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Is this a girl thing?
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Ok so this is my 1st girl. Baby number 6 but 1st girl. I have had 5 boys who all napped well and daily for 4 years. Around 5 it was hit or miss but by then understood that it was quiet time. 6 we just have quiet time so didn’t matter.
This little girl is only going on 4 and will not nap. Unless we are just crazy busy all morning then and only then she might take a nap. Oh, or if we lay there with her. I can’t get her to nap at all. It’s just a fight.
Do I keep it up? Does she need it.. yes I think she does but yet she does fine some days without it. the real answer is “I” need it. So do I give up on naps and focus on quiet time? Cause if I have her just come up in the office and sit with a book she is quiet as a mouse. Your thoughts?
My 4 little girls gave up naps at about 3yo. I think that quiet time is sounding like a great option for you. =) I really DON’T care if they actually nap, but quiet time is great for resting a body and giving you a break.
Mind you, I did ensure that they went to bed early enough to get enough sleep. =)
Both my son and my daughter quit sleeping at naptime around age 3. (My dd2 still naps, but we’ll see how long that lasts!). My ds4 naps on occasion when really tired, but not usually. I do still require everyone to have a quiet time where they have to stay quietly in their rooms, reading/looking at books/listening to quiet music or an audio book. I’ve always figured that I can’t MAKE them sleep, but I can require that they do something quietly so that I still get a quiet hour in the afternoon. I have found that sometimes when they first stop napping in the afternoon they need to go to bed a little earlier at night for awhile, but that transition period has only lasted for a few months with both of ours. This is what has worked for us, anyhow.
Jen
First DD never napped more than 20 minutes at a time from the moment she was born and gave up naps altogether at about 18 months. It took longer to get her to sleep than she spent asleep, so I stopped fighting. (She also didn’t sleep more than 2 hours in a row at night until she was over a year. This is still my child who complains that she can’t sleep and lays awake often at night.)
DS napped about 1 – 1.5 hours until just after his second birthday. Then he did every-other-day naps for a few months, but was done well before 2.5 yrs old.
Second DD napped up to 2 hours every afternoon until she was about 2.5 yrs.
I can’t even imagine what it would be like to have a child over 3 yrs old still napping! Wow!
Joanne
My older ds stopped napping by the time he was 18 months. He’d be up at the crack of dawn and I wouldn’t be able to get him to settle down before ten or eleven at night. The only exception might have been if we were driving in the car for more than 20 mins.
My youngest would nap until he was about two and a half.
I’ve always taken their lead with nap-times. I think they all gave them up between 2 and 4. I have an almost 3yo who naps most days (but skips a day here and there). Basically, when she’s tired and cranky she lays down with me for a bit. Other days, she’s too busy playing and in a cheerful mood, so I don’t have her take one.
I think if you need the nap time, I’d be working on quiet time…some families have a “books on bed” time. My preschooler has an assortment of books that don’t require reading…I-spy, interactive pop-up books, books with lots of pics, etc. I’m sure this would work in your office if you put a blanket or chair in there for her to sit on.
I think you should look at the total number of hours she is asleep in a 24 hour period. I think the recommendation is around 11 hours for the age of your child. I have a daughter and son. Daughter stopped napping somewhere between 2 and 3 years old. My son napped a little longer, but was definitely not napping by 4 years old. I prefer they go to bed at night, and that does not happen easily if a nap happens! My daughter (now 7) wants to stay up later at night and actually has a hard time falling asleep recently. My husband’s mother is a night owl, so maybe some of that is inherited???? My sister’s children are sleepers… so is their dad! I personally, would go with the quiet time if that is what you need. Children will generally eat as much as they need and sleep as much as they need if you provide healthy food and environment.
My youngest, who is almost 3, gave up naps about a year ago. I think she’s just trying to keep up with the rest of the family.
Thanks everyone.. yes I think nap time might have to change to quiet time. :0( I love nap time. She gets about 11 hours of sleep if she doesn’t nap. If she does it takes her longer to go to sleep at night. So I guess total number is the same either way, one she gets some in the afternoon and the other way she gets it all at once. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
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