When did your kids give up naps?

I'm having some napping/bedtime issues with both boys, but Sullivan especially. He is taking over an hour to fall asleep at naptime. I'll put him down at 1:00ish and if I'm lucky, he'll fall asleep by 2:00. However, on the days he does nap, he takes 1-1.5 hours to fall asleep at night (meaning he usually isn't asleep til 10:00ish!). On those days that we are busy and he doesn't nap, he's out in 10 or so minutes at bedtime (8:00ish)

I posted a few days ago about our crazy summer schedule and how to get back to our regular schedule and that has been working well. We are getting them up around 7:45 now, slowly working our way to 6:15/6:30ish by Monday the 9th. However, the nap/bedtime issues with Sullivan are still going on. I'm wondering if he is ready to give up a nap (it seems SO early, though). Lennon gave up his nap (by our encouragement) just before he turned 3 because when he napped he would be up until 11:00 trying to fall asleep.

I don't want to take away his nap yet - as he starts back to daycare/preschool on August 9th and will be getting up much earlier and might need that nap again - but I don't know what I should be doing in the meantime??? Advice? How did you know your kids were ready? I'm struggling because he seems so young to give it up already.

Thanks!

 

Good question. I'm wondering about the same thing.

 

Well, I don't think my kids were at all the norm, but none of them napped much past 2. They started being very, very difficult to put to bed at night, would be awake an hour or more after I put them to bed, and naptimes weren't easy either. I felt like I was spending all my time getting them to sleep. When I took away naps, after a week or so of adjustment, they didn't seem to miss them at all, weren't cranky & overtired at the end of the day, and went to sleep quickly when I put them to bed. But, most kids will continue to nap happily until they are 3 or even older.

 

I was hoping for 4 year old nappers this time around, but I'm worried that they are following in their big brother's footsteps (and mine and my DH's, as we gave up naps early too, according to our moms). Maybe it will change when they have to start getting up at 6:15ish in a few weeks. **crossing fingers**

 

Hey there! I am currently expecting twins but also have a daughter who is 2.5. I have been wondering the same thing. I look at total hours sleeping to see if a nap is needed. Most things I've read (love "Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child"!) says that a 2-3 yo still needs about 12-13 hours of sleep TOTAL to function optimally (in regards to learning, behaving, etc) So if my DD sleeps 12 hours at night she may not nap, however I put her in her crib regardless for and hour and if she is not asleep at the end of the hour I let her get up. At least I know she is rested. Maybe you could try that. Just get him up if he is not asleep by the time an hour goes by.

Is your son getting his 2 year molars? My DD did a couple weeks ago and it TOTALLY jacked up her sleeping. Took CIO to get her back into her groove. :headbang:

What if you just started getting them up at the time you need them to when preschool starts, cold turkey??? Not sure how that would go over but, just a thought! Good luck!!

 

Mine are still napping at 2 years 9 months so I'm curious to see what others say. Mine go to bed at 8 (but talk and giggle til 9 or later) and sleep til between 7 and 8. Then they nap from about 1:30 - 3. As long as I separate them at nap time they are great nappers. I hope this doesn't end soon.

 

I was wondering the same thing. Thanks for asking the question Jori! My two are 2 years 7 months (how did that happen???) and they are pretty good nappers and don't give too much of a fuss at nap time and I was wondering what to look for...I hope they keep napping for a while but I rather be prepared then shocked and totally frustrated when they aren't napping any more.

 

This question is so timely! Would love to hear what others have to say!
I had the worst night with the girls since they were babies. One DD was up from 1-4am and then the other one woke up at 5am announcing she was "all done" with sleep. They nap from 12-2 and bed from 7pm-7:30 (or later on the weekends). My struggle is that one DD seems to really need her nap, but she is getting up in the night playing, which normally I can sleep through but last night she was LOUD and there was some crying. The other DD (who is talking through her nap time now) is starting to take longer to go to bed at night...we are up to just over an hour now.

 

Mine are still napping about every other day. It is a day to day decision based on their energy level and how active we are in the morning. However we start our mornings very early 6/6:15(their choice not mine!) and end our days between 8 and 9 unless they don't nap, then it's more like 7:30. It can make for long days but I just go with what they seem to need. We'll go through a week here and there where they just do not nap at all too.

 

Mine are 4.5 and have still not given up naps, but only because they continue to nap in daycare. I desperately wish they would give up naps, because right now they're awake till 9:30 or 10 every night (even though we put them to "bed" around 8:00).

But there's no way they would have been ready at your boys' age. In fact we tried to go without naps for a week last summer (when mine were 3.5) and they kept crashing -- in the stroller, the car, practically at the dinner table. They actually took their best naps from about age 2 to age 3 -- it was only after age 3 that I even started to wonder if they might be able to go without naps.

However, if yours are staying awake till 10 even at their age, maybe they are ready...?

 

Since you have the day care schedule coming up soon, I would put them down for naps at the same time day care will and get them up after an hour if they're not asleep. If they are asleep, you could wake them after an hour or 1.5 hours. I wouldn''t stop putting them down for naps yet, but if they don't sleep I wouldn't fret. My DD is kind of similar in that she often doesn't fall asleep for her nap until 2:00 or 2:30 even when I put her down between 1:00 and 1:30. I just let her sleep, but some days I have to wake her up at 4:30 because she's still sleeping! Then she will take an extra half hour or so to fall asleep at night. Other days, I'll let her out of her room after an hour if I we have something to do later in the afternoon so she's not sleeping until 4:00. She can easily go a week straight with no nap and then back to napping every day for another week. I think she's on the verge of not needing her nap, but I want to continue putting her down so she stays on the same general schedule as DS who very much still needs a nap every day.

