Nap time...help me!!!

Suki - posted on 08/17/2009

ah one other thing to try is if you sleep with a soft toy or cloth you can put in her cot when she sleeps she'll be able to smell you even if you're not there.

Suki - posted on 08/17/2009

Hi, I have a 3 month old who naps pretty well anywhere. It sounds a little like she almost thinks the morning is still the middle of the night. I would recommend you try and wake her at 7 rather than letting her sleep till 9, then actually put her back down 8:30-9 and let her settle herself, she should be tired enough to do this (or maybe with a little rocking to start with for your own sanity) then wake her again at 10-10:30 she should then want to nap again at 12 for 2 hours. Then again at 4 she should be tired again. It maybe painful to start with but you might just have to persevere for 3-4 days to see if she takes to it. Good luck. I have 2 kids and they both seem to have been okay nappy following this kid of routine.

Danita - posted on 08/14/2009

Hi Elicia,

What worked for me was I was given the teddy bear that has the heartbeat and sleep time music.
The bear; I would put back aways from his face and turn it up fairly loud then Turn the music on just a little lower than the teddy.

The other thing is I have a pack and play he would lay in that during the day ( at nap time) and the crib at night ( with just the music).
You can get the CD at any Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target etc. If you do not have the teddy it was a gift to me ( money is tough now days for everyone ) try just the music that is a good investment. My son is now 15 mon and it still works at night and they play it at daycare for nap time.
Hope this helps good luck
Danita

Bec - posted on 08/14/2009

Quoting Elicia:

Nap time...help me!!!

Hi,

I can not get my 4 mo. old daughter to nap by herself, or in her crib. She will sleep from around 11pm till 9am-ish eat, then nap till noon-ish and eat and will be up the REST OF THE DAY!!! It wouldn't be so bad, if she didn't get insanely cranky around the 5-7pm mark.

The only way I can get her take an afternoon nap is to put her in our bed and lay there with her, the ENTIRE TIME, as she KNOWS, within 5 minutes that I have got up.

I can't seem to find any answers on the web about getting your baby to nap (just how to sleep through the night and we've got that part covered).

Any advice would be great :0)

Hi Elicia,

With both my kids if they were restless or woke everytime i moved away, i would lay them in there cot with a rolled up a blanket next to them and layed my top that i was wearing over it so they could still smell me, my grandmother told me to do it and i don't know if it was just luck but it worked everytime.

Good luck though

Brooke - posted on 08/13/2009

I love the Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child Book recommended a few posts above. It says that you should form nap times around 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. (give or take an hour) and look for "sleep signs" as cues to know when your baby is tired. You should also be putting them to bed around 7 p.m. and up by 7 a.m. This book has TOTALLY worked for us. Our son is 11 months now and since six months (when we felt he was ready for a sleep schedule) has slept from 6:30 or 7 p.m. to at least 6 or 7 a.m. with two naps in the day. We put him into bed when he's still awake once he looks sleepy and turn on the white noise and walk away.

Meghan - posted on 08/13/2009

you should be trying to get her to go to bed around7 or 8 and waking up early a good schedule is to be up by 8am nape from 9:45-11 up for a bit and for lunch and then down again from 2-3:30 or even 1-3 she is getting so much sleep in the morning hours of course she doesnt want to take a nap... and she is obviously cranky by 7 b/c that is what time she should be going to bed.. as far as not napping i feel that letting them cry it out is the best... let them her cry fo 15 minutes if she doesnt stop go in and comfort her for 5 minutes and then do it again eventually she willget on the schedule but it wont happen over night.. it takes 2 weeks of doing something repeatedly to form a habbit so stick with it .. it will be worth it...

Rebekah - posted on 08/10/2009

I would say that you could enjoy the nap time, cause I would love one myself. LOL.



Seriously, maybe you should take a teddy bear with you and then leave the teddy bear behind for her. Sometimes a lovey can help. Or you can decide to keep her up and then put her to bed at an earlier hour? I would say that surviving the cranky bit by providing extra fun activities might bring her bedtime to 9pm. You could get more reall rest that way too.



