11 month old 2 to 1 nap help

[Onceuponatoast]

I know slightly on the young side but my 11mo has been horrendously fighting or skipping his afternoon nap for 3 weeks now. He’s also taking a really long time to go to sleep at bedtime, started waking at 5.30am (used to wake between 6.30-7am) and his wake windows seem to be increasing. He’s definitely not ready to go cold turkey on one nap though.

I’ve started trying to push his morning nap later by 15 mins every few days but I’m confused about what to do next. When sleeping well on 2 naps he would naturally sleep longer in the morning and shorter in afternoon. Do I keep letting the morning nap be long and really stretch his next wake window then offer a cat nap in afternoon (if he accepts) or do I cap the morning nap? I’ve tried capping his morning nap a few times and it has helped him go down in the PM but it’s also backfired a few times and he’s ended up having 30 total mins sleep all day. Capping his morning nap hasn’t helped the early rising either.

Please help!

Current attempted wake windows are 3.25/3.5/4.25

What time are you trying to get his first nap?
My 11mo is in a similar situation. I usually try to get his first nap around 10/10:30 and then another quick cat nap around 3 but sometimes he’s not tired enough by then so it ends up late and then he’s not tired for bedtime

My plan is to edge the morning nap towards 11/11:30 and then power through until bedtime

On days where he’s had a long first nap (eg 10-12) he doesn’t need that second nap, just a slightly earlier than normal bedtime but he usually only does an hour so needs a little too up in the afternoon and we move bedtime a bit later to compensate

I'd not drop the nap tbh.

Morning nap - down between 9 and 9.30 am and wake exactly on the 45min mark.

Then after lunch straight down into second nap as close as possible to 12.30, but preferably before. Don't let him sleep past 3pm but don't wake him before that.

Wake 7am
Morning nap 9.30 (wake by 10)
Lunch nap 12.30 (wake by 3)
Bed 7pm

When dropping the morning nap with mine, I kept cutting it shorter by 10 minutes.

So he was having 40 min in the morning, but when his lunch nap was too short (due to undertiredness) I would make the morning nap 30 min and wake him. Do that for a few days, and when his lunch nap was too short (due to undertiredness) I would make the morning nap 20 min and wake him. Then down to 10 min.

When the 10 min power nap is still causing him to consistently have a poor lunch nap, he's ready for 1 nap only.

Unfortunately, babies are not robots and you can sometimes do exactly the right things and his sleep has still been poor that day. It doesn't mean you need to do it differently. It just means your baby doesn't want to cooperate that day.

There is no way my 9 month old would nap at 9 if she woke at 7!

My daughter has been having either 2 naps
10.30-12.30 3-4
Or
11-1.30 the last week or so. Bed at 7 up at 7.30.

30 minute nap at around 9:30 (shortening 20 minutes once established)

Longer nap around 1pm-2:30/3pm

Don't let sleep after 3pm and in bed asleep by 7.

At 11 months I’d first of all try capping the morning nap at 20-30 minutes for at least 10 days. If you still have early mornings and afternoon nap refusal than you have your answer, that it’s time to drop to 1. If DC wakes at 6am I’d do something like nap 9-9:30am, then 1-whenever PM, ideally around 3ish (this might take a while to lengthen, hence the 10 days) then bedtime at 7 or 8.

Mine dropped to one nap at 10.5 months, all the internet pages said it was way too early... But you literally can't make a human sleep if they don't want to. You use your judgement and you'll know!