when does your 2 - 3 year old go to sleep?

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 3:27 pm

Im just wondering about this because my daughter who is 2 and 4 months still needs some sort of nap during the day but then there are nights when she only gets to bed at about 8:30 or even 9 pm.

I would love for her to go to sleep a bit earlier but I dont know how to go about it because if she does not have that nap (which she has in gan most of the week) she will be like a baby with a soar bum, really cranky and hard to deal with.

Does anyone have any advice or ideas?

pinkbubbles

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 3:33 pm

what time is she waking up in the morning? if its after 8 she'll probably go to sleep after 8 too..

DS's routine changes every couple months, but right now bedtime is 8, wakes at 7:30 or so, and nap at 12:30/1:00 for 1.5 hours.

mammele26

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 4:47 pm

I too, have a daughter of two and four months. She goes to bed at about 7 pm. Wakes at about 7:30-8:00 am. Naps at 12:00 for two hours. The point is to wake from the nap no less than five hours before bedtime. What time does she wake from her nap?

Mommy F.

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 4:53 pm

It's a hard stage . . .
If you take away their nap they're cranky by 4:00,
if you let them nap then they can't fall asleep till late . . .
If you wake them up mid nap they're not happy . . .

It's all about trial and error.
12 hour nights would be the ideal for that age.
Try to keep the nap maybe wake her after an hour and half if it's keeping her up late.

good luck!

MommytoB

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 4:57 pm

That sounds about right. All of mine went through the staying up late because of a nap. I finally stopped naps around age 3 when they were staying up until 10pm and calling us in multiple times. Then bedtime reverted to 7pm. My 2 year old does nap and she is in bed around 7 but does not fall asleep until 8ish.

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 9:57 pm

On most days she has to be awake the latest by 6:45 because we have to be out the door by 7:10. Her gan starts at 7:30 and I start work at 7:30 so her ganenet said I could bring her a bit early.

So thats early to rise, but I dont know if I can take away her nap. She usually sleeps for at least 1.5 hours and sometimes more. On shabbat I have been making sure that she sleeps for only 1.5 hours.

But she seems to still only get to bed by 8:30.

Anyone have any bright ideas of how I can change this pattern?

She has become a moaner and groaner as I think she is very tired by even 7 PM but will totally not go to sleep then.

MamaBird

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 10:06 pm

dd is 2 and 1/2. she usually goes to sleep around 9, although on a good night it's closer to 8:30 or 8. she sleeps for about 12 hours, and takes a nap for close to 2 hours during the day, usually starting 4 hours after she wakes up. I'm also trying to get her down earlier, but since I don't work, I have no need to be up early.... kind of a catch 22...

fiddle

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 11:38 pm

my son will be two, he never naps. he goes to sleep at 6 and wakes anywhere from 630 until 9.

my daughter when she was napping I gave her naps earlier (do they nap in gan?) and she went to sleep at 7 and woke at 8-9

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 11:41 pm

fiddle wrote:

yes, in her gan they still nap.

fiddle

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 11:45 pm

so dont let her take another nap and start putting her in at 6, shell get used to it, it takes about 2 weeks.

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Oct 05 2010, 11:50 pm

fiddle wrote:

so dont let her take another nap and start putting her in at 6, shell get used to it, it takes about 2 weeks.

do you mean I should tell the ganenet to not let her take a nap? im not sure if any of the children there dont nap.

shabbatiscoming

Wed, Oct 06 2010, 12:00 am

fiddle wrote:

no. let her nap at gan. and dont give her another one.

I dont give her two naps, its just one nap at gan, from maybe 1 - 230 or something like that. she gets home at 4. I would never give her another nap.

amother

Wed, Oct 06 2010, 12:02 am

posting anon since e/o makes me so embarassed after seeing these early times!!
my kids go to sleep at 9! my 5 year old starts school at 830, and he is up by 730, I drop him off usually on my way to work. my 2.5 year old sleeps till .... 9 or 10 am every morning. The baby goes to sleep earlier- usually about 8, and is up by 8. I dont push early bedtimes, so long as my kids arent cranky the next day!

shabbatiscoming

Wed, Oct 06 2010, 12:22 am

to most of you who have answered, are you at home with your children? or do you work? when I was home with my daughter I let her sleep even until 9 am and her sleeping patterns were much better but now that she is active in gan all day, she just is more tired but still wont go to sleep earlier than 8:30 ish....

amother

Wed, Oct 06 2010, 12:42 am

shabbatiscoming wrote:

I am the poster (anonoymous one) right above you. I work 5 days per week. My two younger kids are home with a nanny, that is why I am not so strict with their sleep patterns. My oldest I am the most strict with since he has to go to school in the morning and I dont want mornings of crying and crankiness!

pinkbubbles

Wed, Oct 06 2010, 1:06 am

I wouldn't take away her nap just yet, just shorten it to an hour and see what happens.

Aidelmom

Wed, Oct 06 2010, 1:28 am

Dd lately often goes to sleep between 10 -11 at night. She takes a long nap during the day. She's 3 today k'h. If she goes to sleep at 6 or 7 because she didn't have a nap - she gets up a couple hours later and then is up half the night.

melalyse

Wed, Oct 06 2010, 6:39 am

I prefer an earlier to sleep and earlier to rise approach. I need "me" time at night and I think that it is better off in the long run. My DD is 2 and 8 months and she sleeps from 7 to 6:30 with a nap from 11:30-1:00. These days it is not so terrible if she misses her nap. Actually on weekends and days that her big brother is home she is usually not napping. I would not be able to handle her being up to 9:00 PM.

RachelEve14

Wed, Oct 06 2010, 7:00 am

He falls asleep by 6, and sleeps until around 6. He hasn't taken a nap in about a year.