To deal with the woes
of nap transitioning, Parents suggested making the change gradually.
In our last post, we'll talk about the timing
of nap transitions.
Not exact matches
I had just received the Baby Einstein World Music DVD (which launches March 31st 2009) and intriguingly read that one
of the suggested viewing times to be «just after a
nap to
transition to playtime ``.
Transitioning from wake Tims to
nap time requires at least 10 mins
of crying while I hold him and rock him.
Ultimately, like all aspects
of the big kid bed
transition, successful
nap times come down to consistency.
Eventually (after the age
of 12 months), your little one will
transition to taking one
nap per day, usually in the afternoon.
If your child does this for about two weeks consistently and it's throwing off the timing
of naps, it may be time to
transition.
Here are just some
of the things you can work on: Frequent night wakings,
nap troubles, sleep schedules, eliminating bad sleep habits, crib
transition, pacifier weaning, and finally getting your baby to sleep through the night.
8 month old boy (who's in
transition from nursing to formula & solids) 8 am - wake, diaper, nurse for 5 - ish minutes 8:30 am - breakfast in high chair (4 oz bottle + solids) 9:00 - 9:45 ish - play time (independent play then reading books & getting ready for
nap) 10am - 11:30 am - morning
nap 11:30 - 12 pm - wake up from
nap, diaper, get dressed for day, etc ** if we go out to run errands this is the time we leave, and and we will stop to eat lunch while out 12 pm - lunch (8oz bottle + solids) 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm - play time 1:30 pm - 3:30 pm - afternoon
nap 3:30 - 4 pm - play time 4 pm - eat (8oz bottle + snack such as cheerios) 4:30 pm - 6:30 pm - play time (if he woke up early from afternoon
nap, then sometimes he still takes a short cat
nap during this timeframe 6:30 pm - dinner with family (solids in high chair) 7:00 pm - outdoor play time (baby swing, take a walk, etc) 8:00 pm - start
of an 8oz bottle 8:30 pm - bath time, read books, finish rest
of bottle 9:00 pm - bedtime.
If your little one has gotten in the habit
of falling asleep in their car seat instead
of crib, focus on creating a routine and schedule, and then try to
transition from car
naps to ones at home.
(I
transitioned her out
of the swing when she started waking in the night again by having her
nap in her crib and once she got comfortable with that made the switch.
6:30 am - up for the day 7:00 am - breakfast 9:00 am - snack 9:45 am - 10:45 am -
nap # 1 [to hold off the
transition until this point, it's beneficial to cap this
nap at 1 hour] 12:00 pm - lunch 2:00 pm - snack 2:45 pm - 3:45 pm -
nap # 2 [a full 4 hours
of awake time between
naps 1 and 2] 5:30 pm - dinner 6:30 pm - bedtime routine [should not include any milk, last milk with dinner!]
Not at all coincidentally, we can see that all
of these «regressions» occur around the same time as
nap transitions (the 4 - 3
nap transition around 4 months, the 3 - 2
nap transition around 9 months, and the 2 - 1
nap transition around 18 months).
It's worth noting that if your child is resisting
naps and near a «
transition age» (one where your baby will soon be dropping a
nap or the window
of wakefulness increases), you may want to adjust naptimes to see if your baby is more willing to
nap at a different time in the morning, or perhaps a little later in the afternoon.
«If you see consistent changes in your toddler's sleep pattern for about two weeks, it may be time to
transition to one
nap,» says Kim West, a children's sleep therapist and coauthor
of The Sleep Lady's Good Night, Sleep Tight.
If your child exhibits just one
of these sleeping traits for as little as 5 days in a row, it's time to
transition to one
nap.
Upon completion
of the plan and our two weeks together, I will give you a guide on topics including information on how to deal with illness, travel,
nap transitions, moving from crib to bed, and dealing with Day Light Saving.
Another thing to consider, says Waldburger, is that between the ages
of 1 and 2 many toddlers
transition to one
nap a day.
-LSB-...] Be aware
of sleep cycles and be on hand to help
transition to the next period
of sleep in daytime
naps (by rocking, etc. if needed).»
Since there is a wide range
of what's normal, it's important to study each child's behavior to see when he is ready to
transition to one
nap a day.
If he's too drowsy, he won't know how to get himself back to sleep when he's more alert — including at 5:00 a.m. Remember to keep bed time early during the
transition from 2
naps to 1 and be consistent about not getting your toddler out
of the crib until 6:00 a.m.!
As you can see your son is a little younger than the average but it sounds like he does have a few
of the signs
of needing to
transition to one
nap.
His bedroom and bigger cot was used at
nap times, to get him used to the feel
of the room so the
transition wasn't that hard.
Most often there will be a
transition period
of several months when your child clearly needs two
naps on some days, but one
nap on others.
One
of the easiest ways we can hold off a
nap transition is by waking baby in the morning and / or from
naps in order to keep the last
nap for as long as we can.
The
transition of moving from two
naps to one and then finally giving up a
nap altogether can be very difficult.
Once your child reaches the age
of two, he or she is probably ready to
transition to one
nap daily.
There is a chance while you're going through the
transition phase
of no more
napping that bedtimes may be affected, so adjust as necessary and know that bedtime patterns will begin to pan out again once the
naps are no more.
I am thankful that littlepixie loves to walk everywhere and I'm thankful that she'll
nap in the stroller, these things definitely make the gradual
transition from «babywearing» to «running after crazy toddler» easier but a little part
of me misses carrying her everywhere and that part
of me wants a sticker for my stroller that says «Babywearer in Disguise ``!
I do not understand why she can not
transition to the next sleep cycle after the first
nap of the day.
«When [
naps] start getting longer than an hour it may be hard to
transition out
of sleep, resulting in grogginess,» she explains.
The tundra vegetation
of the last glacial epoch, for example, provides predominantly
NAP, and the
transition to forest vegetation shows the climatic amelioration that heralded the beginning
of the Holocene.