3 Year Old Getting Ready to Drop Nap

I too am a teacher with a 3 year old in the SAME situation and I have a 2 month old - please let me know what people suggest!!!! The afternoons aren't fun!!!!

you could try cat naps in the stroller at a time when you know she is very tired (a little later than her usual nap time)a little strolling around or driving might do the trick- limit it to 30 min or so , so it does not interfere with bedtime but still gives her a little boost ...

I have 4 children and have been through this with each of them....all right around 2.5-3 years. My youngest is 2.9 years and naps 1-2 times a week (a "real" nap....in a bed...for a couple of hours) on those days she generally has a hard time falling asleep before 8:30 at night. The good thing about skipping a nap is that she falls to sleep right at 7:00. Anyway, what works for me to get us through the "witching hour" at the end of the day when she is most tired and cranky is that she often catches a 30 minute catnap in the car when I pick up my other children from school. So if it suits you to do "drive through" errands around that time you may find your daugher could benefit from a 30 minute quick nap.....another thing I used to do with my other children was put them in (not too late in the afternoon) and wake them up after 1 hour. Now, they will be grumpy when you wake them up - a good time for some quiet time with music or a little TV - but it won't wreak bedtime and again will help with the crankiness at the end of the day. Good luck!

It is temporary- I don't remember how long. But the greatest thing for us about dropping that nap was bedtime. We put her to bed at 6:30 without a fuss. She was out cold in 3 minutes. She is now 3 1/2 and still goes to bed between 6:30 and 7 and it still takes a very short time to put her to bed. And she'll sleep until 6 or 7 the next morning. Good luck! Don't be afraid of an early bedtime! It might help the crankiness the next day if she or he is getting enough total sleep.
(mom of 5, 3 and 1 1/2)

If the naptime is no longer working- definitely keep to the quiet time hour- that's great and good for both of you- maybe have it a special time together- read some books together-you read to her or sing little quiet songs or even play a little quiet kids card game or chutes and ladders...if she's really having a hard time stopping-
play soothing music and have the lights down or out.
So- if she's really a crank- she obviously still needs some sleep somewhere- maybe could try getting her to bed an hour early at night at least-any time extra- since you likely can't let her sleep any later in the morning.

She will adjust and adapt-I do remember my children being cranky at first even though they started dropping the nap-
but it seemed to end within a week or so.

Our daughter started dropping her nap at about 3.5 years. And she also was a total crank without it. It took some work to make quiet time really work- we really needed her to do it on her own (not with us reading with her, etc.) because we really needed a break to make it through the day. And she wouldn't stay in her room. But with some work, which includes us sitting outside her door, she now does stay in her room and play mostly quietly. And that has helped with both her mood and ours! Recently, we all had a bad cold/fever, and she is now napping again - as soon as we leave during quiet time, she just puts herself to sleep on her big bed. However, this does mean she goes to bed later at night. Either way, quiet time with or without nap, she is no longer so cranky.

We did read Dr. Sears book on sleep issues (for advice, as our daughter went through a spell of waking up multiple times each night. It was killing us. Even though she went right back to bed and to sleep - sometimes we couldn't get back to sleep!...). Anyway...one of his big points is that kids need a fixed number of hours of sleep - it can be all at night, or it can be with a nap. That certainly seems to be true of our daughter - it's 11.5 hours a day, divided up one way or another.

Good luck - I know it's a really rough transition! You are not alone...

Up until about age 6, I've had all my kids have Quiet Time for an hour and a half to two hours a day. The rule is: you can sleep or you can read books (for younger kids, this means just looking at her books, of course), but you cannot talk and you must get out of bed. This method has worked beautifully -- it eliminates battles over whether the child is actually sleeping, it encourages her to choose books, it gives her down-time (which I think every child needs), and it gives the parent down-time as well. When I can, I use quiet time to read myself! It doesn't always work that way, but I feel so much better when I take Quiet Time too.

instead of 'nap time' make it 'story time'. it's still an unwinding, quiet & relaxing activity - she may doze off, and if so it 's ok, and if not, no biggie either. my son is 3.5 & he hasn't napped in ages - i don't bother fighting with him anymore - he's hit that phase sooner than i expected (either that or b/c he did so much flippin sleeping as an infant he's done with it! LoL) anyways, we have those moments too - the 'ugh, you wouldn't be so miserable if you'd just take a short nap!" - eventually she'll grow out of it. I promise - you just gotta take the punches & find your own groove to deal with it. but it IS normal & it WILL end. =0) but seriously, try 'filling her time' with something quiet & low key, where her body can rest. even an educational tv show or movie is great, reading or even coloring works in our house. and just make that your new routine & she'll catch on. She may also go to bed a little bit earlier too!

You sound like you're doing a wonderful job. Good luck!

I don't meant to get your hopes up, but my daughter started dropping naps at about 3 1/2, and is now napping every day. I knew she wasn't ready to give them up because she was a cranky bear in the afternoons, and would nap if she had an active morning. Now, 4 months later, for some reason, she's napping again for 2 to 2 1/2 hours every day! We added a baby to our family two months ago, and that seemed to do the trick. Just have another baby! LOL! During the time she wasn't napping we insisted on her staying in her room for at least an hour, and talked about how much better she felt when she took a nap. Good luck, and hang in there!

hi J. the fun is over sory she has out grown her nap time. my kids did the samt thing at age 3 . so keep her up and make sure she goes to bed early she neets unleast 8 to 9 houres of sleep
B.

J. , It's okay that she has quiet time during this time maybe she will fall off to sleep. During this time make sure that she reading are doing something quiet not playing with toys. You may want to say when you get up from quiet time you can help mommy make cookies, do craft are plans something fun to do with her. Are say when you are finish with quit time you will be aloud to play with your toy are blow bubbles etc.... quiet time is important for her and also for you. What you also can do go to the library and get a puppet a book with a tape in it play it softly. But what ever you do continue to be consistance- good luck to you.

Every child drops their naps at different times. But they all seem to be cranky and miserable in the process. I think quiet time is a great thing! It worked wonders with my first. With my second who dropped his nap at 2 1/2 (when our third was born), we just had to keep him active. They are all different! But they all overcome it at their own pace. In the meantime try quiet time, reading stories, drawing...anything to distract them. (I try to stay away from tv since that did not work at all with the first!!)

Good luck! Happy days are just around the corner!!! (As is summer!!)

H..

my 3 year old son is doing the same thing. I've been giving him a nap every other day and also moving his naps later in the day. Instad of 12, it's been around 1 or 2 and he sleeps shorter periods, rather than 2-3 hours it's been 1-2 hours.

I don't think it will take too long. You can move the bedtime up an hour to help with the crankiness. I think it took my two oldest about a couple of months to adjust if my memory serves me correctly. My 2.8 yr.old daughter is skipping a nap here and there...I just make up for it the next day by insisting. "let's read a book 1st, then have milk, then have your nappies"....it is working for now. good luck, N. p

omg J.!!

DITTO!!

i'm goin crazy with my little monster as well!!

we've been doin the "no nap" thing for almost a month! when it gets to be about 5-6pm I"M ready for a nap!!

good luck hun! i'll be prayin for you too!