I still have short nappers on most days

Most days we still have to resort to 4 short naps instead of 2 short naps and 1 long one. I know this will eventually change -- I just hope my short nappers end up taking normal naps eventually. Please give me hope!

 

I would think this should change for you sometime in the next few weeks. For us, it was a phase we went through for over a month with DD.

 

a phase for a month -- well mine has been a phase since late October. Any suggestions, or do you still think it's just a phase that we just got to get through?

 

QUOTE(dezmitch @ Jan 29 2009, 06:16 PM) [snapback]1168269[/snapback]
a phase for a month -- well mine has been a phase since late October. Any suggestions, or do you still think it's just a phase that we just got to get through?


ohh mine have been napping horribly too. (at 6 months)

 

It happens over time, usually when they start crawling and wearing themselves out more.

 

I feel your pain. My girls are great nite time sleepers, but during the day we have no system. No concrete I know they will sleep. We do the same routine every day. Wake , brother gets on bus, BF, play, cracker snack, BF ,SLEEP......20 min. Get brother from school 45 min nap maybe in car. Home, play cracker snack, BF play, NAP!!!! nope probably not maybe 20 min in my lap BF, Dinner, play, BF, BED. Wow thats my day Or something like that.

But yah I have no great answer, but I give you hope and I hope you will pass some my way. BEst WIshes

 

no hope here im afraid! mine were 4 short naps a day at 6 m. now at 8m brook has 2 long naps and maybe a power snooze before dinner. oran has stayed with his short naps and just missed them out. so he sleeps about 20 mins in the morning and about 45 mins in the afternon.
im not moaning, they both sleep all night (well if you can call 5.30 the morning!)
sorry!

 

I liked the book "healthy sleep habits happy child" but in another book I read about the "45 - minute intruder" which is what sounds like is happening. I found for my girls the best option was to just leave them and let them put themselves back to sleep. I have them in separate areas for naps (one in a playpen other in the bedroom) this prevented the one from waking the other. Instead of "naps" I see it as quiet time. This is the quiet time of the day for them to spend sometime alone. They can sleep, talk to themselves, dream in their cribs, but it will last for a minimum of one hour or say 1.5 hours. It is mommy's time to get somethings done and to regroup. Good for everyone.

The other option I tried was to get them up, give them a quick bath in the sink, no talking during this time, and then put them back into bed. It seemed to keep them on track for naps.

Eventually they figured it out that just because they woke up they were not getting up yet, and they started to not get up after 45 mins. I am fairly strict with naps in the early days but I have two very great nappers and they are very very happy babies. They always wake up happy and chatty and rarely sleep in the car since they sleep enough during their naps.

Heather

 

QUOTE(dezmitch @ Jan 29 2009, 05:10 PM) [snapback]1168192[/snapback]
Most days we still have to resort to 4 short naps instead of 2 short naps and 1 long one. I know this will eventually change -- I just hope my short nappers end up taking normal naps eventually. Please give me hope!


You should be close to a change. It was around 7 months that we lost the 3rd nap and settled into two good naps a day on a 9 and 1 schedule.

 

QUOTE(SweetGirl @ Jan 29 2009, 05:47 PM) [snapback]1168240[/snapback]
I would think this should change for you sometime in the next few weeks. For us, it was a phase we went through for over a month with DD.



I know it goes against instinct, but you could also try holding off a little to put them down. How long are they up in the morning before the first nap? Maybe if you held off another half hour, it would get them to sleep longer. Or, don't put them down for the second short nap - wait until the time for the third. Sometimes, just little schedule tweaks do the trick.

ETA: In the interest of full disclosure - mine were still napping in swings at 6 months!

 

OK - so the babies supposedly woke up at 6:45am this morning. I walked in and DD was still a little sleepy and DS was up. I think (for some reason) he may be up even earlier than this but is not making any peeps...well I fed them and at 7:45am he was ALREADY rubbing his eyes and DD started to fuss around 8am so I put them down for their first nap. It's weird because throughout the day they can make it up for 2 hours...HOWEVER the mornings are shorter than 2 hours. They are great night sleepers -- they fell asleep about 7:15pm last night and didn't wake up at all...no peeps.

Any other suggestions -- or should I jsut go with the flow?

 

QUOTE(dezmitch @ Jan 30 2009, 11:06 AM) [snapback]1169122[/snapback]
OK - so the babies supposedly woke up at 6:45am this morning. I walked in and DD was still a little sleepy and DS was up. I think (for some reason) he may be up even earlier than this but is not making any peeps...well I fed them and at 7:45am he was ALREADY rubbing his eyes and DD started to fuss around 8am so I put them down for their first nap. It's weird because throughout the day they can make it up for 2 hours...HOWEVER the mornings are shorter than 2 hours. They are great night sleepers -- they fell asleep about 7:15pm last night and didn't wake up at all...no peeps.

Any other suggestions -- or should I jsut go with the flow?


I would go with the flow right now. I am wondering if you will find the little one's taking longer naps when they start crawling and being more mobile. My BF told me her DD (who is now 6) would only cat nap until she started crawling and moving around more and that was when she could get a longer nap out of her. Mine, I was able to get longer naps out of at 6 months and it seems the older they get, they even began to stretch the morning nap out because of being more mobile.

 

QUOTE(dezmitch @ Jan 30 2009, 11:06 AM) [snapback]1169122[/snapback]
OK - so the babies supposedly woke up at 6:45am this morning. I walked in and DD was still a little sleepy and DS was up. I think (for some reason) he may be up even earlier than this but is not making any peeps...well I fed them and at 7:45am he was ALREADY rubbing his eyes and DD started to fuss around 8am so I put them down for their first nap. It's weird because throughout the day they can make it up for 2 hours...HOWEVER the mornings are shorter than 2 hours. They are great night sleepers -- they fell asleep about 7:15pm last night and didn't wake up at all...no peeps.

Any other suggestions -- or should I jsut go with the flow?


I would try to push to 8:30 and see what happens.

 

My twins (6 months 1 week) go to bed @9pm and sleep until 5, then after they get their pacifiers, go to sleep until 6:30-7 am. I don't know how your guys go to sleep so early, I guess I just envy. They take 1 hour 1st nap, 2 hours second nap, then in the afternoon if nanny takes them out, they might take 1-2 hrs. nap. So when I get back from work, I don't even bother sometimes putting them for 4th nap and just take them out, where in the car they take 30 minute catnap.
If they go so early to sleep at night, what time is their last feeding?Just curious. Mine eat last botle at 8:30 pm.