How did you get her to sleep through the night? Maybe the clue is there! I draw the shades so its dark, turn on his water fountain to block out the noises of the house, and give him his 2 binkies, 2 blankies, and bear, just like at bedtime and that seems to help.

Christine - posted on 08/10/2009

CD player with soft music works as well. Some kids just cannot handle a quiet room or hearing sounds from the other room. I have one CD that I only used at Nap and Bedtime and even now (9 years old) still know that when that Ocean sounds with instrumental is on it is quiet time or nap time. Make sure what ever routine you decide to do that you are consistent no matter if you are visiting relatives or away from home. That CD was one of the first things that went into the diaper bag if I knew we were going to be out around nap time. I tried not to schedule things around that time but sometimes we have to.

Elicia - posted on 08/10/2009

Thanks, I will look for that book

Shay - posted on 08/10/2009

My little girl had a hard time getting into a nap/sleep routine. The best soultion is Dr. Weissbluths book "heathy sleep habbits happy child" You can get it really at any good book store. It has great problem solvers by age group and it help explains sleep issues really well! GOOD LUCK! I have soo been there!

Elicia - posted on 08/10/2009

Thanks :0) Yes sometimes "down time is just as good as a nap.

Cathralynn - posted on 08/10/2009

Yup thats what I did. I readbooks to help my conrol freak nature. Then I paid attention to my baby. I felt that I should meet all her needs and not let her cry until six mo. She Figured out all the nite time stuff on her own so I knew she was getting a good ten hrs of sleep at night so I hoped for at least two naps at least an hour each in the day. I noticed she was getting sleepy or crashing by 9:30 and 2:30 each day. So I said her nap times are 9 and 2. At those times I'd make sure I was at home. My daughter started putting herself to sleep on her own at night by then so I knew she could do it. It was matter of my daughter knowing it was nap time. So I fed her a bottle, not letting her fall asleep on it, and then rocked her unless she fought, until she was calm but not asleep. I put her in the crib with a sound machine playing ocean sounds, we do the same thing for bedtime. The room was dark as much as the daytime and blinds would allow. I told her it was nap time and kissed her and left, shutting the door. I would give her ten min of crying then go back in and rub her back make her comfy and tell her it was naptime and leave again. Once I started I didn't give in til she went to sleep. One time it took an hour. I won't lie my daughter was stubborn and this took weeks, offset by my MIL holding her for daily naps at her house which I hated. But now she's 14mo and I lay her down wide awake and she takes naps easily. It helps cause sometimes she's not sleepy but will lie quietly for an hour! And then I know she got whatever rest she needed. I also have soft toys and books in my daughter's crib. What I require of her is just quiet restfull time but often she plays herself to sleep. This is just what I tried don't know if its for everyone. Good luck!

Elicia - posted on 08/10/2009

Ok, so you're saying to wait till 6 mos. or so and then work on the schedule that "forms on it's own"? And wait till at least then to "let her cry". I hate to hear her cry, it just breaks my heart, but I do understand that sometimes it's necessary....sort of, lol.

Cathralynn - posted on 08/10/2009

Oh and I rwad the baby 411 book. It covered everything not just sleeping but I think it boils down to total hours of sleep they need per day including naps and routines. You try to have naps at the same time every day and in the same place they sleep at night. We have a sound machine we use at night and for naps and let my daughter put herself to sleep, not using bottles or pacifiers. Unfortunately this meant a lil bit of crying it out but worked for us cause I wanted it fixed before she could stand up and make it worse!

Cathralynn - posted on 08/10/2009

She's four months old and still a baby, let her work on it herself for a couple more months. I got thru this phase by wearing my daughter in a sling during times I new she was sleepy but I didn't want to hold her. I also used a swing a lot cause I didn't want my daughter to learn to nap only when being held. Around six mo I kinda of knew her schedule and started working on getting my daughter to nap in cribs at nap times, that was a rough phase for us too tho. Good luck!

Elicia - posted on 08/10/2009

Oh, I forgot to say that she sleeps in her crib at night all by herself. But in the mornings she's in our bed for her morning naps.