Getting 2yo's nap back? I need that nap!

[ElsieLC]

DD is 2 years, 4 months. Lately naps are irregular--some days she'll have them, some days not. Some days she will take an early snooze in the car. We can spend all day at the park and it won't induce a nap. We are going further afield for entertainment, but then the long car ride home soothes her to sleep--at the wrong time, and the ride isn't long enough, and then she's crabby from not enough car-nap.

I need her to have that daytime nap so I can unwind. Or get things done. Daytime things that can't happen at 7pm in the dark. I am not an extrovert and all this focused toddler time is making me loopy. DH is tired of my crazed phone calls at work. What will *I* do if she drops the nap completely?

[lisavark]

I assume she's already getting up at a regular and pretty early time every morning? No ideas really, mostly just sympathy. My DD turned two today, and she hasn't napped regularly since--oh, gee--18 months, at least. I can't remember the last time she took a nap earlier than 4 pm (and if she naps that late, she's up all night, so it's NOT good at all). So I feel your pain!

Honestly, I put DD in preschool 2 days a week mostly for my sanity. Because she quit napping. I needed a break one way or another. Is there a mom's morning out program or something you can do to give yourself a break if she's really not going to nap?

Also, this hasn't worked for me yet, but I keep meaning to try it...maybe your daughter is old enough to understand that she has to stay in her room on her bed and play quietly for a while? Mine is getting to the point where she can self-entertain for brief periods, so I'm planning on starting a routine of giving her a bunch of books and puzzles and teaching her to stay put while I get stuff done. Right now we usually do that in the afternoon anyway, but *I* take a nap while she plays on top of me. Haha.

[swd12422]

I'm right there with you! DS usually sleeps at least three and often four hours in the afternoon. Now suddenly he's not napping AT ALL some days. It's quite a shock to the system!

Right now (while he should be fast asleep) he's splashing around in the tub b/c he just couldn't wind down enough to fall asleep and refused "quiet time" in his crib. I have a migraine coming on and just need to veg for a little while! At least he's having a good time....

I figure when it gets to be every single day or too hot to get out to play in the afternoon it'll be time to find an out-of-the-house solution like school or a kids' gym or something where at least he'll be busy and occupied, and possibly not need me to be there with him. For now I just give lots of baths (he loves them) and run more errands.

I hope it gets better!

[Helensmom]

I'm also struggling with this same problem. We have a newborn at home and my 2.5 year old isn't napping anymore. I cannot cope without a nap, especially when I'm getting up 2-3 times a night to nurse. Just needed to vent. I have no ideas. Today I tried to take a nap with the baby while I stuck the 2 year old in front of the tv, but I don't feel comfortable sleeping when she's up--I just don't think it's safe.

She already goes to daycare 1 morning a week, and I might need to increase that temporarily, until the baby is sleeping more at night. It just pisses me off that I have to pay someone so I can sleep. Grr...

Thanks for listening (reading!)...

-Linda

[ElsieLC]

Fellow sufferers,

Thanks for your replies! Sorry for your misery but glad to know I'm not imagining things. DH is suggesting preschool but it feels like it's failure on my part to be the bountiful ever-giving selfless earth mother.

For a long time I did have a regular childcare swap with another mother but she moved away and I did have a moms' group but it's fallen away, too. That was three days of predictable child entertainment that's now gone.

It feels like life is about to change--when kids turn 3 they can go to schools and carry on conversations and play with choking hazards and they're not free admission to the zoo anymore. I'm not prepared for this!

[MeAndVee]

we have been doing nap/ quiet time. DS just turned 30 months toddler proof the space she is in and if she fusses tell her it is quiet time and she needs to stay in her bed and play quietly. I need him to nap more than he needs it. Quiet time is the next best thing.

[Anandamama]

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My DD just turned 3 and suddenly her naps are not regular. I've been lucky to have a child who has napped for 2 hrs a day for a long time. I knew it wouldn't last forever! A few weeks ago I discovered that she would nap in the stroller when nothing else works. So we've been taking long walks with the stroller. She manages to sleep for 1 or 1.5hr and I get some exercise and quiet time, so it works for both of us. In the past few days even the long stroller walks haven't worked. I'm in mourning for nap time! But the next plan is to have quiet time that works for both of us. I think it will be good for her to learn how to play on her own a bit more - she's very social and solitary play is something she has never been that interested in. Children do grow out of naps and there's not much we can do about that, but we can be creative to try to make sure everyone's basic needs get met. On the plus side, she's going to bed an hour earlier when she has no nap.

[dutchgal]

My DD is there too. Lately, I have been making sure I run her ragged in the morning, go to a playground, give her lots of opportunities to move around and her nap seems to have returned. Is there a way you can get out and let her run around?

[Heidi74]

Will she nap in the stroller? I've started loading both kids up in the double stroller at noon every day and taking a walk. It's the only guaranteed way to get my 2.5 year old to nap, the 7 month old gets some fresh air, and I get some exercise. I'm actually thinking about incorporating a daily jog into my routine during this time and making it my exercise time. (Although I don't think I can start jogging until he is actually asleep.)

Anywhere but the stroller or car seat, though...nah...might as well give up the fight right away.