When did napping end for your toddler?

[Cristiaz]

My almost 3 year old girl refuses to take naps anymore and if I know she really needs one its absolute hell. Like putting Regan from the Excorsist down for nap, putting it bluntly. (Its almost the end of a no nap day and she has been so tired and driving me nuts so if I sound negative and mopey, thats why) Background info: she's always been a good sleeper. We had scheduled naps since she was a baby. We moved her into a big girl bed about 3 weeks ago (could have done it sooner but prolonged it). It was when she was still in the crib that she started fighting naps. She would cry and scream and depending on what kind of cry and scream it was, I'd either go get her or wait till she fell asleep. Each day was different and she would only get a nap in about 3 or 4 days out of one week. She eats organic whole foods, no sugar, water only, no juice. Shes super healthy. Now that shes in the big girl bed it takes longer to get her to sleep. It's about 9 when we finally get her down but it could be earlier or later. She used to sleep in till 7-7:30 in the crib but now she's up at 6-6:30 so shes getting way less sleep. Oh, and on the days she'd nap in the crib, she'd be up till almost 10 pm talking before she'd fall asleep. So it would appear shes ready to not nap...but now she's crabby and defiant and I can't take much more. If we go anywhere during the day she'll fall asleep in the car. So that tells us she needs naps still but after trying a couple times in the big girl bed and having it be so awful, I don't even want to try. Sorry, I think this turned more into a vent than a question. But it always helps to hear other moms stories/opinions.

[Drummer's Wife]

All four of my kids have stopped napping right around 2 years old. Every once in a while my youngst (28 mos.) will take a nap in the afternoon, but otherwise he is go, go, go until he goes to sleep for the night.

Hope you figure it out.

[crazychick]

count your blessings that she slept this long. DD1 boycotted all naps and 1.5 years old. Yeah that sucked. She was taking two naps till she was 10months old. The only thing now is that she goes to bed around 7pm and wakes up around 7 -7:30am

[camera_mama]

Mine stopped taking naps somewhere between 12 and 18 months. She started up again for a while when she turned 4, but that phase didn't last long. Even in pre-k at naptime, she would mostly lie awake on her mat the entire time while the other children slept.

[Peppermint Poppies]

DS started dropping his nap at around 22 months, and we're still going through the long painful process at 28 months. These days, if he does nap, it's usually accidental (i.e. he falls asleep in the car or the stroller). I'm not ready for him to give up his nap since I have a newborn, but at the same time, I can't force him to sleep if he doesn't want to. All I can do is provide the optimal environment for sleep, and if he's tired enough, he'll nap.

[leanbh]

dd is 23 months and she still naps up to two hours in the afternoon. she asks for a nap.

try calling it something else maybe. when i would take care of my niece at that age, i just said, ok, it's time for quiet time. and we'd both go and lay down and read a book, and then just lay there when we were done with the book. usually she just fell asleep. i never uttered the word nap though, or she would burst into tears. she really needed the rest after playing so hard, but i didn't want to force her to sleep. so i thought i'd just let her rest. nine times out of ten, she fell asleep.

good luck!

[LuxPerpetua]

For dd, between 2 and 2.5. Somedays she'd need a nap and others either it would push bedtime way too late so I'd avoid it or she really wasn't tired. Now at 3.5 she only naps if she's sick.

I am not a fan of making children nap in beds unless that's where they sleep better. If you're wanting her to nap, could you put her in the sling or stroller and take a walk at naptime? Would that help her go to sleep? Or go for a car ride? If she's ready to give up naps then I'd say either institute some quiet reading time around naptime to have a rest or use books on tape or something.

[Cristiaz]

Thanks everyone!! I have no friends with toddlers so I've gotten no feedback till now...
So, I haven't tried to get her to nap in about 2 weeks or so. That day was the first day after sleeping in the big girl bed and she was up a ton so the next day she was soooooo tired I had no choice but to force it. There was no way she would have made it through the day.
I took the advice of the 2nd persons response and last night put her to bed earlier which was easier. I just didn't think of that at all. So she was asleep at 8 and slept till 7 so that'll work great. If she gets more sleep at night, she won't need a nap. So I hope this keeps working. Its too hot here now to take her on walks (todays high will 107) and she hasn't liked the sling since about 13 mo. Oh, and I did try laying down with her, reading, etc...and that didn't work. She's super strong willed...I find it's easier to take her lead on some things. I got confused cuz my MIL was convinced she's too young to not nap and now you mamas have set that record straight!!

