We had been doing great on one nap a day, but then on Friday Superman came down with a cold. He ended up taking a short second nap that day. Saturday he did one nap (and did fabulously), but Sunday, Monday, and today he has taken two naps. Today's second nap is questionable. He is more resting than he is sleeping at this point (25 minutes into the nap). I almost didn't put him down, but he rubbed his eyes a little bit and seemed okay with the idea of putting him down (although if he put up a fight I probably would have just been more convinced that he needed a nap, so I suppose that is silly for me to list as a reason for putting him down). I figure he will either sleep, rest or play and if he ends up playing, I will just go up and get him so he can play down here.
So all the people that told me that it is a process dropping a nap were right...especially when a cold is involved. We will get there someday and until then...I will gladly embrace two naps a day!
Showing posts with label nap. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nap. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Day 2: Nap Transition
Sorry I didn't get a post up yesterday. My husband and I went to the Blazer game last night and I was exhausted when we got home.
Yesterday went really well in the big scheme of things...overall I just want a well rested kid that is happy when he is awake and yesterday that is what I got. In order for him to get there though? He needed a second nap.
Here is our day yesterday:
Wake up on Tuesday: 7:00-7:20ish
First Nap: 11:20am-12:40pm
Second Nap: 3:00-4:40PM
Bedtime: 7:00PM
At about 2:30 yesterday he started to get a bit cranky. I gave him a snack and he started to rub his eyes. I decided to try and put him down for a nap and he went down SO EASILY! It isn't like I thought he would just drop his second nap all together, I was just surprised since he hadn't had a really good afternoon nap in a while (normally he spends 45 minutes of it playing and then crashes for about 30 minutes). His mood the rest of the day was pretty good. He was a little upset when we left him with the sitter, but she said he calmed down relatively quickly. She ended up putting him down about 15 minutes earlier than Monday night because he was starting to get tired (love that she was that attentive to him!).
So today we have plans in the afternoon so we shall see how it goes. He has been asleep for almost an hour now so if he can get another 30 minutes he might be good for the afternoon. Stay tuned!!
Yesterday went really well in the big scheme of things...overall I just want a well rested kid that is happy when he is awake and yesterday that is what I got. In order for him to get there though? He needed a second nap.
Here is our day yesterday:
Wake up on Tuesday: 7:00-7:20ish
First Nap: 11:20am-12:40pm
Second Nap: 3:00-4:40PM
Bedtime: 7:00PM
At about 2:30 yesterday he started to get a bit cranky. I gave him a snack and he started to rub his eyes. I decided to try and put him down for a nap and he went down SO EASILY! It isn't like I thought he would just drop his second nap all together, I was just surprised since he hadn't had a really good afternoon nap in a while (normally he spends 45 minutes of it playing and then crashes for about 30 minutes). His mood the rest of the day was pretty good. He was a little upset when we left him with the sitter, but she said he calmed down relatively quickly. She ended up putting him down about 15 minutes earlier than Monday night because he was starting to get tired (love that she was that attentive to him!).
So today we have plans in the afternoon so we shall see how it goes. He has been asleep for almost an hour now so if he can get another 30 minutes he might be good for the afternoon. Stay tuned!!
Monday, March 14, 2011
Using DST To Our Advantage
So we decided to use day light savings to our advantage (even though I am not terribly thrilled with the idea).
Superman's afternoon naps have been hit or miss as I have mentioned before. I suspected he was getting ready to drop the afternoon nap and (despite my desire to keep two naps for as long as possible) just needed to figure out a plan to get him into the new schedule. Enter daylight savings time!
So here we are dropping the afternoon nap all together and moving his bedtime earlier (or rather to the new 7pm) to compensate. Maybe it would be easier if I showed you the two schedules.
