Advise on Toddler Not Napping

It's a sad day when the nap goes South! My son started resisting napping at about age 3 too. What I started doing was letting him choose a DVD movie to watch in his room. That would be good for at least 90 minutes of quiet time. Sometimes he wouldn't actually stay laying on his bed, but if he got up, he would stay in his room, playing with cars, animals, etc. on the floor in his room at least til the movie was over.....good luck!

My advise is to lay with him for a bit until he falls asleep. My daughter is 5 and still takes about a 2 hour nap a day. If she doesn't she is a crazy woman when 6-7 o'clock rolls around. Don't take away nap time...it really is the only time you get to yourself to do things like housework.

Three years old was when mine stopped napping. IF you must have the quiet time still I would take Denise P's advice...let him watch a DVD or a favorite show. IMO most kids are not built for "quiet time" that lasts for more than a half an hour and (please don't take offense to this as none is meant)I hate it when Moms insist on this as a means for them to get some things done. My neighbor would actually lock her children in their rooms so she could have her me time. I just don't think it is fair to the kids. I worked from home when the kids were small so I totally get where you are coming from. Is there maybe a young girl in the neighborhood that can come in and play with him this summer so you can work? If not, the TV is really the best way to go. Maybe restrict it at all other times so it is looked forward to and also so he does not watch too much TV. If you have an extra computer there are some amazing websites for kids. You could also try a Leapster. As he gets older it will get easier- Three is a tough age.

If quiet time in the bedroom is the rule in your house, I'd stick to it. Let him have lego's or books or something to do, and have him play on his bed. Let him choose the toys he will play with during his quiet time.

If he balks, tell him it's non-negotiable. (I know, not in those words. But let him know he has no choice. He has a choice regarding whether he plays or sleeps, but not where he will be during the afternoon quiet time.) You can also send him to his room last, if that helps, but do send him.

Guard your "me" time, to do your work. I suspect it isn't so much about napping as it is about pushing his boundaries, and while you can change some things based upon his age, if you expect to get the "me" time you need, you will have to stand firm on your expectations.

This is probably nothing new to you and I am sure you have tried it but with your busy schedule maybe you didnt have the time. I have had the same problem with my 2 1/2 year old but when I was working in child care they napped and he napped for hours there but since I havent been working I couldnt get him on a schedule but what I did was just help him and rocked him until he finally fell asleep. At first it took nearly a half hour but now it takes mins and he is fast asleep and stays that way for almost 3 hours in the afternoon. I get a lot done and he apparently needs it too. It was tough at first but I needed the time and knew he needed the nap

My first son also dropped the nap at 3, and I was so sad! I tried to let him watch a movie at that same time and hoped that he would fall asleep, but it rarely happened. If I were you, I would stick to the quiet time and see if you can get that new routine going. Just tell him that if he isn't tired, he can spend some quiet play time in his room, and if he gets tired he can nap. I also have tried, "If you take your nap, when you wake up we can 'do whatever' " If that does not work, you might want to give him some "special" tv time as a reward for good behavior during the day so that you can get a little work done. He might really look forward to this time for himself that his little sisters are not a part of. Good luck to you!!

I have a similar situation to you in that I have 3 boys: 3 1/2 year old and 2 year old twins. The 3 1/2 year takes his nap only around half of the time now. I usually put him in his room at normal nap time and tell him he has to stay there until the clock says a certain time (eg. 1:30). If he hasn't fallen asleep by then then he can come out (I usually have him stay in there around 30 minutes). When he comes out I say to him that he doesn't have to nap but has to go to bed before his brothers tonight. I let him watch a half hour show then because that's the show he'll miss tonight because he'll go to bed earlier. That gives me an hour to get some stuff done. After his show I spend some quality time with him (we have these preschool work books he loves to work on) and then his brothers are usually up shortly after that! Hope this helps!

I agree with the others...keep insisting on nap time. My kids don't nap either, but I insist on some down time so they can rest a bit and so I can have so I can have some time to rest, finish some chores, etc. Sometimes my kids argue with me about the word "nap" so I will call it rest time or down time. I also tell them that I need this time as well. I tell them that we all need to take a break and rest so we can have energy to feel good and do fun things later on in the day, otherwise we will be tired and cranky. Sometimes that works. Good luck to you!