!