A few weeks ago I noticed my son having trouble getting to sleep at night, then he had a few days where he was nap resistant. So I thought, well, this must mean he's dropping his nap. So we start napping every other day with him getting to sleep at night no prob--but turning into a PILL during the day. We tried shortening his naps by waking him up (he'll go for 2.5 hours), but he is next to impossible to wake up once he's in a deep sleep. I don't get it: was the not napping thing just garden variety stubborness? How do you tell the difference between the real need to drop the nap and just plain attitude? Oh, and we tried the whole "quiet time" thing: he'd make such a racket in his room he'd wake his brother, so after a half-hour I'd let him out of his room to play downstairs and just bag it...only for him to sometimes fall asleep at 5 pm on the couch! Yet other days with no nap he seems fine...? What gives?
Well, if there's one thing I learned, it's that no one has the "right" answer to this one! I did get some good tips, though. I've started bringing down the hammer when trying to wake him from naps--a little bribery of a sippy cup of milk helps. Now he is only allowed to sleep for 2 hours. He can skip one nap per week, and that's all. Every day he still has to have his "rest" which is not the most restful thing as he clangs around in his room before settling down sometimes. Still, though, I A. glad he is napping again! I NEED that nap, with two active boys on my heels all day long!
If you decide to stop napping, then never let him nap at five...even if he falls asleep in his dinner. He probably needs go to sleep earlier. My son started to stop napping at 3 and never even needed quiet time...(boo ho for me). Never looked back. As soon as he adapts to not napping the crabbiness will pass, until then, keep him active.
Good luck.
Regardless of whether you keep it or drop it, when you DO drop a nap you usualy have to move bedtime earlier by at least an hour...they still need the sleep, they're just able to do it later.
Check his mouth, btw. Part of the nap refusal COULD be his 3yo molars coming in. If a little tylenol fixes the nap-refusal, take a deep breath and count your lucky stars!
:)zzzzzzzzz
it is a typical time to drop, but my son will be 4 next month, and he still naps - happily! He did go through a phase when he was just around 3, and told me he didn't want a nap...I told him that he had to read books (not just be in his room, but actually be on his bed reading) and the entire week that he tried to convince me he didn't need a nap,he fell asleep...he has occasional days when we don't have a chance to nap, but he still goes for at least 2 hours...so my vote is that your son is being stubborn! Hopefully he will continue napping and giving you a break mid day...also are you keeping him really busy in the morning?
When our 3 year old dropped his nap, we had a rough "transition" time. For about a month, when he didn't nap,he was impossible in the afternoon. However, if he napped then he wouldn't sleep until 10:30-11 PM (and I need to be asleep by 10 PM). My guess is that he is outgrowing his nap. I wish I had a suggestion-we just limited his afternoon activities and put him to bed a bit earlier. Good luck!
We are going through the same thing - my daughter turned 3 a couple of weeks ago and on her 3rd birthday just decided to stop napping, after having been a pretty consistent napper her whole little life. I fought with her for two days, taking two hours to get her down for a nap that then went until 4.30 or 5 and caused her to stay up until 11, and then I gave up. We do have quiet time, sometimes together reading stories, sometimes on her own, or sometimes I let her watch a video. (I A. 8 months pregnant, so I still need MY nap!) I've learned not to go anywhere in the car late in the day, because then she immediately falls asleep - sometimes, if she is really a pill and it's before 3 I will take her for a short ride in the car and then let her have a half hour car nap. She's really grumpy between 4 and 6 pm and then she perks up again until bedtime (which we moved about 1 -2 hours earlier, 7.30 or 8 instead of 9.30 or 10). I try to keep her outside as much as possible in the afternoons and evenings while the weather is still good. ALl of that said, we're falling into a routine now with the earlier bedtime, and though she still doesn't want to go to bed even though she's practically falling over with exhaustion, once she falls asleep she's sound asleep for a good 11 hours. I think it's up to you which path works better for your family.
Oh, one other thing that helps - PROTEIN! The better the quality of the food she eats, the better her mood is in general. So I've been trying to feed her more eggs and turkey snacks and peanut butter and things like that, then the afternoons don't seem as hard.
Keep him on a schedule. Have him nap every day & be vigilant. He will get used to the routine. When you put him down for a nap check on him every 10 minutes , after he has fallen asleep set a timer for 30 minutes, no longer. Then when it is time to wake him up make the effort & do it. No one said parenting was easy. People including children over 2 years only need about 20 minutes of sleep to rejuvinate themselves. This schedule will keep him from being cranky & make it so he goes to bed at bedtime as well as sleeping through the night. Consistancy is key. Hope this helps.
