Toddler Naps....

What age did your toddler just Crash out and sleep by him/herself?

I usually go out every day, and DS sleeps as I am driving about...Sometimes he will fall asleep in my arms with his bottle...then i put him down....However this is slowly diminishing, and I am in a bit of a pickle now, since I cant get him to have a nap when he is tired, by just putting him into his cot.....I hate the controlled crying thing, and I just wont do it...Has anyone got any gentle suggestions to get my son to have a nap when he is tired and not fight it?? He doesnt like being held or rocked when he is tired, he is such a hard one to calm and get to nap!!!!

Any thoughts or suggestions would be much appreciated.

Will he fall asleep listening to music or you singing? Or have you tried putting him in his cot and either just standing next to him or patting him until he falls asleep?

Hopefully someone will have more suggestions for you. For Kynan's day sleep I still have to wrap him and cuddle him to sleep and then play the waves sound on his aquarium LOL.

Thanks Angel, I think I might get one of those soothing baby sleep cd's...I cant go in and pat him to sleep, as he just stands up in his cot and screams for me to get him out LOL!

I still feed Sammy to sleep but if Darren is settling him he will lay down with him and sing and pat his back

Jo

Jenna has put herself to sleep for a while now. But we still get 1-2hr sleeps, so I'm thankful for that.
She has music as she goes to sleep. Its liek a trigger than its sleep time.
I have also heard sometimes play for up to 30mins before she finally drops off.
Is there anyway that he would fall asleep himself after playing in his cot for a while?

I dont think there is anythign wrong with feeding to sleep. If it works, dont break it!!

Matilda is in a bed now, and I sit on the edge of the bed & read a book to myself while she falls asleep for her naps. If she falls asleep in the car, she won't go back to sleep, so I try to get home pre-nap and sit with her. She has just recently stopped having a bottle for her day time nap and we go into her room & close curtains etc to make it darker with her cd's on and I just sit & look the other way. If she's having a cranky day she will want me to leave the room & she tosses & turns & kicks the wall but will finally fall asleep.

Goodluck!

Thanks Fi....The feeding doesnt always work...its wearing off LOL! I try playing full on for a half hour b4 putting him down, or giving him his bottle. He just throws dummies, toys and tantys whenever i put him in his cot for "nap naps"...Bless him....He is the most strong willed, determined toddler i have ever know in my life LOL!!!
Thank goodness he goes to bed no worries of an evening!!

Jo, I just tried to lay down with him, and pat him to sleep.....and singing....He just kept laughing at me and pulling at my face, mouth and nose!! Gotta luv em...

Ally, I think that for some kids full on playing before a nap might hype them up a bit and make it harder for them to crash out. Maybe for a couple of days you could try doing something that is more a winding down kind of activity like reading together, or listening to music and having a bit of a cuddle and chat or drawing.

Could you not lay down with him? Explain to him that mummy is having a rest now, and so must he? I dont know if your son is too young to understand, but i found with DD#1 at around 2 yrs we used to call it 'rest time' rather than sleep. The word sleep and what was associated with it used to horrify her! LOL. We would have cues just b4 rest time so she knew i.e after the wiggles, it was rest time, we would go into her room, close the blinds, change nappy, lie down and read a book, mummy lay down for 1 minute, then we go sleep. It took a good week b4 i could walk out of the room and wouldnt see her again for 1 hour. See how it goes......good luck.

MBear, There is just no way he will lay down with me at the moment...He is just full of life and cant sit still!! Even as a newborn he didnt sleep much thru the day.. On the day he was born, I have a photo of my OB holding him, and he has his eyes wide open!!!! I have tried laying with him but it doesnt seem that easy...Maybe he will change soon, but I will persist with it and try to get into a lay down with Mummy routine...Will see how we go ;)

Have you tried the pram? Maggie is a sleep fighter and sometimes I can "trick" her to sleep by putting her in the pram and pushing that back and forth to music. It is great because if she starts to stir I just need to push the pram for a bit. I know this is not a solution for the long term, but for me it has helped get me through some difficult phases.

What about lying in the lounge room watching a movie with him? I know its not ideal, but as he is way too young to stop the day time sleeps, maybe just sitting and resting might do - least its something! At least he is 'resting' for some part of the day. SOmetimes thats just as good as a sleep. You wonder where they get there energy from dont you? My #1 DD stopped her daytime sleeps at 23 months. I was heartbroken, as i knew it was too early. Like you said, my DD#1 is a good night sleeper, in at 645pm. right thru to 8am some nights.
Good luck

Indah is similar to Jenna... Although she wont take a dummy, she does want it in her cot & a teddy or 2 & a book(?) are all in her cot now, she puts them in there earlier in the day & when I pop her in her cot she may sit up reading & talking for anything up to an hour, but not whinging or anything hap[py to read & play & then she falls asleep & can sometimes be in her cot for up to 4 hours, she will then be awake for 2 hours & start to get grizzly & we pop her back & she then has a later arvo nap for 2ish hours, she never has trouble at night time either....

OMG....Fletch & Tracey, that would be heaven!!! I must admit James was in a great routine for sleeping for about a Month when he was 4 Months old....I could put him in the cot awake, turn on the musical mobile, put his dummy in then walk out, and 5 min later he would be asleep! I just dont know what went wrong?