Toddler sleep

[TheInternetIsForPorn]

Help! Can someone remind me what to try. I have an almost two year old boy. I'm at that stage where he needs a daytime sleep in order for him to function until bedtime (which can be early, 6ish if need be), but if he actually HAS a nap in the day, of any sort, bed time is a long drawn out nightmare of a chore where he won't sleep.

I remember hating this period of time with his older sister but I appear to have blocked the actual practicalities from memory

What do I doooooo?

(I'm currently sat in his room ignoring him while he quacks to himself. I should be working! Without a nap I could have left him and walked away but the last two hours before bed would have been a tantrummy mess)

DD1 is 2.2yo and has been refusing to go to bed at her given time for some months now. Bedtime is 7.15, she's never asleep before 8 ATM, but usually more like 8.30. We just put her to bed at 'bedtime' and let her get on with it. If she's upset (rather than just whining she wants to watch TV etc) then we go back, check on her and put things right if necessary, then put her back in bed. If she's just up there chatting or playing, we pop back every 15-20 minutes and tell her to get back into bed from the door. Sometimes it gets her asleep a bit sooner, sometimes not, but at least means we get a bit of an evening. Do you really need to sit in there with him?
To be honest, if DD1 was happy to go to bed at 6 then I'd take suffering with her having no nap but an early night.

As for naps... Ugh. She has started refusing hers some days. Unfortunately it makes bugger all difference to the time she goes to sleep at night whether she's had one or not, only makes for a miserable toddler for the latter part of the afternoon through to bedtime

Could you experiment with him having a really short nap (15-20 mins) then wake him up? Or would he be really grumpy? Or can you get him to nap a bit earlier then do some physical activity in the fresh air after the nap?
Or could you substitute a restful activity (snuggling under a blanket with a DVD) for his nap, just to take the edge off?
What happens if he doesn't nap?
I remember when ds was in the process of dropping his nap he's cry (scream!!) pretty much solidly for the last two hours of the day. Just sort of had to weather the storm really... They grow out of it quite fast.

I thought these would be the answers! No magic cure sadly and I do very much appreciate the replies.

If I don't sit with him he screams at the gate which is not ideal when his sister is trying to sleep. That said I started a sort of rapid return last night which seemed to do the job. He eventually gave in and babbled to himself until He fell Asleep while I hung up my clean washing.

No nap leads to hours of screaming And a very clingy child. I could manage I guess if I go back to putting him in the sling while I potter on I might at least get some stuff done!

Wait it out it is the.

My 2.5 year old sometimes naps, mostly doesn't. On the days he naps we just accept a later bedtime - we have a calm evening with a long wind down and just do bedtime an hour or so later.

I'm waiting for clocks to change so I can starting putting him to bed at 6:30 and drop the nap altogether.