Ideas to put 16 month old down for nap

[Amy@STL]

My DS just wont lie down for a nap and let me pat him to sleep. He doesnt like me singing, patting, reading books etc as activities to get him settled for nap time. I only try to put him down for nap when he is really tired and sleepy. I am not trying to stick to a nap time and force him to sleep. But when he has been up for 6-7 hrs, been outdoors for 3-4 hrs, had snacks, is otherwise content and acting sleepy...but just wont " settle down " , what should I do?

Also, how many hours after waking up in the morning, does your toddler go down for nap? He is a happy and active baby and has always resisted going down for sleep,but otherwise loves sleeping and once asleep, stays asleep.

Currently, I just let him do what he wants but he becomes cranky or clingy and after two three hours, finally falls asleep at a wierd hour like 6 pm! I just feel I need to find some way of helping him calm down and help him to go to sleep.

What do you mamas do?

[JustSimplicity]

I have a similar sleep-fighting little guy. There is no way he would ever fall asleep randomly. For my guy, we have to have a schedule and just put him to bed at 1 every day. I have the same routine every time so he knows what to expect and we talk a lot about going night night beforehand. He has his lovey and water in his crib. I did just get to the point where I realized he had to be LOUD, LOUD, LOUD until he just crashed asleep in bed. Now this usually means talking loudly until he's asleep. He does sometimes cry. I did get to the point where I felt comfortable leaving him to cry a bit. It's kind of his personality. I tried for 10 months not to go with CIO but...there were really no other options unless I just let him not sleep and then he was cranky and really upset with life. If you don't like letting your guy cry, maybe you could come in every minute or so to rub his back and reassure him that you are there and that it really is night night time. I had to realize that sleep fighters are not happy to have to go to sleep but that doesn't mean they don't need their sleep just as much as other babies. Just a suggestion. Hope you find something that works.

[Amy@STL]

I do have troube doing any CIO like system. Partly beacuse we co sleep and partly because he is just a darling boy otherwise. Hopefully we will grow out of this phase but meanwhile I was hoping theree were others who may have had success.
Congrats on ur 2012 pregnancy

[jldumm]

if he won't lay with you... i would wear him down.

my first is really high alertness and never liked to nap.  she stopped napping after 2, but sleep a lot at night. 

my second would nurse down for a nap until he was old enough to lay down for books and songs.  I do second getting a routine, even if it isn't at the same time, doing the same thing... they come to expect it.  now he is two and i still read to him and sing and lay with him until he is asleep. sometimes i get up before he is asleep. but not often. also we plan outings for before nap and he falls asleep in the car and can transfer.

Good luck.

[Amy@STL]

I do plan outings and most days he falls asleep in the car. But on days he doesnt, I struggle. He doesnt do books, songs etc, so I am looking for other ideas. In fact, the more sleepy he is, the more restless he becomes. He does books other times just fine but when he is tired, he wont sit still

[foreverinbluejeans]

I take care of my 2.5 year old grandson so I don't have magic breasts for putting him to sleep. When he was younger I would play music on the computer and lay him on his tummy on my chest while I was all leaning back in my reclinging chair. I would hold him while he napped. Sometimes he falls asleep sitting next to me in the chair now but it can be any time between 1 and 7. Sometimes we watch America's Funniest Home Videos (our favorite show) or a video to help him fall asleep. His parents work late and keep him up until around 11. If he is really crabby I can take him for a car ride and he will fall asleep and if I'm lucky I can get him in and he will stay asleep.  

Most kids do best if they have a routine (not a strict schedual). That can be hard for families and sometimes we just have to do the best we can.

[callahansmama]

I have an almost 15 month old son who is not a great sleeper but is starting to nap longer these days. He still doesn't go down easily though and almost never actually seems tired (no eye rubbing, no yawning...) I have come to learn that despite this, he still needs 2 naps a day (he only gets about 9.5-10 hours a night as 5am is his favourite wake up time:) I am learning that 3 hours after wakeup is the optimum time to try to get him down to sleep. Today he's up at 6 and at 9 or a little before I will put him in the ergo carrier and walk him to sleep. It takes 20-30 minutes on average but he sleeps 1.5 -2 hours in the morning so I am sure he is actually tired but cannot wind down on his own yet (He's a super active, always engaged kind of baby). I put him down again 3 hours after he wakes up and usually he goes down again after about 30 minutes but yesterday he was still awake after 40 so I just let him play. We had an early dinner and off to bed at 5:45 but he had a much harder time falling asleep than usual. I am sure that he was overtired and I just needed to work a little longer for that second nap. Usually at 6:30 pm he goes in his crib and plays with a few whines for almost an hour (sometimes more) before falling asleep. I usually stay in the room with him, reading a book or napping while he falls asleep. Last night he cried for 45 minutes before finally falling asleep. I felt bad for him and wished I had worked a little harder to get him down for his nap. For me, the ergo is the only thing that works lately but it almost always works. I think some kids are just too worked up and tuned in to everything around them that they can't just relax enough to fall asleep quickly. My son is the happiest baby every but I don't think he'll ever be one of those kids who just slows down and falls asleep in the highchair or on the floor. Best of luck!

[Amy@STL]

Thank you! I agree that some babies just dont slow down. I just need to find something. I cant carry him anymore as he is 30 lb now...a big boy! I need to experiment some new ways!