2 Questions: 10 Month Old Giving up a Nap & a Very Basic Question Re: Sleepwear

All my friends and i were so surprised with how long and drawn out the process was switching from 2 naps to 1. It was like no one told us that it would be 2 months of changing schedules and lack of commitment to either one.
Some days my son (now 2) would be so tired he'd be falling asleep by 9 others he would make it to 11 or 12 and sleep for three hours. It was all based on how he was feeling.
For me it was between 12 and 15 months. But some friends kids transitioned sooner.
Hang in there-he'll find a new schedule that works for him.

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About the naps, I have no answer. It's another of those situations that don't have a one size fits all answer because all kids are different. Kids generally begin to phase out of their morning naps into a longer afternoon nap at around age 1, but some kids continue with two naps much later and others lose the morning nap earlier.

About sleepwear, if you keep your son's room at 72 degrees it's plenty warm enough. Footie pj's are sufficient; he doesn't need socks or a onesie underneath. It's also more convenient for you if you have to make diaper changes during the night...much easier to unsnap one article of clothing than two. I didn't use a blanket with my daughter at that age because she was such an active sleeper that she risked getting tangled up in a blanket and suffocating.

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Hi M.! As far as the sleepwear, our heat is at about 62 at night, so last winter and this fall we put our now 18 month old in a long sleeved onesie, socks, micro-fleece footie pjs, and a fleece sleepsack. I put her blankie over her when she initially lays down and then I lay another warm baby blanket over her before I go to bed. She has been sleeping with a blanket since she was about 10 months or so as I knew she was capable of uncovering her face if need be. Since your room is much warmer, I'd say your son would be fine with pjs and a sleepsack - you can buy sleepsacks at Babies R Us in fleece or cotton (for warmer nights) - I love them. If you would like to introduce a blanket, I began by covering my baby only during her naps and then did night times (but found myself initially waking up to check on her 'just in case'). I never found her in any instance that made think I should take the blanket out. And then there is my cousin (mother of 2) who says, if your baby is cold, then s/he will wake up and let you know.

As far as the napping, I'm not sure I can lend any great advice. I know there are days that it's a 2 nap day vs a 1 nap day. You're probably right in thinking that the lack of napping correlates with the disrupted night time sleeping (at least that's what Dr. Weissbluth would say). But that's a tricky one to try to solve when you have little control over what goes on at day care. I think Dr. Weissbluth would probably say put him to bed even earlier, as early as 6:00, which I realize is probably not ideal since the evening is your time with him. Good luck!

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I always kept my son in a short sleeved or even a long sleeved onsie if it was really cold - under EVERYTHING until he grew out of them at 24 months. I haven't found any larger ones - LOL - but I am looking for just "undershirts" for him as an added layer during the cold. Also my son slept with a blanket most of his life. Except as a newborn but even then I'd cover him up to his waste at least.

Whether its one nap or two - you'll know if he's getting enough sleep or not and your daycare should be able to accomodate that since he's still little. I can't remember when my son swithced to one 2-3 hour nap but I do remember in his daycare if he was tired they would allow him to go to the infant room (where his old teacher was) for some quiet time or an earlier nap if that was different than what the rest of the class was doing.

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for sleepwear i had the same dilemma... we have been putting our daughter in long sleeve cotton footies (GAP sells some cute ones) with one of those sleeveless fleece HALO wearable blankets that have little holes for the feet... so far this works the best for us!

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I totally agree with everyone here. "Go with the flow" was our mantra a little while ago. We found that our lil girl knew when she was tired and she would tell us when nap time was. Experiment with snack and nap times. You definitely want to make sure something's in the tummy before going down, too, even if it's just a bowl of dry cheerios.
And the PJ's.... the blanket sleeper should just be fine. I've been told, think how comfortable you'd feel with wearing the equivalent- if it seems too warm it probably is.

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I am not that strict with the napping schedule so I don't have any input for your first question.

But I do have experience with the blanket sleepers and loved them! We just put my daoughter is a long sleeve one-sie and zipped on the blanket.

