Okay Ladies lets help out my daughter's future mother in-law. (My Hallie is going to marry her Nolen.) lol
She writes, "My little man takes naps throughout the day. He is 6 months old next week- and he takes a bunch of little cat naps- anywhere between 20 mins to 1 hour naps. I REALLY want him to start taking 2- 2 hour naps- is that reasonable? What is the best way to change his napping habits? Is it the same as getting them to sleep through the night?- let them cry it out?"
sometimes they just have a different time frame, so I wouldn't expect that long that young. It might happen, but my son took 1 1/2 hour naps until he was 18 months!
ReplyDeleteSimple answer: yes, it is totally reasonable. Harder part: I would read "Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child" for a good basic knowledge on sleeping (I thought their methods were too strict for my taste personally but the knowledge on sleep is helpful in figuring the baby out) and then I also read "On Becoming BabyWise" - there is a whole section in there about what to do if you are starting when they are a little older.
ReplyDeleteThe other thing would just be, try and be consistent no matter how hard it is. I had done BabyWise since my baby was born and about 4-5 months we got into a similar pattern of like 30-60 minute naps like twice a day, she was crabby, I was crabby, it wasn't fun. So I basically confined myself to the house for about 2 weeks while she and I got ourselves on a new schedule! She needed the consistency to learn the new times and realize that she was able to sleep and I needed something as hardcore as staying at home for that long in order to make her naps a priority every time. After that little stint, she learned to take 2 naps each day for about 2 hours, plus one nap around dinnertime, for maybe 45 minutes, then would sleep 12 hours at night and she was a PEACH! In the end I have a lot more flexibility because I know when she will need to sleep and when it is ok for me to plan activities/appointments so I like it a lot more. Good luck! Sleeping is a hard thing but so worth it if they can get it figured out - for both you and them! :)
I'm not quite in the young mothers category anymore (I'm 29 and my youngest is heading off to kindergarten in two days) but I've definitely got experience with naps and sleeping habits! So if you want my two cents, there is nothing better than consistency. I have been able to keep my babies on sleeping/eating/etc schedule through multiple cross-country moves just by being consistent. And I mean so consistent that sometimes I've kept a sleepy baby awake (I know, it's torture at the time, but so worth it in the long run), waking up little ones early for a morning or two so they will go to bed (naps and/or bedtime) at the right times, etc. One thing I've never done is let them "cry it out." I think it's important that our children know that we will always come when they need us - I'm thinking ahead to those teenage years when I want them to come to me and know I will be ready to help. But if I am consistent with times and rules (yes, even at six months, they'll pick up on "rules"), my kids generally don't balk at bedtime. So be consistent, put in some effort for a few days, and you'll have a napping baby in no time! Plus, a more consistent and workable schedule for yourself!
ReplyDeletePS. I hope I didn't come across as obnoxious. I promise I'm not the perfect mother (SO far from it!), but this has worked for me!
Babies do need to start being on schedule. I have heard just to keep them up, play w/ them, entertain them and destract them from falling asleep until the time you want them to sleep. I do 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Soon enough they'll get on the schedule and stay awake until then. Oh, I also put them to bed for the night at 7 p.m.
ReplyDeleteI read the Healthy Sleep Habits Healthy Child and it is amazing how important sleep is. That being said I gave birth to a bad little sleeper. We had to do the whole crying it out thing which worked and changed my life!! However it took quite a while and she still cries for a few minutes sometimes when I put her down.
ReplyDeleteI paid attention to when Hallie seemed sleepy and then we developed a schedule where everyday at that time she was in her bed. Hal's naps are at the most an hour and a half but I take what I can get. I'm not sure how to get them to sleep for 2 straight hours. Maybe just leave them in their bed until it has been two hours?
Good luck