He could go either way, it is up to you. If you choose to give up naps, it will be a transition for a couple weeks while he adjusts his night time sleeping to fit his needs. He will be tired and cranky for that time.
If you don't want to give up naps yet, then just stick to your guns and be firm. If you let him out to play after half an hour, then he learns that he doesn't have to nap if he can just be loud and obnoxious for half an hour. Try napping them in separate rooms, and maybe even move the older one's nap time up. My three year old went through a phase like that too where he would stay in his room quietly for a couple hours, but never fall asleep. He soon went back to sleeping for naps, but for only 1 hour instead of his usual 3 hours. We found it easier during that phase to increase his active outside time in the morning so he'd be more tired.
Try waking him by turning on his bedroom light,opening the curtains and opening his bedroom door so he hears the noises of the house, you can also gently remove any blankets he has on. That way when he reaches a lighter sleep stage he will awaken naturally. I would decrease his nap by 30 minutes every few days until you reach a nap-length that enables him to get through dinner and still get to bed on time at night. Regular routines are extremely important for toddlers so if you start alternating days for naps you may have a problem enforcing naptime altogether. Good luck, it's all just trial and error anyway, eh?
My son is almost 6, I homeschool and most days we still take naps. It's good for him and give's me the time to do what I need to do or take a nap as well. Since he is falling asleep at the end of the day is an indication that he still needs to be taking naps. Chances are you are dealling with stubborness. I had it with my son about that age. Also when he would stay over at grandparents house rather than them having him take a nap they would just put in a movie. He would never go to sleep and it would be horrible when I would pick him up. So don't try that. No kid at that age wants to go to sleep, ever. And since you are not pursistant with it, you just give up after a half an hour shows him that he doesn't have to go to sleep. He can do what ever he wants and after a short time he'll just be able to get up any ways. There is no reward for taking a nap and no consequence for being disruptive. You really, really need to read a book called "To Train Up a Child" It has a chapter of this exact problem. I have a daughter who will be 3 in January. From the time she was born until she was almost 2 I had to rock her to sleep for every nap and every night. Sometimes that could take almost 2 hours. As sweet as it was at first, it was really old after a while. Until I read that book. Now I have NO problems getting her to go to sleep at night and only minimal at nap time. You need to get it.
The transition period with sleep is really tough. I would first recommend reading "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. You could just get it from your library to refer to it. It will tell you when most kids drop naps. I think many parents let their kids drop naps between 2 and 3 years old but they shouldn't. It sounds like your son is providing behavioral evidence that he still needs that sleep. I believe it's just part of the kids experimenting with testing boundaries and as the parents we should do everything we can to support them to get the sleep they need. Easier said than done, I know! Here are a few possible ideas: 1. start naptime earlier and limit it to 2 hours. Any change you make, stick to it for a while (like a week) to give it a fair chance to see if it's working. 2. Move his bedtime around a little (earlier or later - the book can help you with that). 3. Get him up in the morning at a certain time so that the sleep schedule is set for the day. Good luck!
My almost 3yo daughter is doing the same thing...refuses to nap, meltsdown in evening....it's a fun time! (as said the fedex delivery man today LOL as he got to my door mid-meltdown)
I've started putting her to bed earlier now that she isnt taking a nap, occasionally she will take a short nap if we happen to go out in the afternoon and then she will pass out in the car...
Some days she resists going to bed, and other days she's just fine with it...I don't totally get it - I figure some days she is exhausted and other days she is asserting her independence...
It could also just be a growth spurt or developmental change... my dd did some major growing this summer and at times she would need a TON of sleep, naps, and food... then a few weeks later it was like she needed no sleep and wouldn't eat a thing. Give it a few weeks. Give it some time.
Part of him not wanting to nap could be stubburness. Kids this age want to see everything that goes on. I know with my 2 yr old she will fall asleep if she is sitting still for tol long. Same holds true with my friends boys taht I watch. What we do is put a movie on the kids like and have "quiet time". I dont let them get up and play for at least an hour. Usually the older boys (3 and 4) will stay awake and sit or lay down and the 1 yr old will fall asleep. I do this after lunch. basically if the child sees that nothing interesting is going on and not by his/her toys, she will most likely get bored and nap. The joke at my house is "she sat still to long and fell asleep".
I wish you the best. Boy do I know how the early evening hours can be with a tired tot.