Now that she is 1-y/o we are using fleece sleepers without the feet and put socks her feet when its time for bed.

Hope this helps,
G.

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First of all, Sweetheart, you are not asking stupid questions. I remember questioning everything with my first child and then my questions decrease because I realized I used up all the energy, unnecessary energy with my first. All first time mothers question and question and wory and worry. It's natural and shows you are a wonderful mother. With naps, kids changes their nap tiems androutins natually and if the daycare is changing it on him then that could mess up his nap time. I have three boys and their naps differed from each other's. So, if he sleeps once a day then let it be. You can do what you want, but he is going to do what he feels is right. He's tired, he'll want to sleep. Don't keep him up. Just go along on the weekends what he does through the week because it's hard for the chil to change routines tllike that every week. Go along with what his body wants.
Also, what to wear at night. They say and I hae questionsed things like that, they say dress the babies the way you would dress yourself. A feet-in pj's just fine for a room that temp. That is fine. If you use the onesies, you can put socks on and that is what I would have done, but I preferred the feet-in pjs because I felt more at eased knowing that they were warm at night. Fleece, that is real warm, don't put anything else on him. Yes, blankets have always scared me too so I used to not give them the blankets unless they can stand up on their own, then I may put a light blanket on them, almost like the receiving blankets when they are that small if they can stand up on their own.
Talk later.

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My kids are older now but I know that I put them in the blanket sleepers and definately not a blanket. I did not put socks on them as though will grow to get used to that temperature. Let the feet have room at night because they are in socks all the time.

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At 10 1/2 months, he needs to nap when his body needs to nap. He should not be restricted to one nap per day in child care. Some babies nap once and some need to nap three times a day. Depending on the schedule in care, is it possible for them to let him nod off during a morning walk if it is too difficult to let him take a normal nap? Sometimes a little power nap is all they need. My 14 month old was down to one nap per day but is going through a growth spurt and has been napping at least twice a day for several hours each time, waking up to eat and play for a little bit. If he cannot make it to a reasonable naptime, or is not able to make it through lunch, he needs that morning nap. My boys also seem to sleep better at night if they get a nap or two in during the day.

About sleeping...I have let my children sleep with a blanket since pretty young...we swaddled them as babies and then I keep one tucked low. By 10 1/2 months, you should be fine to let him have a blanket at night, but he probably won't keep it on. We put our little guy in a fleecey footed sleeper or two-piece long PJs with socks. He kicks off socks. They also make footed stretchy pants, which are nice at night. 72 degrees is very warm for a child's bedroom, but if he is used to it, it should be fine. We don't have a thermostat in our boys' room, so after they are sleeping, I do a last-minute kiss and feel fingers/cheeks and see how well regulated they are. If the little guy kicks off his socks and blanket and sleeps with his shirt hiked up and his belly is cold, I pull everything back in place and turn up the heat a bit. In 72 degrees, too, unless he gets cold easily, it probably wouldn't matter if he has a blanket or not. Overheating is worse for them, so err on the side of dressing him lighter. Good luck! Hope he starts getting enough naptime! :)

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I'd say that if you are keeping his room at 72 degrees overnight than he won't need more than a fleece footie pajama. If he does have cold little feet then a pair of socks are fine. When my daughter was that age we had her in footie PJs plus socks and a onsie and also a wearable blanket - but we kept the house at 62 overnight since that's how we like to sleep. The HALO wearale blanket is the BEST!! Worth every penny!! And yes, 10 months is too early for a blanket. Wait until at least 1 year.

As for the nap - usually you get two until 1 year but all babies are different. Let's face it, he's in charge of naps. It's best to be a bit flexible when switching from two naps to one - if he needs an extra nap, give him one, if not, then no. You might also force 1 nap. Occupy him during the morning nap so he will take a longer nap at midday. Just be sure there is something in his tummy (milk or a heavy snack) or he may wake too soon (assuming it's a pre-lunch nap at around 11/11:30)

Also, his nap time will begin to change too. He may nap now from 11-1 and then have lunch. Then one day, he'll eat first then nap. It's ever-evolving. You just need to go with it and it will all work out.

