Napping in Crib?

They just won't sleep in their crib during the day. If they do, it is for all about 20 minutes. What should I do? Any advice? thanks so much.

jen

 

What kind of routine do you have for napping?

 

Wake up at 6:30/7am...feed
quick catnap
wake feed/play
nap around 9:30am - 30 minutes
wake/feed/play
quick nap

I know I have totally screwed this up, but it is so difficult to keep them awake. I am totally lost with this...ahhhh

 

how are they sleeping at night? if they arent sleeping 8 hrs without waking at night (preferably 12) then change your feeding schedule. Feed them every 3 hrs during the day. have about 1.5 hr wake time after feeding. change things around every 10-15 minutes after feeding -- play with rattles, then with pillows, then with books, etc. Make some black and white shapes for them to stare at. Take lots of photos of them, surrounded by all their stuffed animals. Sit them in different places: boppy, recliner (with you right there), under the play gym, bouncy seat. If you find that one of those tends to put them to sleep then don't use that one. It's hard to keep them entertained at that age.

If they wake at 7am, then they should go down around 830-9am for nap. Nap should last 1-2hrs. If they wake before that, don't go in right away. Count the number of seconds between cries/verbalizations. If it's less than 10 seconds, go in. If it's more than 10 seconds, then go and peek at them. This is what worked for me.

 

DS didn't start napping in his crib till 5 months and that's only because he outgrew his swing. But we did a slow transition from swing to crib. We would let him fall asleep in his swing and move him to the crib. He would cry in the beginning but i guess he was so sleepy that he'll fall back to sleep anyway. As for the lenght of their nap, they still don't nap longer than 45 min (most of the times, it's only 20 min) but they're fine. They're not cranky or anything. Don't worry, you'll get there. It's frustrating in the beginning but it'll happen.

 

quote:
Feed them every 3 hrs during the day. have about 1.5 hr wake time after feeding. change things around every 10-15 minutes after feeding -- play with rattles, then with pillows, then with books, etc.


I would agree with this, as this is how we do it. I know changing a schedule could be hard, but if they will sleep that long on a different schedule, it's more down time for you.

 

Those are great tips...They just seem overtired lately (obviously). My DD just cries and cries for me lately...ahhhhh
I will try to feed them every 3 hours. Thanks

 

Thanks for posting this Veggiehead. I am going through this myself with my own twins.