Daytime nap / rest for 2.9yr old

[Wigeon]

I need tips on what to do with a 2.9yr old in terms of naps / rests. She used to have an after-lunch nap of about an hour, and for the past few weeks she hasn't actually slept (which seems to be fairly normal).

Since she definitely seemed to have dropped the naps (probably about the last 6 weeks or so) we have been putting her in her room with a story CD on very quietly and she has general pottered around for about an hour (the length of the CDs!), so that she gets a bit of a rest.

However, recently she hasn't been very happy or restful being in her room - she calls for us (not upset, just wanting company), or needs a wee, or bangs on the door in a fairly good-natured way etc etc. But for the last couple of days, we've brought her downstairs, given her her usual cup of mid-afternoon milk, and she's fallen asleep on the sofa (very unusual for her) for an hour or so.

So I am confused as to what we should do! She seems to need some kind of daytime rest / nap (and I do too, being 6 months pregnant!), but we haven't figured out the best way to do this. Do we skip the time in the bedroom and just encourage her to nap on the sofa? Do we give up on the idea of a rest by herself and maybe stay with her, reading or something?

I should say that even if she has a rest (rather than a nap), she doens't seem to get frantically tired before bedtime, and her nighttime sleep is brilliant (12 hours straight usually).

What do you do with your toddlers? Any ideas?

Your DD is dropping her nap but she's still transitioning, so sometimes she'll sleep (eg when nice and cosy on the sofa) and sometimes she won't (eg pottering about in her room). If she is still sleeping well at night on the days she does nap (on the sofa eg) then I would continue letting her nap on the sofa. When it becomes obvious her night time sleep is affected then I would try and stop her napping.

My DD is 2.7 years old an no longer naps. When she started to give naps up we did quiet time in her cot (she's still in one) with all her soft toys so she could chat and play with them for 45 mins or so happilly. But that was several months ago. Now we don't even bother with quiet time and we go about our usual routines (which is brilliant for when we go out and about as I am no longer trying to get her to nap!). She crashes at bedtime around 7/7.15pm and goes right through :-)

PS, when it's obvious she won't nap on a particular day then I would read with her or let her do some stickers - activities that are not too taxing. We all need down time during a day - my DD has her downtime with the TV or books around 4pm and not after lunch.

Thanks Orissiah - useful to hear what you are doing with your DD.

Bump for anyone else?