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My munchkin gave up his second nap at around 12 months (although he does indulge on the weekends!). If he's not getting enough sleep, speak with his daycare provider. They shouldn't be too strict about naptime until age 2 (at least that's what our provider said). Until that point, babies get to sleep "on demand". We find that our son's nap schedule is different when he's with us, but at 17 months he sleeps about 10 hours each night with a 2 hour nap in the afternoon.

Sleeping... the blanket sleeper is plenty. If your son's skin is sensitive, then a light onesie would be okay. As for a blanket, no need. Babies still move a lot in their sleep and he'll probably just kick it off within the hour. We tried a couple of times and my son really didn't like it!

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My son (now 2 1/2) lost his two naps a day around 1 year. I was ok with it - I had a longer one nap so just follow his lead on the nap. As for the PJ's I didn't give him a blanket until he was 2 - partially my worry, partially cause he didn't want it, would HAND it back to me LOL. I slept him on the colder days in footie PJ's blanket sleepers, Carters are the best, but Childrens's Place also has nice warm ones. I also kept my house 72 degrees, but would get chilly on really cold days. Hang in there it does get easier!

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Personally I would stick to the two naps a day if thats whats working for him to be a happy baby. My daughter is 8 and half months old and crawling eatting some table food attempting to walk etc. She still is taking two naps. I actually left one day care provider because she wouldn't give my daughter a nap when she needed it and caused me to have a miserable little girl when i picked her up who would then fall a sleep in the car seat and wouldn't go to bed at 7. Getting those two naps a day is way better for her. So push the issue if you think its best for you and your child.
As far as clothing put him in a fleece sleeper or heavy terrycloth if his room is chilly.You should be turning down the heat some at night anyways. And you can give him a blanket. I use the thermal blankets with the satin on the edge or a simple receiving blanket. My daughter cuddles up with it and goes to sleep no problem. If she gets too hot she pulls it off.
When it comes to the experts look at what they have to say and just follow your gut, because your the mom you do honestly know whats best.

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72 degrees is way too hot for an infant to sleep at night. 68 is better and the recommended temp, personally I always had my house at 65 at night and my babies seldom had colds. Do research, too warm is much worse than too cool. Even while shopping in cold weather. I see moms with their coats draped over the stroller and the baby in snowsuit, hat and mittens, walking the mall and wondering why the kid is fussy. If you ever slept with a small child you would know that they are like little furnaces, they are so warm. Turn down the thermostat and use a blanket sleeper, no socks, an undershirt is ok, but not necessary. If for some reason you cant lower the temp, then keep him in the light weight sleeper.

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My son was very regular with naps and switched from 2 to 1 around 12-15 months. My daughter is almost 10 months and only naps when she feels like it (anything from 3 catnaps to 1 or 2 longer naps or a combination).

I usually put the baby in a one piece footed pj, either cotton or fleece depending on the weather/temperature. I always put a cotton onesie under the PJs. If it is really cold I put a sleepsack over the pjs--they come in cotton and fleece, with and without sleeves. I usually don't do two layers of fleece since it doesn't "breathe" or absorb sweat. Of course, now that my son is 3 and can undress himself I have trouble keeping any PJ's on him! He gave up the footed blanket sleeper type after he was 2. Also I gave him a blanket when he was 10-12 months (he was standing and walking at that age) and now he is totally blankie dependent.

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Oh my God. I loved your post. That was me 5 years ago. not knowing what to dress my girls in when sleeping.
so, blanket, not for now. I waited until 15 months old. Most moms I know waited at least that long.
If I were you, I'd put a onesie and then a fleece or cotton one piece footed jammies.
I remember my old pediatrician, and I mean older generation, he had said infants can't regulate their body temperature like we can (by sweating and such) so he had said put one layer extra on the baby than what you're wearing.
as for nap. my girls dropped their 2nd nap at 8 months of age, i moved up their one nap to midday and they slept longer. which meant, instead of two one hr naps (if that) they got on 2.5 or 3 hr nap.