Is It Possible That My Almost-3 Year Old Is Done With Nap?

[spud912]

Bed time has been a real struggle for us. Her bedtime is 8:00 pm, but she usually doesn't actually fall to sleep until around 10:00 pm. She doesn't really leave her room so much anymore (she used to get up and have us put her back to bed about 7 times in a 2 hour period). The only thing she has left in her room is her blankets, a few stuffed animals, and one book (everything else has been removed or blocked off because she would play with everything for hours). Now she generally spends the time pooping in her diaper, reading her book, and otherwise just laying in bed talking.

We have a set routine every night of the week which includes dinner, bath, family time (which is usually fairly active), we wind down the activities and then story time.

As far as nap time, she sleeps 1-3 pm, although it usually takes her a good 30 minutes to fall asleep and sometimes wakes up 15-30 minutes early. On the very few occasions she has skipped nap (or she just doesn't end up sleeping during nap time), she will fall to sleep at bedtime within 30 minutes.

So her sleep right now is nap from 1:30 to 3:00 pm and sleeps 10:00 pm to 7:45 am (averaging around 11 hours of sleep total for the entire day). I would really prefer her to keep her nap because she tends to be somewhat loud and I don't want to have to entertain her for 2 hours, so any other suggestions would be great. I also can't really push her nap earlier in the day because everyone else is on that schedule and she would not sleep during all the activity.

[SilverSabre25]

It is possible, yes. My DD dropped her nap at two because even 30 minutes or less of sleep during the day had her up until 10, 11...even midnight . Her bedtime was usually 7:30 and I was hands-on trying to get her into bed from 7 PM on every night for two months, to the detriment of my schoolwork (I was attending university full-time), the housework, everything. It was awful. Then I quit letting her nap and like magic she was in bed around 5 or five thirty every night. That gradually latened over the next year until it was around 7:30 again.

I have the same issue--that she's somewhat loud. So, during everyone else's naptime she gets to watch a movie quietly on the couch. Not perfect, but it gets us through.

[Heidi]

My kids spent nap time playing in their rooms. Door closed. "Quiet time".

If she's loud, he's the deal:

You may stay up and play with your toys at nap time IF you are quiet. You will get ONE reminder. If you are not quiet, then you will have to come out and nap with your friends. If you do a GOOD job being quiet, mommy will read a story (or pick another activity) at the end of quiet time (a little 10-15 minute activity).

Would that work for you?

[melskids]

My younger son gave up his nap by 2.

Some of my daycare kiddos don't nap either.

We have special quiet time activities that ONLY come out at nap time. It's usually enough to keep them quietly entertained while the others sleep. If not, then they have to lay down on their mat. They don't want to do that, so they are pretty good about playing quietly.

[Kaddidle Care]

I stopped my son's napping at 3 because I was a SAHM that wanted him to go to bed by 8:00-8:30. He was like clock work - if he napped 2 hours, he'd go to sleep at 10:00 and frankly, by 8:00 I was tuckered out. He was and still is a very active child and I was no spring chicken.

I will tell you that it was rough for a while because he was used to that nap but he adjusted and I didn't have as much trouble getting him to go to sleep at a normal hour.

I don't know how you will do it with other children in the home napping though. If she is a quiet, obedient child then you can go for it. If she is a wild child happyface good luck!

[safechner]

You are lucky. My 11 years old daughter was the same issue when she was a little girl. When she was 18 months old and she wouldn't take a nap at all, she normally go to bed at 8:30pm and fell sleep all through until 8:30am. My daughter almost never sleep at nap time and she would stay up until 10pm to 11pm to get up at 7am everyday when she was 3 to 5 years old. I had concerned about that and I asked her doctor and she said there is nothing concerned about it and every kids are different. My daughter is very strong girl but I guess she is so weird... ::::

Now she is an 11 year old and she goes to bed at 9am and get up at 7am. However, she wouldn't go to sleep until 11:00pm to 11:30pm. I was surprised to see her not to have any grumpy or bad mood or anything like that since she was 18 months old. She is doing well in school.

[meganlavonnesmommy]

Yep, entirely possible. My son stopped napping at 2 1/2. I was devastated! I NEEDED him to nap. But he wouldnt. And if he did, he was a bear to get to sleep at night.
I decided I wanted the quiet time with my husband in the evening more than the break during the day.

Try skipping his nap during the day, if he does ok with it, then stop. As long as he isnt crabby during the day, or falling asleep during dinner, then he is fine.

[spud912]

Awww darn, I was hoping someone would say "yes she needs a nap....the longer the better!" ::

Well I guess we will try no nap this weekend. I'll have to run it by my husband first to see which he prefers....decent bedtime but no nap or nap but late bedtime. When I say 10:00 pm, we feel lucky if she is asleep by 9:00 pm; sometimes it's almost midnight before she actually goes to sleep. And she has never been an easy or quiet child, so we may have to do a combination of quiet time in the bedroom, a show and arts and crafts. I never feel too guilty about some tv time as she doesn't watch it except on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Boo hoo for me!

[Crystal]

I think she is ready to give up naptime, from what you describe.

Curious how many here would say that about their daycare kids though.

[melskids]

I think she is ready to give up naptime, from what you describe.

Curious how many here would say that about their daycare kids though.

I don't make my daycare kiddos nap if they don't need it.

There. I said it. Again. :: LOL

[JEM]

I don't make mine nap either if they don't need it and I've had a daycare for 23 years. I do make them have a quiet time though so the nappers can sleep in peace.

[gelbesonn]

DS has stopped napping for the past few months. We PTed end of Nov and he used nap times as his poop time Since then, our night times have also gotten waaay better. Instead of 9pm (with a struggle) he is sleeping by 7:30. I always give him the option. Usually, I will tuck him into bed (or he will tuck himself in), give him a few books/ toys and tell him it's quiet time. That worked for a few weeks. He's stay in his room for about an hr or more. Now, I am lucky if he's in there for 20 min. He's my work in progress right now. I am tempted to use the TV, but he very RARELY watches TV.... and when he does, it is a challenge to get him away from it.

[spud912]

Thanks everyone. Since posting, I have let her do what she wants. Sometimes she ends up sleeping, sometimes she falls asleep 1 1/2 hours into nap, and other times she stays up the entire time. I put her in her room like normal and instead of fighting when she doesn't fall asleep right away, I let her make up her own mind. For the most part, she stays in her room and is fairly quiet. When she does get up, I give her a project, have her help me, or put a show on for her (by then, there is only 30 minutes of "nap" time anyway).

[spud912]

Oh, and it still takes her about 1 hour to fall asleep at bedtime, but that is better than 3 hours!