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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

OMG i want to kill my 3 yo !

21 replies

MerlinsBeard · 03/06/2006 19:33

Well, obviously not literally but he is driving me up the wall. Night times r the worst, nothing changed in his routine, yet it will be 10/11 o clock b4 he shuts up and stops messing around enough to go to sleep. Have taken ALL toys out of there but he is still messing around. Keeping his younger (1) brother up too which isn';t helpful. Have no patience at the mo (thats a whole diff thread) and this really really isn't helping at all.

Anyone any suggestions? He does still have an afternoon nap. He needs it though at the moment after staying up so late. I have not got the patience to stop that at the moemnt but i am out of ideas now.

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compo · 03/06/2006 19:34

Poor you I really would stop the afternoon nap and then maybe he'll be tired enough to go to sleep before 10/11?

Original poster

MerlinsBeard · 03/06/2006 19:36

we plan too but i can't cope with stopping that and having the whining/crying etc that goes with stopping the nap right now. was looking for a stop gap idea really

OP posts:

HarpsichordCarrier · 03/06/2006 19:39

actually I am not sure that dropping the nap will help necessarily, if he is not ready. it might make him over tired.
what about a VERY active day - lots of walking, running. hours in the playground, swimming....

SOULGIRL · 03/06/2006 19:40

I agree at least cut down his afternoon nap and never let him sleep past 3.00 (wicked satisfaction...teehee...now its ME keeping you awake - LOL)

Dont let anyone playfight with him prior to taking him up and try spending some quiet time with him in his room & reading him a story. Could take a little while to start with but it does work - mine are in the land of nod by 7.30 pm at the LATEST every night!

Original poster

MerlinsBeard · 03/06/2006 19:42

will get dp to try that 2mo, ty harpsi. am not up to all that activity myself at mo and he needs the excersize

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Dior · 03/06/2006 19:50

I don't think that a 3-y-o needs a sleep. It might be worth maybe a week of miserable afternoons to get him out of the habit and early to bed. It is a horrible thing not getting enough sleep...

HarpsichordCarrier · 03/06/2006 19:52

funnily enough Dior I was reading just this week that research has shown that we ALL need an afternoon sleep in fact. It is our natural sleep pattern....

Dior · 03/06/2006 19:53

I stand corrected! Not bloody letting ds stay up to 11pm though, sleep patterns or not

Original poster

MerlinsBeard · 03/06/2006 19:55

Dior, he probably doesn't need a sleep in teh afternoon but i am in the middle of a m/c and not really upto all the agro that goes with dropping a sleep right now. Was just looking for something (valium?) in the mean time.

OP posts:

Dior · 03/06/2006 19:56

Sorry MOM, wasn't aware...have no interim suggestions. Luckily, ds usually goes to sleep by 8pm (used to be 7pm !)

Original poster

MerlinsBeard · 03/06/2006 19:58

its ok dior, u weren't to know. Thank you for suggesting tho. we know that dropping the sleep is "looming" ever closer, just can't face it right now!

OP posts:

sparklemagic · 03/06/2006 20:05

mom, what is your DS's usual bedtime routine???

Original poster

MerlinsBeard · 03/06/2006 20:09

Tea, quiet play (something like trains/cars usually) thenwarm milk,a story in the lounge and bed (bath b4 milk every other night). I have to put them both in bed together as they wake each other up.
stories r in lounge because i have had to clear their room of toys as they throw them at each other/climb on them

OP posts:

Original poster

MerlinsBeard · 03/06/2006 20:09

in bed by 7, 7:30 latest

OP posts:

Dior · 03/06/2006 20:14

It's so difficult. When ds has a sleep (long car journey etc.), he is up until 10pm. He does go to bed a little later (8.30 ish if he has had a sleep, but then we just put him to bed and tell him to be quiet. I'll bet it's hard with two though! At least ds is just chuntering away to himself!

sparklemagic · 03/06/2006 20:17

sounds a fine sort of bedtime routine to me! I know you won't want to hear this so I'll whisper

sorry.....

I really find with my Ds that if he sleeps at all in the day, he is up much much later. could your DP take a few days holiday when you start to drop the nap so that you can support eachother when and if DS gets grumpy and grisly? Or maybe get a couple of DVD's your DS hasn't seen before, and a stack of books from the library, so that you could instigate an afternoon 'quiet time' to ensure he does not go at full tilt all day long?

HTH!

Elibean · 03/06/2006 20:20

Hi again Mom....my dd is also in that limbo land of needing to drop her nap, but not quite ready (she's 2.5) and its hard. If she has a really really active day, she can nap AND go to sleep before 9pm. Otherwise, if she naps (any time, for any length of time) she just cannot get herself to sleep till around 9.30-10pm. Especially since its been getting dark so late.
In her case, if I put her to bed around 8.30/9pm, she will happily chatter to herself till she sleeps - so at least her late sleeping doesn't impinge too much. BUT if I put her to bed earlier, she will get up - and be frustrated, because she's just not ready to sleep.
Would it be bearable to put your DS to bed an hour later, maybe? Or is that impossible because of DS2 needing to sleep?
I'm so sorry about the miscarriage, I've had four myself but they were all pre-kid....I have yet to experience dealing with loss as a Mum, but can imagine its hard to find the space and time that grieving needs. xxx

gingernut · 03/06/2006 20:30

Agree with everyone who's said to drop the nap. We had to with ds1 when he was nearly 3. I thought he still needed the nap because he would sleep for 2 hours or more and was really hard to wake from his nap. But he just wasn't sleeping well at night so we took the plunge. And he was fine! I used to let him watch TV to give him a rest when he would previously have had his nap. He was tired and a bit grumpy for a few days but then got used to it. He went from being up till after 9 every night to going to sleep straight away at 7pm.

Sorry about the m/c .

sparklemagic · 03/06/2006 20:33

didn't realise you have been through a MC mom, so sorry to hear this. Take care.

Original poster

MerlinsBeard · 03/06/2006 20:36

will drop his nap then when i'm not feeling so....odd. For now tho i will stop him sleeping past 3 (he doesn't anyway, he'll take himself after his lunch) and i will fill their afternoons with keeping active. Hopefully the weather will stay as i don't drive.

Nap should have dropped a while ago but just never faced up to it, own fault really

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juuule · 03/06/2006 20:44

Well, it's 8:43 and my dd (3 this month) is at the moment chasing around at full belt round the garden being chased by her 6yo and 8yo sisters :o
She's had a 2hr sleep today and I wouldn't expect her to be asleep before 9:30 tonight. If she hadn't had a sleep or had a shorter sleep during the day she would fall asleep for the night any time from 6:30 - 8:30. They are having great fun outside so I'm leaving them to it for now.
This isn't a one-off. I got fed up a long time ago with enforcing bed-times that they weren't ready for.
You've got enough going on at the moment:( won't he just play with his toys quietly? Put his younger brother up to bed and leave the 3yo until later when he's tired unless you have a problem with him being up.
Be kind to yourself and take care.

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