Nap time help!

[mrsdee1982]

Ok ladies, I need some help. Charlotte refuses to nap at her daycare. A very close family friend is a SAHM, who watches Charlotte for us 2 days a week.

On the days when Charlotte is home, she takes great naps. Goes down awake but drowsy, falls asleep within minutes, in her crib, dressed in a swaddle up, with blackout curtains and a white noise machine. 1st nap is usually 2-3 hours long, and next two naps are about 1 - 1 1/2 hours long.

But on the 2 days she is at daycare, she refuses to nap. Today she napped for a grand total of 23 minutes. Our friend tries to be consistent with her normal nap times. Has her sleeping in her bedroom, in a PNP in the swaddle up, with blackout curtains and the same white noise machine we have at home.

It makes it hard on friend and it's hard on me to deal with a 4 month old who has only gotten 23 minutes of nap time the whole day.

WHAT.DO.I.DO? Help!!!

[musicfrk2002]

Maybe it's the different smells? Can you try sending a sheet for your friend to maybe hang on or near the PNP so she thinks she is at home?

It also could be the PNP itself, since it would feel different than the crib mattress.

[nchauhan]

We found that at daycare, T needed to be rocked to sleep for the first few days/weeks before he was put down. I was fine with that since it increased his nap times and came home less cranky! And now he will fall asleep much easier at daycare, maybe now that he's used to it.

[billyhorrible]

Both my kids needed to be held for naps at daycare at first, even though they napped in the crib fine at home.

They both were eventually able to do naps in cribs/pack n plays at daycare, although LBB was always a terrible napper there until around a year when they moved the "wobblers" to their own room and had scheduled naps instead of napping on demand.

[carolyngrace]

This might be impossible, but you should try to go observe nap time there. Maybe on a weekend? There may be something they're missing or doing differently without catching it!

[mrsdee1982]

Oct 8, 2015 18:55:00 GMT -5 carolyngrace said:

This might be impossible, but you should try to go observe nap time there. Maybe on a weekend? There may be something they're missing or doing differently without catching it!

I'm pretty sure I'm going to do this next Friday.  Hopefully it provides some insight.  Because, yeah...4 month old who only got a 23 minute nap = 2nd glass of wine for mommy after an early bedtime!!

[Deleted]

How many other kids is your friend watching at the same time? I would suggest that she if possible should hold your baby for naps or have her nap in a swing until your LO adjusts. I would take a whatever works approach since it sounds like replicating the in a separate room w white noise isn't working. Maybe your baby is scared in this new environment.

DS would sleep in a pack n play fine at home but if we ever slept in a hotel he would scream bloody murder or take 5 min naps in a different environment. I ended up just holding him for naps or putting if in a vibrating bouncer when we traveled so he felt more secure.

[Widget123]

Daycare sometimes lets LO nap in a bouncer instead of the crib, which he prefers. It might not be the safest thing though depending on your friend's ability to watch her and other kids at the same time.

[wegrowsheep]

If there are other kids around, she might just be getting overstimulated from all the "extra" activity. She will probably get used to it and adjust, but having them put her down a little earlier might help too.