 

Update: Yesterday after my hellish night of hours of awake time from the girls I decided I don't care if they ever take a nap again! So I put them down for a nap at the regular 12pm time without their sleepsacks and I started to go about my business doing the dishes and other loud chores.
These things are HUGE for me...I never make a peep and no sleepsacks...that's just crazy talk! I also woke them up at 1:30 instead of 2:00...(one DD never slept) and...7PM to 7AM not a peep!!! It was wonderful. I'm not sure how they will behave the rest of the week...I'm sure they will have a transition period...but I really think the long naps at this age are taking away from their night sleep. GL!

 

:yahoo: I hope you found what is going to work for you guys! I think the key is just not to sweat it. Put 'em in bed, let them do what they will, and then get 'em out an hour or so later.

 

I agree with the PP who said to just try putting them down at the time they'll be napping at daycare and if they sleep, they sleep, if they don't they don't.
In our house, DS1 started to end his naps around age 2, napped on and off for about 6 months, and then pretty much stopped at 2.5. DS2 was still napping about every other day (I separated them for naps until they hit about 2.5) but on the days he DID nap bedtime was AWFUL and it took him forever to fall asleep. I ended up putting them back in the same room and calling nap time "quiet time". They still lie in their beds for an hour to and hour and a half every day, but instead of sleeping, they listen to books on CD/read books/play quietly. Well, generally it's "quiet" with some screamy days thrown in to keep me on my toes.
Try not to stress too much about it... bedtime is WAY easier when the naps stop (mine are in bed asleep by 7 pretty much every day... whooot!)

 

My older 2 kids gave up naps around 2-2.5 yrs of age, similar situation, it would take forever to get them to nap, and then even longer to get them to bed at night. When we finally stopped naps, they started sleeping 12-13 hrs at night instead and we still do an afternoon "rest" time, where they have to sit and watch a movie (now it's because the twins are napping, but when they were 3-4 yrs old it was because they needed that break from being busy!).

 

My two are turning 5 this Fall

We still do 'rest time' for an hour or so every day. I had one DD nap daily until 4.25 adn now naps once or twice a week, her sister gave up napping at 3.5. THey are in different room and sit on a bed reading, playing w/ stuffed animals etc for an hour. They are in bed at 7 (asleep by 8) and up between 6 & 7 am. This is the schedule since they were 2. So night sleep stayed the same and they dropped daytime sleep as they needed less (obviously one needs more sleep than the other).

 

Emilie stopped napping at 3y3m and that was because I had to stop her naps because if she napped she was not falling asleep at night until 10pm. Once I gave up naps for her then, she was out by 8pm (totally worth it). :good: Trevor stopped napping on his own at 3y7m.

 

I can't remember exactly, but around 2.5 or 3. They were taking hours to go to sleep at night, so we took them away. However, there are days when they still need one. I don't push it, but if they happen to lay down on the couch and fall asleep, so be it. As a matter of fact, Allison did that today...probably because she was up at 6:15 this morning..ugh! Some weeks they may nap maybe one, at the most two, days a week; some weeks they nap none, it just depends on what's going on.

 

this past month or so hasn't been the best for us, and just this week I told the nanny to wake them up closer to 3p or 3:30p... they were sleeping from about 1p to 4p... and then they were fighting the 7:30p bedtime.

I know that its time for some type of change they they are (1) waking at night and/or (2) fighting going to sleep/bedtime.

our bedtime routine has been horrible... trying to get them in PJs and sleepsacks was the worst! anyway, tonight was a dream!! not sure if it was a fluke, but they did wake closer to 3:15p and I got them in bed by 7:15p... and wow! they just put their own diapers on and PJs just about!!

anyway, not sure when they will give naps up totally, but I am hoping that moving them earlier a bit will help and give them more awake time until bedtime. I like the idea of quiet time whether or not they sleep...

good luck!

 

Thanks so much everyone for your wonderful replies. We will definitely continue with the "quiet/nap" time regardless (or irregardless for those of you who like that, LOL :laughing and hopefully they will sleep when they need it and just rest on the days that they don't sleep. You guys all gave some great advice! I am hopeful that when the early mornings begin again the nap and bedtime issues will resolve. I'm hoping to start getting them up by 6:45 or so all of next week. :cry: <------- That is me crying because I'm really going to miss sleeping in until 8:00! :laughing:

 

We just gave up the nap last week, and my kiddos are 3 years, 2 months old. It got to the point where DS was giving me such a hard time going to bed at night that I HAD to do it. My kids need to be up at 7:00am and with the nap, Evan was falling asleep at night around 10:30-11pm. He was exhausted in the morning. So now, the bedtime is 7:30-8pm and he is out in 5 minutes or less! You see, he was taking forever to fall asleep during a nap and when he finally did, the afternoon was practically turning into evening and messing up the bedtime. It was just best to get rid of the whole thing and be done with it. He used to go in for a nap at 1:30pm and mess around until 3pm and crash and then I'd have to go in there and get him up 4pm and he'd be....very unpleasant about it, to say the least. Sometimes he'd fight me on naps too and cry and whine wanting to get out of the room. I was tired of the constant battle, so last Monday, I said to he** with it, naps are over. It was becoming an annoying part of the day and a hassle for everyone involved. It's been a great decision! (Now, DD would have gladly still napped, but she can go either way so she followed suit of course!)

Your guys are still a little young, but not unheard of to forgo naps. I know a lot of kids who didn't nap past 2 or 2.5 years old!