Is one Nap per day ok?

[Gigi89x]

Hello Mumsnetters as you are all so helpful, id like to ask your opinion on my babies nap schedule at age 9.5 months

Bedtime - falls asleep between 7:30-8:15pm

Morning Wake up - 7:30-8:30 am (depending on how many wake ups in the night)

First nap around is often 12:30/1pm which varies from 30 mins -1.5h , i try to get him to nap much sooner than this but he refuses. He's been getting more challenging to get him to nap as Hes got older.

He can't have anymore naps after this as they would mean the second would be too close to his bedtime. Last nap would need to end around 3:30pm or he wont go to bed.

The recommendation for his age is 2 naps per day and 2-3 hours of daytime sleep!! He's always been a short napper of mainly two 30 min naps per day but recently (last few weeks) only one.

Any advice on if this is ok?

Personally I would keep trying morning nap earlier in the day which would also give you time for an afternoon nap. He might just be going through a phase but should go back to 2 naps. I think 9.5 months is young for only 1 shortish nap. I would be aiming for 2-3 hours after wake up for a morning nap. Good luck OP, they like to keep us on our toes chopping and changing their ways.

Every baby is different, neither of mine would nap properly, EVER, all I wanted to do was go to the loo by myself, alone, without a child! And maybe have a hot drink while it was actually hot! I rarely got it! However, on the whole they slept well at night so I took that as my win! As long as they are getting enough sleep for them as an individual (remembering every baby is different) over a 24 period don't worry about it

How well does he sleep at night? If she sleeps good at night I wouldn't change anything. They are only guidelines based on averages anyway, not set in stone

Sounds way too little sleep and that's super young for one nap. Mine dropped for 1 nap at 13 months (which even that is younger than a lot) & that was 2-3hrs. My youngest is 7 months and on 3 x 30-45 min naps atm.

I'd try for first nap at 11-12. Then 3-4. Then bed 8/8.30. Hopefully you'll get your 7.30/8 wake up

As you mention night wake ups, its worth trying something new 🙂

I think this is fine.

But as PP says keep trying for an earlier morning nap, on days this happens he can have 2 naps but if it doesn’t he could have a 20 min catnap in the afternoon either on you, in the pram or in the car to get him through to bedtime.

Put your baby down to sleep when he is tired. Get him up when he wakes up and don't worry about it ❤️

DS1 barely napped from several months old without a great effort and stopped altogether at one.
He slept all night though from 13 weeks.

DS was my second and would never nap. He would occasionally nod off in his little bouncy chair and would sleep if he was in the car. However, he went to bed at 6.30pm and slept through the night so who is to complain or worry?

It might just be a phase and he'll go back to two naps, but DD2 mostly dropped to one nap at 10 months, and our lives would have been a lot easier if we'd let DD1 drop to one at about the same time (lots and lots of time trying to get a baby who wasn't tired to go to sleep, not recommended!).

30 minutes in the day wouldn't have been enough for them, but 1-1.5 hours was pretty typical (I'd start checking they were okay much past 1.5 hours), and they weren't sleeping 12 hours overnight, either. Both happy and healthy, just low sleep needs and long wake windows, and have been from the day dot.