Old Schedule (before time change):
Wake up: 6:20-6:40AM
First nap: 10:30-11AM to about 12:30-1:00PM
Second nap: 3-3:30PM to about 4:30-5 PM
Bedtime: 7pm
New schedule:
Wake Up: 7:00-7:30 (hopefully)
Nap: 11:30-12 to ????? (hopefully at least 2 hours)
Bedtime: 7pm (hopefully)
Today worked pretty well. He slept for about an hour and a half when he went down at 11:30am. He was really in a good mood most of the afternoon, except when he was hungry and needed a snack. The only time he really struggled was at the end of the evening. Our plan was to put him to be at 7:30PM since he went to bed at 8PM yesterday (thanks to DST). Well he was tired and we took a toy away from him causing him to throw a huge tantrum. Then my husband went to get him ready for bed and he really just wanted me. I finally went up and did the rest of the night time routine and he was in bed about 7:30. He cried off and on for the first hour, but he then fell fast asleep. Hopefully it is a restful night and he sleeps in!!
I will update you all on how he does tomorrow!! In the meantime, how did you go about dropping a nap with your child? What bumps did you hit along the way?
Superman's afternoon naps have been hit or miss as I have mentioned before. I suspected he was getting ready to drop the afternoon nap and (despite my desire to keep two naps for as long as possible) just needed to figure out a plan to get him into the new schedule. Enter daylight savings time!
So here we are dropping the afternoon nap all together and moving his bedtime earlier (or rather to the new 7pm) to compensate. Maybe it would be easier if I showed you the two schedules.
Old Schedule (before time change):
Wake up: 6:20-6:40AM
First nap: 10:30-11AM to about 12:30-1:00PM
Second nap: 3-3:30PM to about 4:30-5 PM
Bedtime: 7pm
New schedule:
Wake Up: 7:00-7:30 (hopefully)
Nap: 11:30-12 to ????? (hopefully at least 2 hours)
Bedtime: 7pm (hopefully)
Today worked pretty well. He slept for about an hour and a half when he went down at 11:30am. He was really in a good mood most of the afternoon, except when he was hungry and needed a snack. The only time he really struggled was at the end of the evening. Our plan was to put him to be at 7:30PM since he went to bed at 8PM yesterday (thanks to DST). Well he was tired and we took a toy away from him causing him to throw a huge tantrum. Then my husband went to get him ready for bed and he really just wanted me. I finally went up and did the rest of the night time routine and he was in bed about 7:30. He cried off and on for the first hour, but he then fell fast asleep. Hopefully it is a restful night and he sleeps in!!
I will update you all on how he does tomorrow!! In the meantime, how did you go about dropping a nap with your child? What bumps did you hit along the way?
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Thrown
Yesterday I posted on Facebook that during his nap, Superman was not actually sleeping, but rather crying because he had thrown his two stuffed animals and his blanket to the floor. I wanted reassurance that I shouldn't go in and retrieve them. Actually I really only wanted to retrieve the blanket, but that is neither here nor there. Of course, everyone told me to hold strong and that going in would merely reinforce the throwing of items out of the crib.
The problem is that the throwing of items isn't isolated to his crib.
When I put him in his "baby corral" to play for about 30 minutes every morning, he throws his toys out. He doesn't cry when they are out of the corral, unless he throws his blanket. Then he tries to reach for it and cries. I don't usually put the toys back in, but will hand him his blanket again (and he doesn't throw it again during that duration).
Then when he is in his high chair...watch out! He will be eating away and the moment he decides he is done with a food, he starts dropping it off the side of his tray. This is a real issue considering we have two dogs that are ready to pounce on any piece of food that hits the floor. We have tried telling him no, but he doesn't seem to understand or doesn't care since there isn't anything that happens if we say no and he does it again. Do almost one year olds even understand "no"? In the end we end up taking the food away and if he reaches for it, we give him it to him piece by piece, but sometimes he eats it and sometimes he takes it out of his mouth and tries to throw it on the floor. It is really frustrating.
So...HELP!! What do I do? Are these situations even connected or are there different things going on? What would you do?
Thanks!
The problem is that the throwing of items isn't isolated to his crib.
