Should my 11 month old still nap on me?

[allbeth]

My 11 month old dd still sleeps on me for all her naps. My mother and sister have asked me why I don't put her in her cot for naps when I'm at home. I simply don't want to. She seems happy sleeping on me. My dm thinks she will nap for longer in her cot, is this true?Sometimes she naps for an hour of two on me, sometimes it might only be 30mins. Surely this is completely normal for a baby to have inconsistent nap lengths? It does not bother me in the slightest. Should I be putting her down for naps at this age?

@Tospyornottospy
to quote OP
- I do struggle to keep on top of things like cleaning/tidying etc
maybe needs to forego hours of a child sleeping on her.

Depends on the child. Mine gets up to mischief! I have to wait until she's asleep.

@Babybabyyy I can assure you no one ever said I cuddled my child too much or they slept on me too much.

Maybe say I worried to much about a tidy house,

If you like it carry on, my DD has literally never napped in her cot and she is 27 months now and will be dropping it altogether soon. She only does it in the car now. I miss those days when she slept on me, it was the best. Soak it up.

(Btw she has always slept fine at night in her cot so don't let anyone tell you it's a bad habit blah blah blah)

My dd is nearly 3. We contact napped until she stopped of her own accord (about 18 months). She went down in a cot at nursery so it wasn't a detriment to her. Enjoy those snuggles, they're a great privilege and very precious. I miss them

I think baby cuddles are more important 🤷🏻‍♀️ agree with a Pp I have never regretting prioritising that (and I really like my house to be spotless) - it’s not long before you get time at night when they are asleep to do some stuff

I used to nap with my second baby almost every day for the whole of my 14 month mat leave. He used to sleep on top of me or next to me and I'd watch telly, browse mumsnet or nap myself. He also shared a bedroom with me and my husband, and would start off the night in his cot but I brought him into our bed after the first time he woke up.

He has never had any trouble at all napping at the childminder's, and as soon as he went into his own room he slept through and would settle himself in his cot, for naps and nighttimes. He is by nature a sunny, cheerful kind of child and I think spending all that time very close to me in his first year of life just gave him the confidence to become independent at his own pace.

Contrast his older brother, who I did try various sleep training techniques with as I went back to work when he was 6 months. DS1 is the child who wants me to lie next to him every night to help him fall asleep and who creeps into our bed in the early hours of most mornings too. He is 4.5.

Basically, if contact napping is working for you and your baby, you're both getting enough sleep and rest, and you're not feeling too restricted or suffocated then keep at it. Nursery routines and things will work themselves out when your baby is that bit older.

My DD contact napped with me when we were both home until she was almost 2 - slept fine on the mats at nursery and would go down well in her cot at night. She then decided herself to go into the cot, she's now pretty much dropped her nap but has had a couple of contact naps the last couple of weeks (she's now almost 3).

Make the most of it and enjoy every second.

My first was a massive contact napper and we would always have a long snuggle in the afternoons, it was my favourite bit of the day.

My youngest has never wanted to contact nap, let alone nap at all, and I miss it so much.

don’t listen to anyone sticking their oar in, you know what’s best for you both.

Mine contact napped until they were almost 2. They both went to nursery full time from 6 months (mat leave was shorter back then) and napped perfectly well in cots whilst there. But when they were with me, we contact napped because we wanted to. It was fine.

They're 21 and 23 now and I have to make do with cats these days.

DS would still nap on me given the chance (he's not really supposed to nap as he won't sleep at night but I do occasionally let him have 30 minutes on me) and he's nearly 4.
I think it's fine as long as both of you are happy. DS has done a mix of contact naps and sleeping on his own since 6 months, ready for nursery at 7 months.
Think we were lucky he was happy to sleep anywhere (but still preferred contact naps).

Mine are 17 and 24 now but I loved those naps, I’d sit for hours. Sod the housework, they grow up so quickly, you make the most of those precious cuddles.

Cats, fickle bastards!! I got one for cuddles now my boys are older and the fucker prefers 17 year old DS. He walks round the house wearing the cat like a scarf!

Thanks again for the reassuring replies. I have spent this evening doing a little bit more research and I will continue with the contact naps.

One thing I have read though is that it seems to be important to get children into routines. My daughter has no sleep routine during the day (she does at night). Is it something I should start? She naps when she's tired, sometimes they're short and she'll have 3 or 4, other times she'll have one or two long naps. Depends on the day.

Again, routines are for her to fit into society. If she has no need to do that currently, don't worry about it. She will probably fall more into a routine when she starts nursery as she will follow the other children.

Mine still did at that age.

@allbeth my two were both rubbish with naps. No routine at all, quite possibly because I worked full time.

However, they napped well at nursery, which had set nap times. And by the time they were school age, they had routines that worked perfectly well. Mostly they worked it out for themselves - DC1 napped until they were 4.5 years old, DC2 dropped all naps before turning 2. They both napped after swimming, however.

Your little one will find a routine that works for them in the life that they have. You can gently 'nudge' in the direction they are already going, that works fine.