How to manage toddler no nap transition

[WhenZogateSuperworm]

DS is 2 and 7 months and is starting to drop his daytime nap. He has always napped 12:30-2:30 with no impact on his night time sleep. However he is now finding he isn’t tired at 12:30 to go down for a nap but then struggles to make it through the afternoon.

Today he has fallen asleep at 3pm and is still in bed. I’ve been trying to wake him since 4pm but he is so drowsy he just goes back to sleep. If I force the issue and get him up he will be awful for hours as he hates being woken.

Should I be riding it out and not allowing any nap, or allowing a nap later in the day but cutting it short and then putting up with the evilness caused by waking him?

I'd put him down at 1.30 for an hour or so. 2.7 feels early to drop the nap altogether, I had to purposefully wean ds off his at 4! Dd has gradually reduced them over time and at almost 4 will have an hour maybe a day a week. You may find this is a phase and a growth spurt reintroduces his nap.

I would say it’s late to drop a nap but all children are different!

If you want to drop the nap then keep him occupied in the afternoon but maybe have a quiet time at normal nap time and then bring bedtime time the length of the nap plus 30 mins earlier. It will take a few weeks for adjust.

Thanks. I tried him at 1:30 today and he wouldn’t sleep. Then at 3pm took himself off and went to sleep.

He currently goes to bed about 7:30 and is usually asleep by 8pm. Gets up around 6am.

if he naps late will be still go to sleep at bed time?

We're trying to drop the nap at 3.5 yrs. Some days he doesn't want one and has an earlier night, other days he's falling asleep on his bean bag at about 2pm and having an hour's sleep. I'm letting him lead the way.

My DS went from solid 2 hours 12.30-2.30 to no nap. It was a nightmare as he would get really tired at 3pm and if he had even ten mins he would be up til 10pm. He was just gone 2. So had to try and get him to do quiet time with Peppa Pig.

@BlodwynBludd no I doubt he will go to bed easily tonight with having such a late nap!

Ideally I need him awake by 3pm to get him to bed on time, but he won’t fall asleep before then.

My ds was the same, if he napped at all he wouldn't sleep at night til gone 9 and was really grumpy the next day. We stopped day time naps and have quiet time followed by a snack in the afternoon and he's much better for it.