When I put him in his "baby corral" to play for about 30 minutes every morning, he throws his toys out. He doesn't cry when they are out of the corral, unless he throws his blanket. Then he tries to reach for it and cries. I don't usually put the toys back in, but will hand him his blanket again (and he doesn't throw it again during that duration).
Then when he is in his high chair...watch out! He will be eating away and the moment he decides he is done with a food, he starts dropping it off the side of his tray. This is a real issue considering we have two dogs that are ready to pounce on any piece of food that hits the floor. We have tried telling him no, but he doesn't seem to understand or doesn't care since there isn't anything that happens if we say no and he does it again. Do almost one year olds even understand "no"? In the end we end up taking the food away and if he reaches for it, we give him it to him piece by piece, but sometimes he eats it and sometimes he takes it out of his mouth and tries to throw it on the floor. It is really frustrating.
So...HELP!! What do I do? Are these situations even connected or are there different things going on? What would you do?
Thanks!
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Change
Okay, so I have seen all of your Facebook updates and your tweets....you are in the same boat as I am and it makes me really wonder. Why are so many people are having issues right now with their little one sleeping, teething, developing separation anxiety, a combination of these things, or all of them at once? What is it about the seasons changing that does this? Is it because the sun is rising later and setting sooner or that it is cooler outside? Or could it be that it has nothing to do with the seasons and we are all just magically dealing with these things at once. I know it can't be because all the babies are the same age because they range from 8 months to over a year.
Whatever the reason, it sucks. It means that we have to pull out our bag of tricks to keep our little ones happy and (in the case of the sleeping) revisit the strategies we have chosen and come up with a plan to correct this problem.
In our house we have been dealing with all of it...at once...and I may lose my mind before it is all over. It began several weeks ago when he got his first cold and then my in-laws were here and then we had to go to NY for 3 days and then he got a rash on his face that made me think he might have Fifths Disease and then he started teething molars like a banshee. Somewhere in there he developed separation anxiety...but not the "stranger danger" kind of anxiety. It was the "don't leave the room or go where I can't see you, oh and pick me up now or I will scream my head off and don't even think about putting me down for a nap" anxiety. Fun times.
So as soon as we returned from NY I knew we needed to get back into our usual routine in order to fix some of the issues we were seeing regarding sleep. After a few days of that not working, I brought him to the doctor only to be told that he is probably teething, he might have Fifth Disease but it doesn't matter because he isn't contagious and there is nothing we can do for it even though he might be cranky, but more likely than not most of his "issues" have to deal with the fact that this is around the age that babies learn that if they cry, they get attention.
So what does one do about all this? How do you let your little one know that you love them, do anything for them, and want to comfort them whenever they need it, at the same time teach them that they can in fact be on their own once and a while and be okay? I think the answer is different for everyone. You have to do what you feel most comfortable with, but whatever you decide, you have to be consistent.
My husband and I talked and if we knew that he was fed, had a clean diaper and wasn't in any pain or discomfort, we were okay with letting him cry it out a little bit. It has taken a little bit of time and tears (both Superman's and mine) but I think we might have our night time sleep back on track. The nap stuff is hit or miss each day. On Saturday he napped like a champ. On Sunday he didn't nap at all (cried in crib for 1 hour each time). On Monday he napped in the morning fantastically, but when it came time for his afternoon nap he was so wide awake I never put him down for it. Today he didn't sleep (read: cried for 1 hour) and fell asleep on the way home from Gymboree (despite me trying every trick in the book to keep him awake) and so he was wide awake when I tried to get him ready for the afternoon nap. Right now? He is quietly playing on his own as I finish this post. Thank goodness he is great at entertaining himself for 20 minutes or so 2-3 times a day. It is the only thing keeping me sane on the days he won't nap. (And now that 20 minutes is up and he wants me so this post will be finished later..)
I am back and have great news on today's nap front. He needed a new diaper and I was changing him, he rubbed his eyes. Ever an opportunist, I threw a sleep sack on him, nursed him and put him into his crib. He was awake when I did that so he began to cry, but 4 minutes later? He was asleep!!
