Do You Let Your Kids Sleep or Nap Wherever They Fall Asleep?

If she's asleep and resting well, let her be. I would try for bedtime to get her into her bed BEFORE she goes to sleep, but if that can't happen, then let her sleep where she is. When we were kids it was a treat to sleep on a "pallet" on the floor :)

My 2 1/2 year old has slept in her bed, on the floor, in her bean-bag chair.... Anything in her room is apparently fair game... :)

When I was young I could sleep anywhere.
The floor with a thin blanket or thin rug was fine..

If she is sleeping and sounds like she needs the rest, I would let her stay there.

NEVER disturb a sleeping child without a GOOD reason. And no one will know where she sleeps anyway unless you tell them!

My daughters, they would literally play until they dropped... I have the cutest pictures of them sleeping in the toy box, under the coffee table, in the wagon, etc... my son, I put him to bed, because he's a crappy sleeper anyway. If he falls asleep in the high chair, I promptly stick him in his crib. It depends on the child, I suppose, so if it's working for you, go for it!

The important thing is for her to sleep especially if she is not feeling well. My kids were always good sleepers and they slept in their beds most of the time. If they feel asleep somewhere besides their bed and it was night time, I would normally take them to their beds or tell them to go upstairs to their bed. If it was during the day and they fell asleep downstairs, if nothing was going on that would disturb them, I left them where ever they were. They have never had any problems sleeping any where which makes it nice when you travel and they are in different surroundings. The only thing I didn't allow was sleeping in our bed but that was only because I couldn't sleep when they were in our bed and they didn't need a very sleepy and grumpy mom during the day.

This is one of those things that you do what is best for your child and your family and don't worry about what anyone else is doing or what the different experts tell you to do.

Yes, wherever they fall asleep---I am ok with leaving them there or if they are in a deep sleep, I move them. But for naps etc---I just let them nap wherever-even if its on the floor. lol Sometimes that is super comfy for me even--

M

It depends on how desperate I am that day.... or how desperate for sleep they are. So sometimes if they fall asleep on the floor, I will gently nudge a small pillow under their head and cover them with a blanket, and tuck their teddy bear under their arm. Usually I can move them without them waking, but since you can't, I wouldn't feel too bad leaving her since she has been sick and needs the rest.

Yes, I've let my kids sleep where they "fell"....but not because they are light sleepers...the only time I've really moved them is when they fell asleep in the car...

My daughter was almost 3 and she had had a incredibly hard day...and was having a 3 year old day - you know the Terrible Twos with the mix of independence of 3s??? Yeah - one of *Those* days!! I fed her a grilled cheese sandwich and soup for dinner (her dad was working working a swing so it was just the two of us) and I had gotten up to refill my drink - turned around and she was asleep in her soup! I took a picture, picked her up and put her on the couch - thinking she would be up in about 30 minutes? Nope! She didn't wake up until 6AM the next day!

if she's sleeping on the floor and actually SLEEPING - leave her there!

Good luck!

Listen, my little son was well travelled from the time he was an infant.
My mother in law passed away 3 weeks to the day after he was born and that was his first long road trip. Six hours with just me and him and my 9 year old in the car.
We were away from home for two weeks. That kid slept anywhere. I guess it's because he didn't know any different. At home, he loved his crib, but we've travelled a lot all his life and when he was tired, he would just konk out. I let him.
I remember being a kid and one of the slats broke on my antique bed so my mattress was like uphill and downhill. I slept so good that way. I don't know why. My mother left it that way for a week. I didn't want her to fix it. A week was long enough of sleeping on a slope in my mother's opinion, but it didn't bother me.
You never know how a kid will be comfortable to sleep.

Best wishes.

I have dozens and dozens of pics of my two boys sleeping literally where they "fell" and for the most part unless it was dangerous I left them where they lay. I think I moved my oldest from weird places like two or three times. Though like I said I have pictures of those too. My favorite pic is the one of him half in and half out of his toy box. And I don't mean from the stomach up...I mean split down the middle of one arm and one leg in the toy box and the others outside. He was perfectly balanced. That time I did move him.
My youngest well his favorite place to fall asleep was the kitchen table/meal times.

Yes. She would just go until she dropped.
My boyfriend is also the type to sleep where ever and he likes the floor. He says it feels good on his back. So I just figured she got his genes for that. I can't sleep on the floor without my back hurting the next day, but hey whatever works for them.
Now she's 2.5 and hasn't slept on the floor in a long time. It was mostly in that stage of going non stop. So I really don't see the harm. If they are comfortable and getting rest thats all thats important to me. Oh and I feel your pain about her waking up when you pick her up. Mine is the same way. I often see those kids sleeping in their parents arms as they carry them through a store. I think wow, how the heck do they stay asleep?
Good Luck, hope she feels better soon!

