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Original poster

am attempting a nap-free day with ds for the first time - any words of advice/encouragement?

29 replies

Tutter · 05/07/2007 13:58

he's 2.1yo

has resisted naps for a few days and has been taking ages to drop off at night

so today when he said "no" to a sleep we came back downstairs

a bit not having day broken in half

am guessing it'll get tough come 4pm-ish - any ideas?

OP posts:
AnAngelWithin · 05/07/2007 14:03

good luck!! i always find that just before tea is the worst time when they havent slept. might be an idea to prepare tea earlier if you can?

Original poster
Tutter · 05/07/2007 14:07

good idea

will also give him a 'banker' of a meal

OP posts:
Original poster
Tutter · 05/07/2007 14:13

anyone else?

earlier bedtime?

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BirdyArms · 05/07/2007 14:14

I agree that you shoould give him his tea earlier. Also be prepared for him to lose the plot a bit - ds1 (2.3) sometimes really isn't fit to do anything other the watch TV. Good luck!

cardy · 05/07/2007 14:14

You could try naps every other day, so that the tiredness doesn't accumulate.

VictorVictoria · 05/07/2007 14:15

OOOh Tutter let me know how this goes. I have a DS 2 who is waking up at 5.30am and I am contemplating dropping his nap altogether..........

chocolateshoes · 05/07/2007 14:16

Suggest you do some quiet reading together at some stage or take him out in the buggy so that he does get a rest rather than charging about at top speed and then crashing. Good luck!

Original poster
Tutter · 05/07/2007 14:17

vv - he's always been an early riser (5:30 - 6ish) - am hoping that once naps finished/cut down that might change

will keep rest of day low key

OP posts:
Original poster
Tutter · 05/07/2007 14:18

but if i take him out in buggy i fear he'll drop off in it

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VictorVictoria · 05/07/2007 14:21

I wouldn't worry about the short cat nap in the buggy thing. We took DS to Oxford to lunch on Sunday and he had about 20 mins in the car. Was a bit grumpy when we woke him up but then was fine for the rest of the day and he survived perfectly well until bedtime

I am 10 weeks pregnant and work full time and CANNOT stand the early waking but have failed 100% to sort it. I have rather pathetically put it down to teething but I am forced to admit he just doesn't need that much sleep.......

luckylady74 · 05/07/2007 14:23

i am doing the same with my 2.5 twins today - no nap in bed for 4 days because of bloodcurdling shrieking 'i'm not tired'. i've tried watching tele and to the other extreme when the tired whining was getting me near to shouting -we danced to loud music and then did races up the hall!
my problem is they drop off in the buggy on the school run at 3.30 and then have a very late nap and wake up from it in a vile mood which lasts through tea. i tried makingthem walk on the school run , but can't when ds1 is with us on the way back because i end up wwith at least one child miles behind or in front.

eandh · 05/07/2007 14:26

I did this with dd1 around same age as was taking an hour-hour and half at bedtime. 4 o clock is the begining of witching hour here normally everything and anything can set her off and I do resort to having the tv on for peace, dinner is at 4.30-4.45 bath at 5.30 then downstairs for warm drink and quiet time by 6.00 she watches fifi and then bed at 6.30 and literally one page into a book is snoring away.

I had to avoid car/buggy after 2pm as she would nod off, used to do puzzles/colouring/garden etc although she has always got up at 6-6.30 and still does even with no naps but at least we have child free night after 6.30pm as both dd's are fast asleep and dh normally manages to time coming home from work to a very quiet house

I did find the first few weeks she still had occasional top up naps maybe once a week but thet were always earlier on in the day ie 10.30-11ish and then we would go to park in the afternoon to wear her out

Good luck

Chattyhan · 05/07/2007 14:32

I'm doing this too at the moment. DS 2.5 had been taking ages to go to sleep at night often awake until 10pm so we've had a couple of days where i've avoided a nap. Problem i have is being in the car around 5pm (unavoidable some days as work) he falls asleep and it takes me ages to wake him and then he's grumpy. I'm 30 wks perg so don't really want hime to drop nap completely but i've tried only letting him have an hour and it's so hard to wake him - he's dead to the world and when i finally do wake him he's a nightmare so at the moment i've decided to let him nap a couple of days a week for my sanity and avoid it the others!

VictorVictoria · 05/07/2007 14:35

Now this is interesting. DS never really has a problem with going to sleep - protests in a very token fashion when put down at 7pm but then is usually asleep by 7.30. PLEASE tell me that the fact he wakes up at 5.30 means that he has had too much sleep the previous day, even tho he goes to sleep easily?

Chattyhan · 05/07/2007 15:02

Victorvictoria - it may be the case that dropping the nap will make him sleep longer but not neccesarily. Friends have kids who wake at 5.30 regardless. They are now 5 and 7 and even bed at 10pm doesn't change it just makes them grumpy.

Tutter - if you keep DS ammused later on then he should be ok - i agree re early dinner but i find if DS is bored it makes things worse also avoid car/pushchair at this time. You may be lucky he might not get grumpy!

mumto3girls · 05/07/2007 15:05

Tutter - I find I have to get dd in the garden or somewhere cool in the afternoon (around 4pm)_ otherwise she curls up on sofa and would fall as;eep.

luckylady74 · 05/07/2007 16:51

fgs mhy twins are fast asleep on the sofa - tea will be ready and they're immovable lumps as ds1 has proved by shouting are they asleep repeatedly!

Original poster
Tutter · 05/07/2007 17:20

oh dear lucky(?)lady - that's blown it [sympathy]

vv - i hate to say it but my suspicion is that they're either early risers or they're not. am not expecting a huge change in terms of wake-up time - for me it's more about him bein properly tired at bedtime

not going too badly here. early tea at 4:40. he's playing in front of the tv now. will bath him in 20 mins or so. bedtime planned for 6:30 (nearly an hour earlier than normal)

he was tired and grotty before tea but has picked up a bit since

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mumto3girls · 05/07/2007 17:26

Tutter I'd be inclined to try and keep bedtime as near to the norm as possible. We had the exact problem you have with our dd. Having no nap makes her go out like a light at bedtim, but when we put the bedtime forward (thinking she was really tired) she woke earlier in the morning...we've worked out that unless ill she will sleep for 11 hours max at night so if we put her to bed at 6.30 she'd be up at 5.30!!!

Good luck!

Original poster
Tutter · 05/07/2007 18:46

ah

too late!

he's down. still had hysterical tears at bedtime (as per the last week or so) but he dropped off after 2 or 3 minutes

think he's unsettled as ds2 due imminently

fingers crossed for a 6am-at-least start tomorrow...

OP posts:
mumto3girls · 05/07/2007 19:03

Our dd3 had hysterics at bed time for about a month after perviously going to bed fine...that's whty we initially took her day time nap away..
Although today after a morning at soft play she was soo exhausted I let her fall asleep at 1pm til 2pm.

Bless her! Bet she's a misery at bedtime though - or I'll be up at 5am tomorrow...

Original poster
Tutter · 06/07/2007 08:44

mumto3girls

ugh you were so right

up at 5:18

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VictorVictoria · 06/07/2007 08:46

WE were up at 6.05 which I think is a positive lie-in. That was on the back of only 45 mins sleep at lunchtime and bed at normal time (but it will inevitable be back to 5am tomorrow)

Original poster
Tutter · 06/07/2007 09:12

well today he's having a nap, like it or not

not least because i need one too!

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VictorVictoria · 06/07/2007 09:14

YEs I think tnat's teh right strategy. short nap but a nap nonetheless (god I bore myself thinking about this stugff. THere has to be more to life...........)