[limette]

Originally Posted by crazychick

count your blessings that she slept this long. DD1 boycotted all naps and 1.5 years old. Yeah that sucked. She was taking two naps till she was 10months old. The only thing now is that she goes to bed around 7pm and wakes up around 7 -7:30am

:

DD1 stopped just after she turned a year and dd2 is 16 months and is ready to drop hers. It's almost impossible to put her down for a nap and if she gets a nap, she's awake until 11 and impossible to put down for the night.

When we skip naps she goes to bed at 8 after less than a minute of quiet nursing.

She is always grumpy so I don't see a difference when skipping naps...lol.

[SandraS]

Shortly after they turned two, all of mine stopped napping.

[Peony]

DD1 stopped napping regularly right when she turned 2. For a year she would often fall asleep in the car, and it took about that look before she wasn't a crab in the afternoons. DD2 is 2.5y now and until recently has still napped everyday, just over the last month, she is stopping that. I just put her to bed an hour earlier on non-napping days. I still try most days, I know within a few minutes if it is going to happen or not.

[jeliphish]

mine is still taking a 2-3 hour nap at almost 3 years. I am suprised by all the other responses...I just assumed they would not drop naps until 4 or 5.

[Alyantavid]

My oldest still napped regularly until he was 4.

My youngest is 3 and still naps almost everyday. He went through a spurt of fighting naps, so we stopped trying. Now he's back to napping, at least on days he's home. At daycare, he won't nap at all.

[zinemama]

Age 2.5, when he quit nursing. A day that will live in infamy.

[frogautumn]

Originally Posted by zinemama

Age 2.5, when he quit nursing. A day that will live in infamy.

This is where I'm at right now. Nursing ended last week. Napping ended yesterday...I predict my sanity isn't far behind.

[Cristiaz]

Originally Posted by jeliphish

mine is still taking a 2-3 hour nap at almost 3 years. I am suprised by all the other responses...I just assumed they would not drop naps until 4 or 5.

That's what I thought too which was why I was concerned. However now I'm putting her to bed earlier and she puts up no arguments and she sleeps later so it worked out.

[Peony]

Originally Posted by jeliphish

mine is still taking a 2-3 hour nap at almost 3 years. I am suprised by all the other responses...I just assumed they would not drop naps until 4 or 5.

Out of the dozens and dozens of kids I know, I only know of 2 that were still napping at age 4. Almost all stopped between 2-3. DD2 turns 3 in Oct and I thrilled that she napped this long, it is going out the window now but it was great while it lasted!

[Parker'smommy]

My dd is 4 1/2 and still takes a nap every single day. She stopped bfing when she turned 4 years old and taking a nap isn't a problem. In fact, I think she'll probably still be napping for awhile as she doesn't fight it. I lay down with her for 5 minutes and she's out. Her brother took a nap till he was 4 1/2. He started fighting it the summer before he turned 5. Every kid is different. My girl just likes her sleep and she needs it too. She is SUCH a grump if she misses her nap, which isn't often, because if we are out and about, she'll just sleep in the car. She takes her nap around 130, sleeps 2 hours and then goes to bed around 830. She still wakes up every night though :

[Parker'smommy]

Oh, and with ds, he would go through a period where he would fight his nap after he turned 3. I didn't make an issue of it, I just said he had to lie down and be quiet for an hour or so. After a week or so of quiet time he would go back to napping for me. There is nothing wrong with just having some quiet down time for a toddler ( or an adult!) to help them make it through the rest of the day. I would always telll him he was not required to sleep but that he had to rest. Eventually, sleep won him over. Dd has never fought me on napping so I haven't had to do this with her, but I would if she had balked at napping at 3.

[hibiscus mum]

Originally Posted by jeliphish

mine is still taking a 2-3 hour nap at almost 3 years. I am suprised by all the other responses...I just assumed they would not drop naps until 4 or 5.

Same here.