Nap question

[GymMom]

I have 2 babies - 10m and 14m - both apparently still have 2 naps a day. I haven't had them both on the same day yet, but it's looking like they're not going to nap at the same times. Just wondering at about what age babies are ready to give up the morning nap? It's not too big of a deal since they're both p/t but I also will have a 2 1/2 year old f/t who (hopefully) will also be napping in the afternoon.

[gcj]

On average I'd say they nap 2x/day up to 18 months, but I've had quiet a few that need it longer than that. You know it's time to go down to 1/day when they really have difficulty sleeping in the afternoon. The longer they do 2/day the better, imo! I would try to make sure that they do nap at the same time, however, or else your whole morning will be tied down by naps. Usually dcks are up relatively early, so I try to do am naps early....and they're not usually too long, unless they're super-young.

[Dreamalittledream]

Hmmm...I think it depends on the child. I have a 1 1/2 year old DCG that just recently gave up her AM nap...she just loves her sleep. Something that works for me is to have the babies nap from 9am to 10:00am (I wake them) then, they are ready to go down with the rest just after lunch & have a nice long afternoon nap (which equals break time for you). I used to let them sleep in the AM...but that equalled a very short (1 hour max) afternoon nap. You'll find what works for you.

[KingstonMom]

Another key point is to try and have their afternoon nap at the same time as the 2.5yo. It is possible, I have a 10mo daughter and a 14mo dcb who take their morning naps together and then all the kids (3x 2.5yr olds) go down for an afternoon nap. This way you still get YOUR break!

I schedule the little ones' morning nap between 8:30-9am and I wake them by 10am to make sure they go down for pm nap around 12:30-1pm.

[apples and bananas]

I think it depends on the child too. I have one 12 month old that started. She did about 2 morning naps then we dropped them and went right to noon. She has about a week where she was cranky around lunch time, but after that she got used to it. Another one that came in at 12 months right into the 12-2 quiet time as mom was working on it to make sure he matched my program. I have a 13 month old that started recently that wakes up several times during the night still then awake at 5 am every morning. He goes down at 8:30 for an hour and again at noon.

AS the for the 2 1/2 yr old... make sure you nap that child. I have one that's almost 3 and he naps like a charm every day for at least 2 hours. And when he doesn't he plays and looks at books until he falls asleep.

[Crayola kiddies]

I have a 17 month old that was napping twice a day. In June we had to only let her sleep 1 hour in the am or she just screamed for the aft nap and just starting this week we stopped the am nap all together. As we all know every child is different so you just have to follow the cues ... When they give you a problem in the aft it's time to cut back or cut out the am nap.
If the two kids are sleeping at different times then start moving back or Forward the nap times by 15 mins at time till you have them matching .... Generally the earlier you can get them down in the morning the better. good luck

[kidlove]

usually about 18 months old. thats if they get up at a "normal" hour. If they are being awaken in the am before they are ready to get up they may need a short am nap up to 2 yrs or older. every child is different though, some dont nap much at all and some still take a 4 hour nap at the age of 4. just depends on the kid, i"ll bet if the parents work with you, you should be able to get them close enough to get a bit of down time in the afternoon!

[Starshine]

Definitely depends on the child. I have a 14-month-old here who won't nap in the morning, but he sleeps for 3 hours in the afternoon. I had another one around the same age who would nap for maybe 20 minutes in the morning and an hour in the afternoon.

[Momof4]

Usually children have given up their morning naps by 1 year of age here because we have such busy mornings. I have the occasional times when they fall asleep on the way to or home from a park for maybe 20 minutes powernaps in the stroller but that doesn't last long. I did rearrange my schedule so that lunch is at 11:30, circle time at noon and naptime at 12:30 and it's working for me because that seems to be the window where if I get them all into bed they fall asleep quickly and sleep for 2 hours.

Pay attention to the yawns and get to know when they are really tired and ready to sleep and adjust so that they all sleep at the same time. You can't survive without a break in the middle of the day without feeling the burn.