Anyone Else Have a Baby That Was a Horrible Napper?

My daughter was an inconsistent napper much of the time, and also just never needed as much sleep as "the average baby," whatever that is! Ok- one thing worked for a long time with us- and that is the "sliding scale" nap schedule. Depending upon what time she woke up, or how long that morning nap was- I would adjust naptimes and/or bedtime by about a 1/2 hr in either direction- just to keep the intervals between consistent. This worked for some months. Now- she has given up one of her naps, so I have moved up that morning nap from 9 to 10am, and that is anchored firmly every day. No matter if she wakes up at 7am or 8:30am- she goes down at 10am, happily. Even if you can start with the bedtime being same time every night first, then "anchor" one nap time, then the other. You don't have to fix all 3 at once! Good luck.

I have a 2 year old son now but when through similar issues when he was younger. Schedules are invaluable as well as consistency. I think it's important to give naps in the same area, room with some special things you would do at nightime i.e. read a bood etc.. Good luck, It will get better.

My son has gotten much better at going down for naps when I stopped all car napping and only allowed him to go into situations that he fell asleep easily in when he was not tired because all that "catnapping" gave him the edge he needed to fight his naps in the crib. I also put him down for his morning nap between 9-930 and then put him down for his afternoon nap between 130 and 2. It took about 2-3 weeks, but he goes down for a nap with white noise and a binky while hugging his special blankie very quickly (I hope this lasts!)which is a big change from what it was before.
I used to really stress about the length of his naps but I read that babies will self regulate how long their naps are from day to day and that as long as your child's mood is okay, there really is no set amount of time a child "should" nap during the day. I was so relieved to read that because before I felt like he was napping for too short a time and I was so frustrated!
I find that depending on when he goes to bed at night, his naps are longer or shorter to make up the extra sleep. He will sleep if he needs it! It makes sense if you think about it...I don't always take a nap that is exactly a certain amount of time...it varies depending what I need. I do get my son up at a similar time each day, but even a half hour difference does change when he goes down for his nap. And I have read that this is very normal. Hang in there!

Yes, schedules really do work. Lots of people thought I was completely nuts for having such a specific schedule but they understand now.
The feeding schedule has a lot to do with it too. If you feed her at the same times every day, she will most likely stay awake long enough to eat, then she will be able to take a nap on a full belly so she'll probably sleep longer too.
Figure out what works for the both of you and aim for that. If you have to wake her up in the morning to make sure she doesn't sleep too long, that's ok. Try putting her to bed a little earlier to make sure she gets enough sleep. It might take a while to get everything worked out, but it's so worth it in the end. You'll both be much happier and you'll be able to plan your days.

you have to have a schedule and routine. children do best on a routine. all naps and bedtimes and wakeup times should always be at the same time. this helps them understand whats next and what will happen each day. her naps will continue to be random until she is put into a routine.