Naptime dammit!

[wrenb]

Two days in a row now Danny has resisted naps. He slept/nursed/dozed from 11-12 but wouldn't let me unlatch him. Yesterday we missed the afternoon nap window while running errands. Today I took him to the pool after lunch and then we came home for bath and nap. I've been trying to get him down for a nap for over an hour now. I am very frustrated.

Frustration is compounded by having just read Sleepless In America. I already knew naps were important but it reminded me of how much more pleasant Danny is when he's well-rested. We've been working on bedtime and Danny is consistently going to sleep around 8:15-8:30. Up at 6:30 means he gets 10 hours of sleep at night. So he needs 2-3 hours of nap. Not 45 minutes!

I've done a full bedtime routine for this afternoon's nap and he's still not asleep. Argh.

ETA: Finally I gave up and back-wrapped him and just got on with my housework. Less than ten minutes later he was out like a light. I wonder if that would have worked at 2:45 rather than at 4:15?

Comments

[ukelele.livejournal.com]

Maybe time to reevaluate the naptime routine? Somewhere late in V's first year I got so frustrated when she wouldn't nap after all manner of soothing that I just left her there, went to another room, and counted to 60. She was asleep by 45. (Which would have felt like eighty years if I had not been counting, no doubt.) Ever since then, she puts herself down for a nap (well, these days she doesn't nap necessarily, but she's a lot more likely to if I'm not even in the house -- I am apparently the force that keeps her awake).

Not saying that necessarily my solution is your solution, but it may be that his optimal nap solution is not what you're used to doing, or used to be but has changed. (it's time for...science!)

[ukelele.livejournal.com]

(also, I feel your pain. the days when V doesn't nap = cranky death for both of us.)

[wrenb.livejournal.com]

It's a measure of my frustration that AP-me actually tried walking away. I emptied the dishwasher and drank a glass of water. But the crying ramped up and when I peeked in Danny had escaped the crib. Someday he'll be able to go to sleep solo. That'll be really nice.

[zathrus.livejournal.com]

I second ukelele's suggestion, with the addition that kids go through phases, and sometimes, switching from one phase to another is particularly tricky. You're smart and willing to try things; you will find a solution to this one; this too shall pass. But I feel for you; the transition and search for solution is painful.

Also, for my own benefit: I'm becoming more and more convinced that sleep is the next major issue I need to research for T. What types of solutions does the author of Sleepless in America suggest? We have a bedtime routine; we've tried sending him to bed (somewhat) earlier, we've tried sending him back to bed in the morning when he stumbles downstairs yawning, and while he does tend to sleep a bit longer on those days when everyone else sleeps in so that the house is quieter, it simply isn't feasible to never have anyone stir before he does, and sometimes it doesn't matter anyway because he's up before anyone else. And truthfully, he's always fought sleep, and has never slept as much as the average kid his age. (I pointed this out to Chris; he countered with, "But as a newborn, he'd sleep fifteen hours a day!" "Yeah, at an age when most kids are sleeping twenty hours a day." "Ah. Point. OK, you win.") So the question is, will Sleepless in America be of any help to me, or do I have a child who's weird enough that I need to look somewhere else? (Sleepless in America was going to be the starting point in my search for answers, so I'm delighted to find that someone I know has read it before me and can answer this question!)

Newt

[wrenb.livejournal.com]

Sleepless In America ought to work for you because she's got suggestions for each temperament that she writes about in Spirited Child. The author is big on routine, but when you're talking about sleep, that's probably right. She also talks about customizing it for your child and your family, there's no one right way. She has a lot for kids your D's age but not so many my D's age.

I really need a more literal book. Sleepless In America and The No-Cry Sleep Solution seem to have a lot of suggestions but aren't great when you've got a tired-wired kid bouncing off the walls.