Hey moms!
I am forever asking questions about sleep on here! Ok, I was wondering if any of you out there have put your toddler on a specific wake up, nap, and bedtime. What I mean is do you wake you toddler up if he or she hasn't naturally woken up on their own at a specific time. My little guy is 20 months and a great sleeper, however I feel his bedtime is getting a bit too late. He sleeps until about 8:30 or 9 in the morning and then doesn't get tired enough to nap until around 3 or so. That puts him waking up around 4:30pm and then getting to bed around 9. It is OK, but sometimes I just feel he is getting a bit cranky simply because it is getting late and his little body clock is telling him he should be in bed. So I was thinking of starting to just get him up at around 7:30 or so and then give him a nap at 1:30-2ish and put him to bed by 8. Just wanted some feedback if any of you have done this successfully. One small issue that affects this is that my church meets at 4 in the afternoon on Sundays. We are a smaller church and we rent another church's building, but they of course use the bldg in the morning. So we meet at 4 and then usually all go to dinner together afterwards. This puts us home around 9:30 or so on Sundays. So, would you still get him up at 7:30am on Mondays and then just let him make up his sleep during naptime, or do you think I will just wind up with a cranky toddler on my hands? Thanks for any input:)
I would try and move the nap up a bit. That's kind of late. My daughter wakes at around 7:30-8:00, and she goes down at 12:30 no matter what. I do have her on a schedule, but I do not wake her up, but her nap is so early, that I don't have the problem of her sleeping too late. It may take some time for him to get use to, but don't give up. Try and have lots of tiring activities in the morning so he will be tired at that time. Good luck.
J.,
When my daughter was little, other people thought we had a weird schedule. My husband wouldn't get home in the evenings until 7 or 7:30 -- so he had little time with her. We ended up letting her have a later bedtime - 9:30 to 10 and she would sleep in in the mornings; then nap around 2-3 for a couple of hours and she was "fresh" and rested when her Dad came home. We even sent her to an afternoon "pre-school" when she was 4 so she could continue her sleeping in and staying up late schedule. We'd meet her Dad some days and go out to lunch before pre-school, so he'd get to see her during the day and at night!
Don't sweat the small stuff. If he's sleeping well, don't rock the boat. Nothing is set in stone, so go with the flow! Good luck.
L.
If it fits your schedule and is at all possible, I suggest you change the routine. I made the mistake of letting my children sleep until 9 am or whenever they woke, but they are now teenagers and tend to not be able to sleep until late and want to sleep late in the mornings. I know that seems far off and it is but now is when they are forming there habits and routines. I have wonderful children, but that is the one thing I wish I had done differently.
You know..I am a Mom of three boys, ages ranging from 14 to 16 months, and I have always let them steer their own schedule with some minor tweaking from me.
I am a believer in kids and toddlers having a solid sleep routine/schedule, and mine have always been pretty good at dictating that. In your case, I think if he's happy with his schedule, and he seems rested, then let it be. If you and your family are out sometimes until 9:30 or so, then his sleep schedule might work out for the best.
However, having time in the evenings for yourself and your hubby is really important too. Try switching his schedule a few minutes every day until he's getting up around 7 am and going down after lunch for several hours. Then, by 7-8 pm, he's ready to crash. Do it in 15 to 30 minute increments every day, until he's getting adjusted to it. I wish you the best.
Just make sure you have him on a good schedule. It doesn't always matter the time but that it is consistent. Since he is a good sleeper, I wouldn't just change his schedule cold turkey but start slowly putting him for bed at night and nap time earlier, eventually he will wake up earlier too. I have a 19 mo. and this is our schedule. Wakes up: between 6:30-7:30. Nap around 12:30-1:00. Bedtime 7:30-8:00. Of course your Sundays will be different. Everyone has a day of the week that the schedule is off. Let him sleep later on Monday if he needs to but not past about 8:30 so he can get back into routine. Good luck.
I know a lot of people who have to wake up their little ones in the morning because of work/daycare schedules. Kids are adaptable. I'm sure if you woke him up a little earlier and put him down to bed earlier, he would adapt and start doing it on his own. As for Sundays, I am not sure how to fit that in, except to try it out one week and see what happens. As for me, my little girl (20 months as well) usually goes to bed around 9:30 p.m., wakes up around 8 a.m., then naps around 1ish. I personally like this schedule because she is up to see her Daddy when he gets home from work. Good luck, and let us know what works for you!
Your original sleep schedule is fine if it works for you and Daddy . The most important issue is making sure they get enough sleep. It's also always fine to adjust the schedule a bit earlier if that works for you or let him sleep longer on Monday since you'll be out later Sunday night. I LOVE to hear that parents are concerned about their child's sleep habits. Routine is so important to young children.
Great job mom!
Schedules are going to be different for every person and every family. Some familys are up more at night but sleep in later and others choose to wake up early and go to bed early. So I say whatever works for you. My son is 18 months old and his day goes something like this:
9 am- wakes up
2 pm- nap time
4 pm- wakes up
9-10 pm- goes to bed
Hope you figure out a schedule that works for you and your family!
I say do whatever works for you. My 21 month old is up at around 8 am, nap at 3 up at 5 I usually wake him, then bed at 8:30. We got on this schudule cause we do our activities/errands in the morning and hated rushing home then having a long afternoon. Two hours is enough for him to be rested not cranky but more he won't go to sleep at a decent time.
Toddlers all get cranky before bedtime, whatever it is. Be glad he is sleeping so well, don't worry, and keep him on a schedule that works for your family. There is no rule as to when a baby should sleep, just that they get enough.
If you want him to take an earlier nap, I would definitely wake him up earlier in the morning. He might be cranky for a couple of days, but it shouldn't take long for him to adjust. My son normally wakes around 7:30am, takes a 1-2 hour nap around noon then goes down at 8pm on the dot. After the recent time change, he was on a routine similar to your son's and that did not work for him at all. He was pretty cranky in the evening, it was like the darkness was telling him it was bedtime, but he wasn't yet tired. It took him a week to adjust back to his previous schedule.
Because I work I have to wake up my little guy in the morning. He goes to bed by 8 if not 7:30. He takes 2 naps, one in the morning and one late about 3:00. He is younger so he needs the naps. When he doesn't take his afternoon naps our evens are not fun.
Your child might fall a sleep in the car coming home from church but life goes on. He can get an extra nap on Monday.
If you have a natural night owl, you may be limited in how much adjusting you can do at this age, but here is what we did to get our boys to stick to an earlier schedule. First, start moving up the nap and bed times by 1/2 hour. We found it easier to do if we made sure there was a lot of physical activity in the morning and in the late afternoon. If, after several days of the earlier bedtime, you notice he is getting up earlier in the mornings, you can continue to adjust nap and bed times until his schedule works better for you.
I don't know what you've heard already, but here is my thought. Try it and see what works best for you and yours. We recently moved and our schedule changed, along with my 20mth old daughter's waking and going to bed time. I've thought about the same things you have, but decided that if she's happy, I'm happy. If you do try to instill a new bedtime I would do it in increments instead of 9 one night and 7:30 the next. Work up to it so his body has time to adjust. I think you'll get less of a fight that way. I know if my daughter isn't ready to sleep putting her down can be a struggle and we can both end up upset/frustrated and that's no way to end the day. I hope this helps. Remember, do what works best for you and yours.