I think that being a parent has taught me so many things, but my most recent lesson is that nothing stays the same for long. Things might be bad at the moment, but they will improve and more likely than not, they will improve sooner than you think they will. Last week I was asking myself if Superman would ever nap again...seriously. I honestly was worried that he might just learn to soothe himself during naptime. But here we are a week later and although things are perfect yet, they are looking up.
I hope that all of you that are fighting with sleep, teething, separation anxiety, or anything else are hanging in there. Remember, things will change eventually...their teeth will come in, they will learn that you are there for them when they need you and begin to be okay on their own, and with all of that- sleep will come. (I say this for me as much as I say it for you.)
Hugs to all of you!
TTFN,
Mommy C
Whatever the reason, it sucks. It means that we have to pull out our bag of tricks to keep our little ones happy and (in the case of the sleeping) revisit the strategies we have chosen and come up with a plan to correct this problem.
In our house we have been dealing with all of it...at once...and I may lose my mind before it is all over. It began several weeks ago when he got his first cold and then my in-laws were here and then we had to go to NY for 3 days and then he got a rash on his face that made me think he might have Fifths Disease and then he started teething molars like a banshee. Somewhere in there he developed separation anxiety...but not the "stranger danger" kind of anxiety. It was the "don't leave the room or go where I can't see you, oh and pick me up now or I will scream my head off and don't even think about putting me down for a nap" anxiety. Fun times.
So as soon as we returned from NY I knew we needed to get back into our usual routine in order to fix some of the issues we were seeing regarding sleep. After a few days of that not working, I brought him to the doctor only to be told that he is probably teething, he might have Fifth Disease but it doesn't matter because he isn't contagious and there is nothing we can do for it even though he might be cranky, but more likely than not most of his "issues" have to deal with the fact that this is around the age that babies learn that if they cry, they get attention.
So what does one do about all this? How do you let your little one know that you love them, do anything for them, and want to comfort them whenever they need it, at the same time teach them that they can in fact be on their own once and a while and be okay? I think the answer is different for everyone. You have to do what you feel most comfortable with, but whatever you decide, you have to be consistent.
My husband and I talked and if we knew that he was fed, had a clean diaper and wasn't in any pain or discomfort, we were okay with letting him cry it out a little bit. It has taken a little bit of time and tears (both Superman's and mine) but I think we might have our night time sleep back on track. The nap stuff is hit or miss each day. On Saturday he napped like a champ. On Sunday he didn't nap at all (cried in crib for 1 hour each time). On Monday he napped in the morning fantastically, but when it came time for his afternoon nap he was so wide awake I never put him down for it. Today he didn't sleep (read: cried for 1 hour) and fell asleep on the way home from Gymboree (despite me trying every trick in the book to keep him awake) and so he was wide awake when I tried to get him ready for the afternoon nap. Right now? He is quietly playing on his own as I finish this post. Thank goodness he is great at entertaining himself for 20 minutes or so 2-3 times a day. It is the only thing keeping me sane on the days he won't nap. (And now that 20 minutes is up and he wants me so this post will be finished later..)
I am back and have great news on today's nap front. He needed a new diaper and I was changing him, he rubbed his eyes. Ever an opportunist, I threw a sleep sack on him, nursed him and put him into his crib. He was awake when I did that so he began to cry, but 4 minutes later? He was asleep!!
I think that being a parent has taught me so many things, but my most recent lesson is that nothing stays the same for long. Things might be bad at the moment, but they will improve and more likely than not, they will improve sooner than you think they will. Last week I was asking myself if Superman would ever nap again...seriously. I honestly was worried that he might just learn to soothe himself during naptime. But here we are a week later and although things are perfect yet, they are looking up.
I hope that all of you that are fighting with sleep, teething, separation anxiety, or anything else are hanging in there. Remember, things will change eventually...their teeth will come in, they will learn that you are there for them when they need you and begin to be okay on their own, and with all of that- sleep will come. (I say this for me as much as I say it for you.)
Hugs to all of you!
TTFN,
Mommy C
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