My kids always slept in their rooms; if they chose to sleep on the floor, that was okay - they both learned pretty quick that the bed was more comfortable. If my youngest fell asleep elsewhere, I just moved her to her room, and let her sleep there.

Regarding your little one with a cold, though - when I have a tension headache - which comes for me along with sinus congestion - I do well to lay down on a hard surface for a little while. For whatever reason, it helps to get the tension out of my neck and back. And yes, I have fallen asleep that way once or twice, and napped lying on my bedroom floor.

I'm in the camp with Jennifer L. and Carrie W. My kids only sleep in their beds. The only other place they might sleep is in the car. Sometimes that can't be helped and it's too difficult for me to try to keep them awake and still focus on the road. You always see posts about sleep problems and how to get kids to sleep in their beds, get out of their parent's beds, etc. That solution is to teach them to sleep in their own beds from the beginning. Then, they don't know any different. Unfortunately, that takes work and consistency from the start and it's really hard to do in the middle of the night. Even last night, my son woke up in the middle of the night for no apparent reason and just would not go back to sleep for over 2 hours. I did not bring him into my bed. He stayed in his bed and we just dealt with it. I guess I would say that if this works for you and your family, then you do what you feel is right, but know that the consequence may mean that you have created a habit that will be hard to break later if you find you no longer like that arrangement.

I realize that a lot of these situations arise out of desperation for sleep and I'm exhausted this morning from being up half the night, so I'm not knocking anyone. I'm just saying that if it isn't something you want to continue, I wouldn't start it now. Just teach her to sleep in her bed when she's tired.

Well, if it's working for you, than I think it's the right thing to do!

The goal is for everyone to get enough sleep. You see to be achieving that, right? Don't let what other families do make you feel like you're doing it wrong.

Hope she's feeling better!

:)

My now-7-year-old slept on the floor for about a year when he was 2 or 3. We'd put him in his bed and he'd migrate to the floor,half in his room with his head sticking through the doorway into the hallway. We would just step over him. He slept like a rock though so we would have people over, etc. (we have a ranch so the bedroom hallway was right near the kitchen and family room) and people would just laugh and step around him. Sometimes we would move him but often we just left him there. Eventually he went back into his bed and has been sleeping like a normal person for several years. I say let her sleep where she likes.

Let her sleep where she will sleep!
My youngest preferred to sleep in her infant car seat, and so that is where she was for several months, next to my bed on the floor, bassinet and crib untouched :)

Always let a sleeping dog lie....

It seems like I am the odd person out here! My kids have never slept anywhere other than their beds. The exception to that is if we have a longer car trip, when they were infants and sleeping constantly, or when they were sick and would just fall asleep periodically during the day. My kids have always had a set naptime and bedtime. I've never let them stay up until they dropped. The sleeping arrangements work great for us because my kids are well rested and I have 2-3 hours a day just for me. My husband and I have alone time at night once they go to bed around 8 and I don't have kids in my bed which is great for my marriage!! If your sleeping arrangements work for you and your daughter is rested, then there is no need to switch things up.

We were the same as Jennifer L. My kids always and still do only sleep in their beds, we had certain nap and bed time. And ask me how much trouble we've ever had with nap or bed time....NONE because they knew that was the deal and that is where they were supposed to go.

I would bet money that more people who just let their kids sleep where ever are ones who, in the long run, have more trouble getting their kids to bed too. Everything with kids is about consistency and if you're not consistent about sleeping arrangements, it's only going to lead to trouble.

YES. I have the cutest pics of my kids sleeping on the stairs, with head on one step, knees on the one below...or sleeping on the piano bench, head on keys...or falling asleep in their high chair...that was a tough one to leave them in though as they would slide out.

And they all sleep peacefully in their beds now.

Take pictures for later.

I think it's important to do what works for you and your child. With my first, I was so concerned about going by the book recommendations and now with my second I feel much more comfortable doing what works for us. My youngest is 4 and when she was 2 and 3 she slept all over the place! Next to her bed was a favorite for a couple months and then I started finding her under the dining room table, on the stair landing, cuddled up with the dog on the dog bed.... I took a lot of cute photos and now her sleep is great!

I don't know how it would be a problem. When I was a kid, they always left me sleeping where I fell asleep, one time it was in the car! (Before anyone gasps, I was older, like 7 or 8 I think when that happened). I think as long as she's not in danger what's the problem, at least she'll be getting the extra sleep she needs. Some people, even kids, can't sleep well on the bed & sometimes yes, the couch IS more comfortable place to end up falling asleep but as far as the floor, why not lay a blanket or something down for her to lay on rather than the bare floor...that's kinda gross IMO, even w/carpet. Hope this helps, good luck!

Nope- bad habit! The only time my son sleeps out of his bed is when he's sick. Then- anything goes. The first couple of days after are rough, but beds are for sleeping. Floors are not!