So I think we might be moving towards days of one naps. But I’m not exactly sure.
Last week, Erin decided that she didn’t need to sleep in the afternoons. Alex would still crash for 2 or more hours both morning and afternoon. But not Erin. She’d sleep in the morning, and then, come afternoon, she’d play happily in her crib for hours. But not sleep. And then she’d be super-crabby by dinner time.
And honestly, I’m not ready to be a one-nap family if only one of them is really there. My days would be crazy complicated if Alex naps twice, but Erin only once. Yikes!
So this week, I decided to try doing only afternoon naps. Tuesday, we hung out all morning with friends. Yesterday, we ran errands. Both were very tired by lunch time. So after lunch, down they both went.
Both days, Alex woke up after an hour and a half, screaming. I think he had gas, but honestly, I have no real idea. Both days, I got him back down after a little bit and he’d sleep another hour and a half. But that 30-45 minute interlude was not fun.
And Erin slept for almost 4 hours on Tuesday (right through Alex’s fit). But yesterday, he woke her up. So she slept for 1.5-2 hours, was up for a bit with Alex, and then played in her crib for another hour without sleeping. And got crabby after dinner.
Anyway, today we didn’t go anywhere, so I decided to try a 2-nap day again to see what happens. Both are down now. And I’ll try again after lunch and see how they do.
But please, please, please, if you have a second, I’d love to hear how your kids transitioned to one-nap days. And how old they were when they did. Some perspective would be much appreciated!
AND in other news:
– The babies are 16-months old today.
– They love to play with “toys” with buttons (remotes, cell phones, calculators). So I bought them $1 calculators at Target yesterday so they don’t destroy our good ones. And they have spent the last day holding them to their ears like cell phones. And they giggle hysterically if I see them and act like it’s a real call, “Hello? Is this Erin? Hello?” So funny!
– We hung up swings for them in our back yard. HUGE hit. HUGE!
– While at our friends’ house on Tuesday, we discovered Erin’s love of dress-up clothes. She wore a tutu, multiple strands of beads and a hair band for most of our time there. And both of them LOVED the sunglasses. So I bought them their own pairs at Meijer yesterday. I’m working on getting pics…
– Our friends also donated a Cozy Coupe to our cause. The babies have been playing in it/fighting over it/loving on it for the last two days. They haven’t figured out how to move it (though Erin will push Alex in it). But they love the steering wheel and the working door. So fun.
SO obviously, I owe you a ton of pictures…I will work on that…but until then, Happy Thursday!
April 8, 2010
Transition to fewer naps = crabby kids for a week or so during old “normal” nap times. It didn’t take my kids too long to adjust but there was definitely an adjustment period where they were just hard to deal with when their bodies were telling them they should be sleeping! Distraction is key, but also just the knowledge that if you keep it up, they’ll adjust!
April 8, 2010
I held on to that second nap as long as physically possible. Even when we went through phases where he’d stay awake some days or sleep really short amounts of time I kept at it until I was sure it wasn’t a phase. And only then did I start to back up the morning nap a half an hour at a time until we reached the happy medium of napping from about 12:30 or 1 until around 3. That was only a few weeks ago. To keep him from falling asleep too early in the morning I’d do like you said – schedule play dates and go on shopping trips during the time they would normally go to sleep.
April 8, 2010
The nap thing is different with every kid. Shiphrah hung on to her 2-nap schedule until she was nearly 2. Kirk, on the other hand, is 13 months and is actively fighting his second nap. Some days he takes it, other days he just screams (and I mean full-out temper tantrum). Kirk seems to do better with less sleep than Shiphrah ever did. He’ll act a little tired, but can easily go from 2-o-clock in the afternoon until 8-o-clock at night without ever taking another nap. Shiphrah needed those naps. Lately she’s been trying to give up her napping completely (she’s nearly 2 1/2) and Kirk’s been dropping that second nap. So basically I’ve been playing every day by ear.
April 8, 2010
cant comment now–but ill try to come back later.
looove erin & dress up! how cute.
April 8, 2010
All of my kids gave up their morning naps early — Sierra at 15 months and Katelyn and Marissa at 12 months. It did take them a couple weeks to get used to it. I tried to go out and do something at first as a way to “distract” them. Sometimes they would fall asleep in the car and that 10 mins tided them over until nap time. Afternoon naps were longer, too. I actually enjoyed giving up the second nap because it gave me more freedom in our morning activities!
April 9, 2010
The transition to the next thing is not easy for any of us. Josie has almost completely quit the afternoon nap. I know she’s old enough, but I still need the break! That’s why we have quiet reading time for everyone for an hour.
And the Cozy Coupe is great fun! So glad it’s part of your world. I am really looking forward to your next picture post!
April 9, 2010
I don’t have any advice since I am not there yet but hopefully it will all work out. Can’t wait to see the pictures! 🙂
April 9, 2010
I’m looking forward to the next picture post as well. I hope it’s soon!
April 9, 2010
Looooooved seeing you today and meeting your gorgeous kiddos!! Brilliant idea to buy $1 calculators. My 16-month-old niece uses her foot as a cell phone. 🙂
April 14, 2010
Again I am in the same boat, I was trying to do the one nap but didn’t keep it up consistently as it was hard to keep him awake but maybe I need to be persistent. Then he got sick and needed the two sleeps again but now he is being a stinker at both naps and needing me to help him go off = not what I want to be doing.
For me one nap would be good and give me more freedom in the mornings but it’s hard to know when to try to put them down, I guess distraction and bring out is key. Might try that, thanks for the post and comments – helpful!!!
April 17, 2010
Okay, I’m late on this bandwagon, but just came to your xanga from Michelle’s :). When my kids started talking/playing through afternoon naps, I gradually moved the morning nap later and some days a very brief afternoon nap if deemed necessary (this did mean that lunch sometimes was very early…or really late!). Oh, and if we had an afternoon nap, I’d only let them sleep around 45 minutes to an hour… just enough to get them through until bedtime. At the same time, I moved bedtime earlier. So, if morning nap is 10-12, I’d shoot for 11-1 and then instead of 7:00 bedtime, it might be 6:00 or even earlier if necessary! I was sure this would make them wake up earlier, but it didn’t. And, actually, the early wakings you mentioned might be an indication that they need less daytime sleep. Eventually, I’d get the nap around 1-3 (or later, some days!!) and then adjust bedtime back to where I wanted it. Good luck – seems like as soon as you get a good schedule/routine figured out, they grow out of it :).