2 1/2 yr old no nap routine help?

[Jaffakake]

Hi,

it looks like my 2.5 yr old is heading for no midday nap. (Noooo!) can you advise as to what routine you follow, so it doesn't end up just being go-go-go all day!

I have 3 days a week with him & I'd like to manage it so we both don't end up grumpy & fractious by bedtime. Any advice greatly appreciated!

My son dropped his nap at this age and he was shattered by 3/4pm - It somehow turned out that he then started napping every other day and it was perfect and he coped with it, just needed that extra top up! Now a year on, it's more like once a week that he just has to go back to bed for an hour. I remember thinking like you, oh no, that bit of peace but it was actually nice to just do whatever and not worry about him having a nap!

My 2 year old dd (26m) hasn't napped for over 6 months now unless she is ill. We just go with the flow, she kind of has quiet times during the day where she'll just sit on the sofa

What time do you try to get him down? It may just be that naptime needs to go a wee bit later, rather than dropping altogether.

Like flowerpup, at that age we found that our DS could manage occasional days without a nap but if we tried to go without it completely he was a mess by teatime & would wake up repeatedly at night & early in the mornings from being overtired. So for a while we did no nap if he got up after 8am (as he could manage without) but if he got up earlier then he still needed one. We also found that we had to shift the nap (& bedtime) much later in order for him to be willing to take it. So nap days looked something like this:

Up 7am
Nap: 2-4pm
Bed 8pm

The late bedtime doesn't suit some people but we found this a better alternative than the overtired wreck he turned into if he didn't nap every few days. Over time the nap days have gradually got fewer & fewer, but even now at 3.5 he still needs 1-2 naps per week (approx. 2.30-4pm).

We have quiet time after lunch (when she used to nap). Ideally I'd like her to play quietly in her room, look at books or we read together. In reality she usually lounges on the sofa with a blanket and her teddy sipping milk and watching the jungle book. But at least it gives her an opportunity to recharge her batteries and me a chance to do some chores and have a cuppa.
She flatly refuses to go to bed in the day anymore, even when she could do with a nap if she's ill or we've been busy. But she'll sleep in the buggy or car so I've found a well timed errand useful to get her to have a power nap.

Sound advice, taa. Nursery have been asking him if he wants a sleep & it's been pretty much every other day. Saturdays are an absolute must as he goes swimming in the morning. I suppose some of the change is not being such a slave to routine anymore!

My son dropped his nap last week, a week after we welcomed DS2. We have implemented "quiet time" after lunch, which either takes place in his room, or downstairs, but he knows that he can only flip through books or play with toys during that time and not talk to me. It lasts for an hour and my son is 2.5.