I feel like our nap routine takes waaaayy too long for my 2.5 year old. I get him lunch and set him up with a show to watch while I put his baby sister to bed at 12:45. I'm back down by 12:55 and we go upstairs, read stories, i rock him for one song then put him in his bed and sing the song again...and again...
There's a lot of him stalling nowadays and most days i'm not leaving his room until 1:30ish and he's sitting quietly in his bed reading books. He only "reads" for about 5 minutes and then passes out. He's not ready to give up a nap--on days when he doesn't sleep, he gets so overtired and is a complete troll the rest of the day and will wake up screaming all night. I guess i'm just looking to see what others' routines are for toddlers? How long does it take you to get yours down?
About 2 secs, we dont do stories or songs for naptime. My boys are 4 1/2 and nearly 2, when it is time for nap we tell them ok lets go lay down. They get in bed and we cover them up, lights out and that is all.
I wish i had a good secret to share.. I have the same prob... at home when its nap time.. it seems like it takes hours to get her to lay down and to actually fall asleep.
I sometimes just say never mind! and try to get to bed an hour earlier!!
hahaha...
good luck....
Ours was the same as bedtime, only just 1 book @ nap instead of 2 or 3 at bedtime. 15 mins maybe?
Try keeping him outside about 30 mins before he eats. That way he can eat and then within the hour, as his body adjusts to no light, it will make him feel more sleepy.
We don't really have a full routine. Just a quick hug and kiss and that's it. This has worked for both my kids.
Mine quit napping about 6 months ago at the age of 2 but she was great at napping prior to that. We would go into her room, I'd change her and read her 1 story (2 if she asked), tuck her in and I'd leave her to sleep. Sometimes she played for a few minutes but would fall asleep within 15 minutes.
My advice is to not give in to the stalling. I highly recommend Dr. Ferber's book Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems. Great advice in there and it works. We've used his methods and my kid does great with it.
I understand what you mean about giving up naps. It was ROUGH for about a week. I think she adjusted better than I did. lol! Good luck!
My oldest is almost 4 and I put the little one down while he goes potty. I lay him in his bed, hug, kiss then I lay in his extra bed for a few minutes until he falls aleep. This is usually 10-15 minutes. So our whole process starts at 2 and I'm back downstairs by 2:20 or so.
I do home daycare and have (well, today)...5 kids age 23 mos-3.5 years old all sleeping in one room (pack N plays and toddler beds). Our normal deal each day..we eat lunch about 12:30-1pm...everyone goes potty..and right to bed in a very dark room with a radio playing (oldies station locally). I "tuck" everyone in..cover them up, say night night. Thats it. I check everyone about 10 min later. Most are asleep. I have on holdout but she knows the rules. "Keep your head on your pillow, no talking, go to sleep/rest quietly". Next time I go check them (15 min later) she is usually asleep. I am militant about napping rules (I have to be with so many in one room)....and its worked for me for 14 years with different groups of kids! No dragging it out with books and songs and such.
My kids are out by about 1:30 latest and sleep 2-2.5 hours. I check often and have a audio monitor..I scoop them out as they wake in that last half hour.
Good luck!
My daughter has a routine too, she will be 4 in August and still needs a daily nap, and still goes to bed at a reasonable hour, and our routine has not changed much since she turned 2 (her nap routine and bedtime routine are the same). She can be quite the stall-master at times too and I found that what helped was to just keep things limited to 2 stories, cuddle for 2 songs (she has a CD player) and THAT'S IT. She asks for another story, or for me to stay longer, I have to say NO, I'm sorry sweetie, but I have other things I need to do. I would decide what you are comfortable with, as far as number of stories and number of times you sing your song, and then stick with it. Let him know beforehand you will only read X number of stories, and will sing the song only once (or whatever you decide). If he starts whining or being fussy about it, just be kind but firm, and say NO, I've done enough, it's time to take your nap. With my daughter, I just had to draw the line somewhere, otherwise it could go on forever.
Ha!! This sounds like my daughter. I have a routine similar to yours with books and singing but there comes I point when you just say 'goodnight' and close the door. My daughter would have me read her all the books on her shelf if she knew she could get away with it :)
