I've mentioned this before, but we don't schedule naps. I couldn't even tell you how much he naps cumulatively, because I have no idea. For me personally, I find it much less stressful to just let him sleep when he sleeps. My only "rule" is to try not to let him go more than two hours without a nap.
White noise and swings are my two best helpers getting DS to nap.
Today she had an awesome 3 hr nap... but now the timing is weird for another nap/waiting to bedtime. She usually does 2, one about 2 hrs after she wakes up but the second is less predictable. It also depends on if she naps in the Ergo on the walk to/from school.
Basically she doesn't have a good schedule for naps.
Naps are hit or miss. Some days she'll take 2 decent ones. Other days, 3-4 20 min catnaps. I have no schedule except that I try to get her down about 1.5-2hours after she woke up last.
Post by creepyeyeball on Aug 9, 2016 16:11:37 GMT -5
I've started to notice a pattern in the last week. He goes down about an hour after he wakes in the morning - naps from 8:30-10:00 or sometimes 9-10:30. Then he usually goes back down after lunch from like 12-1:30. Then we have a third nap late afternoon from 3:30-4:30ish. From then he's usually up until bedtime at 7. He will wake an hour after he goes down for the night, but just nurses and then falls back asleep. I get a good stretch of sleep from 8ish-12, but after that it's every two hours until morning.
We have a solid nap routine. I focused on creating that for him this time because I struggled with it with my other babies who would only nap either in my arms or in a carrier. Knew I couldn't do that this time, so I do the same thing at every nap. When he shows me his sleepy signs I take him to the family room, nurse him, put him in the rocknplay with his bottom half kind of swaddled, but feet out, give him the paci, and sit across from him on the couch until he falls asleep. As long as I sit there he is good. I usually play on my phone then. The phone case has a black and white pattern on it that he has always liked looking at, so I hold it so he can see it. He will drift off in less than five minutes usually.
Post by creepyeyeball on Aug 9, 2016 16:14:53 GMT -5
I should add - I didn't try to create a nap schedule, just a routine. As pp mentioned, in the past I never paid attention to when and how long. But for the past week I noticed a distinct pattern and schedule he has pit himself on. It helps that we have spent most of the last week home so I've been able to pay attention to it and not have to give him tiny car naps throughout the day.
I don't have any plans to put him on any kind of schedule. I'm wondering if his 20 minute naps are normal. He rarely naps longer than 30 minutes and only 3-4 times per day. I feel like I'm losing my mind. A sound machine might help.
I don't have any plans to put him on any kind of schedule. I'm wondering if his 20 minute naps are normal. He rarely naps longer than 30 minutes and only 3-4 times per day. I feel like I'm losing my mind. A sound machine might help.
You might be putting him down when he is already overtired. My kids sleep like crap when I do that. If I catch them at those first tired cues (for my baby that is when he starts shifting around in his seat or rolling discontently on the floor) he goes down easier and sleeps better/longer than if I wait until the fussing and crying begins. On the days I don't catch him until he's crying and mad, he's lucky to give me thirty minutes and it takes forever for him to fall asleep.
Maybe think some about your kid's sleep cues. Eye rubbing? Restlessness? Fussing? What happens first?
I don't have any plans to put him on any kind of schedule. I'm wondering if his 20 minute naps are normal. He rarely naps longer than 30 minutes and only 3-4 times per day. I feel like I'm losing my mind. A sound machine might help.
I think DS normally takes 30 minute naps if he is in his crib or on the floor. If he is in a swing, he has napped for 2-3 hours.
I've mentioned this before, but we don't schedule naps. I couldn't even tell you how much he naps cumulatively, because I have no idea. For me personally, I find it much less stressful to just let him sleep when he sleeps. My only "rule" is to try not to let him go more than two hours without a nap.
White noise and swings are my two best helpers getting DS to nap.
This.
I don't schedule or worry about how long (unless it's clear he's not getting anywhere near enough) and just watch for tired cues and help him get to sleep with either a feed or a cuddle with back patting, which he loves.
My only issue is that he'll still only nap on me or my husband, and occasionally next to me in bed.
No schedule here. He normally goes down in the morning about an hour after waking up for a good hour or more. The rest of the day is a handful of short naps. If he is overtired I'll put him in the pack and play in my room and he will sleep longer. He goes down for the night around 8.
I don't have any plans to put him on any kind of schedule. I'm wondering if his 20 minute naps are normal. He rarely naps longer than 30 minutes and only 3-4 times per day. I feel like I'm losing my mind. A sound machine might help.
This is us too. We're put him in the merlin sleep suit in his crib and use a sound machine. He pretty much always wakes up after 30 minutes. Sometimes we can give him his paci and shush him back to sleep and he will go to an hour or an hour and a half. But not often. Sometimes when my mom watches him she lets him nap on the boppy lounger and he will sleep way longer. I tell her not to do that bc I want him to get used to napping in his crib, but maybe I shouldn't care? Idk.
Post by creepyeyeball on Aug 9, 2016 20:57:34 GMT -5
I credit my success to the RNP. It's magical. I'm never giving it up. I read a few stories online where people were able to keep their kids in them til close to a year. I pray that's our case and then I can move to a crib and night wean at the same time since that always sucks anyways.
M will usually nap about 1 or 2 after waking up. This is usually at least an hour or two. Often she takes a afternoon nap that can be 30 min or 2 hours...you never know. I feel like she is up alot during the day but she always sleeps 10-12 hours straight at night, so I guess that makes up for it. Although today was a crap shoot. 2 30 min naps...ugh.
I credit my success to the RNP. It's magical. I'm never giving it up. I read a few stories online where people were able to keep their kids in them til close to a year. I pray that's our case and then I can move to a crib and night wean at the same time since that always sucks anyways.
Totally agree that the RNP is magic. But I just can't fathom keeping a kid in it for that long! As soon as DS started to try and roll over I thought he was going to bring the whole thing down!
Oddly, DS doesn't try to roll in it yet. He truly associates it with sleep. And since he sleeps in the family room, we always see him when he wakes, so he doesn't really have a chance to rock it around. I think, too, if you brace it between things, like I have the couch on one side and s table on the other, so he couldn't rock it sideways if he tried.
Mine doesn't rock automatically. I weaned him off yhe vibrate function last month in anticipation of moving to the crib. Just hoping we can hold off a little longer. If it becomes unsafe, we will obviously move him.
So today I tried putting LO down a little earlier each time and he actually slept much longer periods, about an hour each time. Thanks for the advice!
My biggest issue now is that M will not let DH get him to sleep. He screams like he is in pain if DH tries to get him to sleep so I do it each time. I'm nervous leaving him with my mom tomorrow.
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