What is going on with these naps?

[Honey693]

DD is 16 months and had what i thought was a pretty consistent nap schedule. She'd wake up around 9, go down for a nap between 1 and 2, sleep for close to 2 hours, nap around 7 for an hour and go to bed around 11. We went out of town this weekend and ever since we came back she's been waking up at her normal time, going down for a nap at 11 or 12 and then napping again around 5. It just seems really weird that she'd just randomly change naps like that. Is this normal?

[elleystar]

A lot of kids go through an 18-month sleep regression, and I know ours hit at about 16.5 months. Not sure if that's what is going on with your LO though. Honestly I think she's just ready to drop the evening nap and have a much earlier bedtime, say around 8 pm. I'd try it for about a week and see how she does!

[Luke's mama]

It seems like my son's nap has changed about every 3 mos, although now at 21 months, he has been having one afternoon nap since 15 mos. or so--I hope he stays with this pattern! I agree with PP--I have read in a few books that by 18 mos. kids normally transfer to 1 nap a day, and it sounds like your LO might be doing that as well as moving to an earlier schedule (earlier to nap, bed, and wake?)

[lnitti]

I can't believe you put a baby down for a nap at 7! or even 5! 7 is a good bedtime, not nap time. unless of course your whole family is on an atypical schedule.

I would try squeezing a lunch in before nap time. Then don't allow a nap at 5. Just do something to keep her busy - maybe have dinner at 4:30-4:45 before she gets too tired, but so that dinner and cleanup will get her over the 5 o'clock time. Just keep her busy. Then to bed by 7-8, maybe even 6:30 (which we did for a while with each of our 2 kids until they were a little older with less sleep need and could last till 7-8). After she gets used to it, you shouldn't have to work to keep her busy to miss that 2nd nap. Also, once you start doing that, her nap can probably be inched a little later so lunch isn't so early. Maybe napping at 1 or 2? That is about the time my dd1 used to nap when she woke at 9. That is until nap time and bed time started getting later (3 for nap, 10 for bed) and after that summer, we dropped the nap and bedtime moved to around 7-8 again. But when she first transitioned to 1 nap, we used to eat lunch around 11:30 and nap right after until she was able to eat lunch and nap a little later.

[Honey693]

Originally Posted by lnitti

I can't believe you put a baby down for a nap at 7! or even 5! 7 is a good bedtime, not nap time. unless of course your whole family is on an atypical schedule.

No one here goes to bed until 11 and we usually wake up around 9 so it's pretty atypical, but it works.

[syd'smom]

My dd and I are both night owls. She's always stayed up late (even as a babe), but she sleeps in. She gets enough sleep, and it works for us. To each his own, right!

[lnitti]

Originally Posted by Crystal_R

No one here goes to bed until 11 and we usually wake up around 9 so it's pretty atypical, but it works.

Actually, I don't consider a 9 AM wake time to be atypical. That was what time my dd1 used to wake up when she was home with DH when he was a SAHD.

But what I was getting at is that the second nap so late in the day is really indicative of sleep that should be consolidated with the bed time sleep.

So if you adjust the routine such that there is only 1 nap, then your dd would go to sleep (bed time) probably a couple hours earlier then she currently is.

At that age many (if not most?) kids do only take 1 nap after lunch. But of course, every child is different!