2.5 Year Old with Early Wakings - Why?

All kids are different and require different amounts of sleep. The amound of sleep needed also decreases as they get older and 2 yo seems to be a milestone for sleep changes. For me, both of my kids where terrible sleepers and woke often at night until around the age of two, when they dropped their naps. I would try skipping naps for a couple of days and see if it helps or cutting nap time down in time. Good luck.

Maybe she thinks you are a nightmare to deal with! No seriously, that is pretty normal. Kids are not pot plants that do everything we expect of them. Kids that age are rapidly developing and also have a lot more anxiety than you or I and they have very vivid dreams. Try and address her anxieties. it will get easier over the next year.

I think you should move the bedtime to an earlier hour and then you can do some more of your work after she goes to bed. Move the naptime up earlier too since she is waking so early in the morning. My son napped well past the age of 4 (for 2.5 or 3 hours) so I'm not sure she's ready to give up her nap. All kids are different of course, but it sounds to me like YOU'RE not ready to give up her nap. Her crankiness does sound like exhaustion and frustration. Try keeping her on the same schedule but move everything up 1.5 hours. So she should eat lunch earlier (like 11) and go down for a nap at 12:30 instead of 2. Bedtime needs to be 7:30 instead of 9.

I like the idea of black paper over the windows so she thinks it's nighttime!

Good luck - she's going to outgrow the nap eventually anyway so you will need to figure out some strategies for working at your business. If there's no nursery school that will take her at this age, try swapping play dates with another mom. If you're dealing with your child anyway, you can add another child to the mix. Then when the other mom takes your daughter, you will have complete uninterrupted time for work.

Good luck!

i feel for you. i really do. this is my 2 yr old schedule. wake up 7am, some times 6:30 and some times 7:30, breakfast, play time 8:30-11:30. lunch, nap between 12:30-3:30, snack, play, supper,bath.7cool down time, 8 bedtime. sleep by 9. awake again @ 11 and again between 2 & 4. no help from dad. good luck and hope you can figure it out soon.

I would put her down earlier for her nap (like 1) and then to bed earlier (like 8) and see what happens. At least then she is getting more sleep and likely she will wake up later too (I don't know why it works to put them to bed earlier but it does....). Also if you put her to bed earlier it gives you time to get some work done at night (instead of early in the morning). Likely this is a phase she will pass through in a couple of months anyway....By the way, I read the other responses and my kids took afternoon naps to age 4 so I don't know if she is ready yet to give up her nap....but every kid is different! Good luck!

I'd, too, say to drop the nap and see how that works for you.

Our son just turned 4 and still takes a nap each day, but it's because of Day Care and their rules for naps. Even on weekends, though, he loves a nap. It doesn't matter what time he goes to bed, though, he's always our early riser.

We each have our own circadian rhythms (making us night owls vs. early birds, etc), and it sounds like she's settling into some new sleep patterns.

Good luck.

Drop the nap. My son stopped around that age on his own accord. She needs to get sleepy enough at night that she will sleep through. So you are right in changing her schedule.

I really don't have advice to give because my daughter went through this before, but she was waking up at 3-4am instead of 6am!!!! I moved her bedtime back an hour (from 7pm-8pm) and she started sleeping until 6 or later. She's about a 10 hour sleeper though. And she's up from her nap by 230 at the latest. Maybe try to move her naptime up or shorten it.

You are lucky to have a daughter who sleeps until 8. I wish I had that (got up at 415 this morning with my son!)

Hi G.,

I would drop the nap and start putting her to bed earlier. It will be rough at first since she will be tired and cranky. Put her to bed at 7 if you have to at first. My daughter stopped napping at 2.5 also. Try and keep her busy in the late afternoon as much as you can to avoid her falling asleep. Then have dinner, bath and bed. Good luck!

Quite honestly I think it just comes with the age. My soon to be 2.5 yr use to sleep 8:00-8:30, just since the last time change he's changed from 8:30-6:30-7am....I tried limiting the nap time and cutting it out. He still soooo needs it still and didn't make a difference one bit on his wake up time. In fact he woke up 1.5hr earlier on those day...sigh :)

So far the only thing I found that got him to sleep in longer was putting him to bed EARLIER...Yes, I said earlier don't ask me why, but every one of those sleep books say earlier bedtimes= better sleep. But unfortunately it's just not practical in house to put him to bed at 6:30 or 7pm. So right now I am just making sure he gets a good long nap, and that's when I do the "my time". As it is today I put him down for his nap at 2 and its almost 6:00pm..ya a 4 hr nap...& the crazy thing is he'll still go down for bed at 8:30 or 9. I've tried waking him up from his naps and all too and it makes no difference on the sleeping in part.

You might have to play around with her schedule some, but maybe an earlier nap time, so she's up longer before bed would tire her out some, to get her to sleep in. But I don't know if you want to stop naps all together. Or go ahead and try it for a few days, doesn't hurt any, and see what works..Good luck this age is definitely a "fun" one :)

I can relate. My daughter is generally a very good sleeper but has gone through several phases when she wakes up early, fights going down for naps or fights going to sleep. Every time I panic (I am not ready for her to give up naps and I am NOT a morning person) and so far every time it has just worked itself out and gone back to normal (at most I've adjusted times a little or woken her from naps when they were more than 1.5 hours). Personally I wouldn't have her give up the nap, but maybe try shifting the time for nap and bed. I agree that earlier doesn't make sense, but for some reason sleep begets sleep.

I would also try to find some other solutions for how to get work done (like a mother's helper) so you won't be so stressed about working around her schedule.

Good luck!

Yes, it definitely sounds like it's time to drop the nap. Children need routines, but those routines necessarily have to change as they get older.

You might also want to check into a little nursery school for her. Usually there are programs that meet for a half day two or three times a week. It would give her a change to socialize with other children, and give you some much needed time to focus on your work.

I would definitely NOT drop the nap. I would move it earlier, and move bedtime earlier. SLeep begets more sleep for sure, the more skeep she gets the better she'll sleep etc. I strongly believe that dropping the nap will have the opposite effect.

Good luck

Um, 6:30 would be a DREAM! My 2 yo wakes up anywhere between 5:30 and 6:30 every day. Usually on the earlier end of that. 8am? I wouldn't know what do with that much rest or time in the morning!!!

I find that it's still the case that the earlier I put him down, the later he sleeps. He hasn't made that shift like we do as adults. So maybe either try an earlier bedtime, or try dropping her nap?

G.,
I would drop her nap and see how it works from there. Maybe do both of these; drop her nap and put her to sleep 1/2 later than the usual and see if this helps.
Blessings

my son started doing the same thing (he's 22 mos). he goes to bed at 8 - and would wake up anytime after 7:30. for the past week and half i'd hear him about 5:30am just for a minute but then he'd be quiet... but the minute he heard our bedroom door open around 6:30, he'd be yelling for us - so i know he was up that whole time. we have pretty dark shades to begin with - but the light still came in around the edges. i put black construction paper over his windows - so no light comes in, and he's been sleeping til 8 again. some mornings he's been awake but quiet in his room (he still thinks it's night time b/c its so dark).

see if that works first before eliminating the nap - but alteast make sure she's not napping past 3:30-4ish... in order to go to bed regularly.

I would be so excited for 0630! I have 2 who tend to be up by 0515 regardless of bedtime!