Would you drop the day sleep?

DD (2yrs 9mths) is getting harder and harder to get to sleep at night. We start our bedtime routine at 7, after night garden. She has a cup of milk in bed, reads two books with Daddy, then sleep time. We have a bedtime rule - stay in bed and stay quiet.

Normally, she needs to be put back to bed twice. First time we remind her of the rule and back to bed. Second time I say it's her last chance - if she doesn't stay in bed then she doesn't get to watch tv in the morning (that's her reward).

Normally that's it. And she doesn't get worked up, she just pushes the boundary, we re-establish it and she's fine.

Until this last week or so. It has just gone 9pm and she's still awake and playing in her room. I've done the warning and last chance. DH has put her back twice since then. She hasn't come out of her room again but I can hear her playing her xylophone :rolleyes:

The thing is... She still has a day sleep. She'll sleep for two hours or more most days.

So... Is it time to drop the day sleep???

As much as I hate to say it....

Me thinks yep.

No harm in giving it a go. My DS is almost the exact same age and still has his day sleep, but still drops like a fly at 8, so i would say sounds like shes ready!!!! Goodluck let us know what you decide and how you go I wanna follow:D

Maybe try just a 45 minute nap, otherwise she might get too tired to eat dinner, etc and from 4 pm onwards it could be very 'witchy houry', see if just a 45 minute nap will make any difference to the night-time problems. My DS dropped his day nap at about 2.5 years, he still has a nap at childcare once a week but probably needs a nap every third day now. Though when I take him up to bed about 7.15pm he is out like a light! xxx

we are at a in between stage with DS some days he wont sleep during the day others happily goes for his nap and at night hes a bit all over the shop but always gets put in bed at 7:30 sleeps till approx 8 not 100% sure when he goes to sleep most nights he happy to do is own thing plus he falls asleep with the light on
probably try it and see wat happens

We have just done this. Both of my kids (DD- 4.5 and DS1-3) would both sleep 2 hours int he day and bedtimes were getting impossible and everyone was just getting more and more stressed out. As much as I hated doing it, about 6wks ago, I cut out their day sleeps. DD will still often tell me she is tired and sometimes falls asleep on the lounge, but them not sleeping has made bed times soooo much easier. Bed time is earlier now, we start brushing teeth ect at about 6.50pm. Then toileting, 2 stories, a little bit of a chat and some songs and hey presto!, at about 7.15, they're both out cold. I love it because DS2 goes to bed then too, though unfortunately he will wake between 1-4 times before I go to bed some nights, I'm praying that will stop soon, when he realises sleep is good. That will be when pigs fly if he's like my first two. Apparently sleep is for the weak in our house :rolleyes:

That's a good idea Boo Boo. As much as I love having the two of them asleep at the same time for hours... If I cut it to 45-60mins... That may help.

Will try that tomorrow and report back...

J is nearly 3 and we have had issues lately as well but he can sleep up to 3 hours so we have cut his back. I used to wake him up at 4 :O before we had issues now I start stirring him at 3-3:30 depending on how long he has been down for - but basically cutting it to 1 1/2 to 2 hours instead. I don't think cut it completely but maybe open doors and start making some louder noises to wake her up gently once she has had some rest. Iz turned 4 in May and still needs a nap a few days a week so I don't think cutting it completely works for all kids because they simply do need that rest during the day.

Good luck!!

Thanks Tan, it's my Iz that's causing dramas here ;)

Cheeky poppets - must be the name! Good luck hun - I think just try it and see and if worse comes to worse you can change things again - nothing is permanent with these cheeky ones!

Give it a try - I am going to miss my day sleep time so much!!!!
Good luck!

Just thought I'd update for any who are in a similar position!

We've had three day/nights since the post: first day we woke her up after about 1.5hrs... she was asleep by 8.15pm that night.

Second day: she refused to sleep at all (just kept getting out of bed and wanting to play, happy enough but didn't want to sleep) and she was out like a light by 8pm.

Yesterday: had a BIG morning playing with some awesome kids, crashed in the car on the way home and kept sleeping for over 2hrs... I had someone come around to work on something with me so it suited me that she stayed asleep... my bad... she was then awake til 9.30pm. :wall:

I am definitely seeing a pattern here.

She is not ready to completely drop the sleep - on Monday when she had no sleep at all, by 6pm she was a mess - irritable, grumpy, grizzly, whingey, didn't eat her dinner and then was really awful after dinner. We were at my sister's house and she kept deliberately antagonising her cousins - pushing them, wrecking their train set, stealing their toys... and I know it was because she was tired.

So I've told the nanny not to let her sleep more than an hour today and we'll see how we go tonight.

DD1 is 3 this month and hasnt had a day sleep since she was 2. We do quiet time most afternoons though which consists of a blanket, a pillow and TV for about an hour. There is no way in hell I would have been able to get her to have a day sleep at 2yrs 9months, so I think you have done well to get one out of her this long :D

Thanks for your update OP. You know the issues we have with DS. I have actually tried to cut out his daysleep at home and limit it to 1 hour when he's in care and he wouldn't have a bar of it lol!! Somedays he doesn't have a sleep at home but others he will and he sleeps every day at care, usually for 1 to 1.5hours. I'd love to cut it out cause I think he'd be asleep at a reasonable hour too instead of sometime between 8-9pm :rolleyes:

Good luck with Miss I. I really hope it resolves your evening bedtime to cut back on the day sleep.

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DD1 is 3 this month and hasnt had a day sleep since she was 2. We do quiet time most afternoons though which consists of a blanket, a pillow and TV for about an hour. There is no way in hell I would have been able to get her to have a day sleep at 2yrs 9months, so I think you have done well to get one out of her this long :D

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Lol thanks MM... my niece is 3yrs 4mths and still has one!

Kaz - I hope so too...

My DD was very similar, up so late at night after having a day sleep which I thought she still needed. A little after she was two, we dropped it and after a few days, she started going to sleep within about 5minutes between 6-6:30pm (still does). It was hard losing the day sleep at first and if we are ever out she will still try to sleep in the car but I've become a master of distraction. If she ever does have a nap, she is up past 9pm and I much prefer having the evening free with my DP than a few hours by myself in the middle of the day hehe. Dropping the sleep was the best thing we ever did, she was cranky those first few days but once she settled into an early bedtime, she has been fine; guess she only needed the day sleep because she was going to bed so late. I try to do any big outings etc in the morning while she is still fresh but we haven't had any problems of her becomming overtired, we always have quiet time where we read or do puzzles etc; she also started sleeping through a few nights a week and only waking once on the nights she doesn't (was previously up every few hours, even at 2).