Please Make Her Take a Nap!

I totally agree with Becca! At 2 yrs old she definately needs her nap daily. That is too young to be asking her what she wants instead of doing what is best for her. She needs her nap and now her schedule is not being followed so she is confused and out of sorts. Maybe your husband should talk to his mom and tell her he wants her to put his daughter down for a nap because he feels she needs it. Sounds like Gramma has her hands full this summer, but if she can't take a few minutes to settle your daughter down for her nap and send the others outside or have quiet time for them, I would consider another alternative for her care. It's not healthy for her to be overtired or sleeping different odd hrs of the day and it ruins the time you and her daddy have with her in the evening, not to mention it affects her normal bedtime. Good luck!

Hi L.,
You can not force her to take a nap. However, your MIL can hopefully provide a quiet area (preferably a bedroom) with some quiet toys (stuffed animals, puzzles, books- not video games or tv.) Tell her she is going to take a quiet time and leave her in the bedroom for 1/2 hour or so. I have done this with my boys when they were younger and 9 times out of 10 they fell asleep playing.
It is important that she gets scheduled rest times. If your MIL can not provide this for whatever reason, you may want to change caregivers.

I suggest that you and your MIL read "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. And Becca is right on: your daughter needs a nap (probably starting between 12 and 1), and will need one for another 2 or three years. If she doesn't get back into napping, she'll probably have night wakings and other sleep problems at night, too. It might be tough, but getting her back into napping regularly is very important! Good luck.

L.-
We have a lot of trouble getting my stepson to take a nap too. On the days that he gets really upset about taking a nap (typically when there are other kids around), we lay him down with a book. He knows that he has to lay down and read, and typically falls asleep within 15-20 minutes. This may be something to try. If nothing else, even if she doesnt fall asleep, its some quiet, relaxed time.

Notoriously children who do not take a nap at such an early age do not have a true routine that is followed. In my house we have dedicated nap time that fits in our strict routine. My kids know to expect it every day and if we have a day (once in a long while) where our schedule is disrupted, they tell me they are ready for their naps. Every person I have ever met that has a boring routine that is the exact same every single day has the same type of result with their kids. I have 3 children (5.5y, 4y, 2.5y), 2 of which take naps right now and even back when they all 3 napped, it happened at the same time every day for all of them...no staggered naps that were on and off. I didn't let them rule their nap schedule. We get up and get ready for the day and then eat breakfast. We play for a while or run errands or do some activity and then have a snack. Then it is time to play more until lunch. THey eat lunch and the next step is to not let their feet hit the floor to do anything other than go straight to the bathroom to wash up, brush teeth, potty and go to nap. They get tucked in to bed and fall asleep on their own. They wake 2-3 hrs later (my youngest sleeps 3 hrs usually and she is 2.5yr). They have a small snack after which they go play. After they have played, they eat dinner, then it is back to playing again. Sometimes they get a video while I am fixing dinner. After dinner we go for a family bike ride or walk or to play outside and they come back in about an hour before bed for one last snack. After snack we brush teeth, clean up, bathe, get dressed, go read stories. Our playtime and activities vary and I just left my description above vague as "play". My middle child who is about to turn 4 is beginning to wean from naps. My oldest who is 5.5yrs needed naps until just after his 5th b-day. We judged whether they needed naps based on behaviour/crankiness level, and tiredness in the day. If they are capable of getting through an entire day without getting grumpy at dinner time, they are ready to begin weaning from naps. Do kids that are 3 and younger stop taking naps? Absolutely, many people do allow their children to rule when they want to do this. Then they wonder why they whine at the store and throw tantrums, etc. Meet the basic needs of the child and as long as the child isn't ill, the child will be a happy, well behaved child. That being said, I mentioned I have one child who no longer requires naps and one that is in the process of weaning from them. During nap time, it is quiet time in my house. THey are allowed to play quietly, read, color and sometimes watch a favorite show. We don't hear much noise in my house from 1:30pm-4:30pm. My children are all very happy, very cooperative and they all know when they need naps as well as when other children need one. LOL.

It is really hard to get the routine right when someone else is watching your child. I know that my oldest was the hardest even though he did nap well, but his sleep rhythm was disturbed because my mother-in-law and I had completely different routines when it came to how we put him down for naps. He had this altered routine from 2 months to 8 months when I finally decided to stay home. I couldn't get my MIL to follow my routine I think mainly because she didn't see how it could possibly effect him since we both put him down for a nap at the same time. She didn't get that the way it was done was also an issue.

I suggest that you figure out what kind of schedule and routine works best for you. Then ask your MIL if she could please help by following the same schedule/routine so your daughter's sleep rhythms can not be so off causing her unnecessary crankiness. If you ask her to take care of making the schedule, then you need to follow it religiously. The point is one schedule must be made and followed no matter where your child goes. Your child will have a familiar routine and thus be the happy, well rested child in her best behaviour. It only takes about 4 days to get their little bodies to adjust and the earlier you do it the easier it will be. You don't want your 2 yr old telling you how to manage her own schedule. If you allow this now, what will happen when she is 13? Hang in there, mom. It always feels more frustrating than what it truly is if you can step back and look at the big picture. You can do it, you are in control and chances are she wants to be like you and do what she can to please you at this innocent age! Good luck and God Bless!!

B. :)

My son was going through that same thing about 2. I got him a fisher price kids "mp3" player. He only gets to listen to it when it is "nap" time. It really worked. It calmed him down enough that most times he actually fell asleep. It maybe easier for your MIL to keep her awake with the other children around then worry about her taking a nap. Perhaps one evening with your child when she hasn't had a nap will show your MIL just what a bear she can be. Goodluck!
N.