Is a rest ok instead of a sleep?

DD 14mths has never been a great sleeper but I have worked with her and accepted what I can get. For months she was standing in her cot resisting sleep in the end I used the safe-t-sleep product which meant she couldn't stand up - using this she would take 15mins to get to sleep with no struggle and in the mornings sleep for 1.25hrs and arvo .5hours. In arvo she would also wake up grumpy but could never resettle her so gave up trying. After some cuddles and food the grumps disappear and she is fine. Anyway she has worked out how to open the safe-t-sleep so once again trying to get her to sleep with her being able to stand.

This morning after 40mins of standing in cot she got herself to sleep for her usual 1.25hours. This arvo after 1.5hrs in cot she hadn't slept so I got her up. While in the cot she just played was never really crying (I went in twice when she had thrown her dummies out of the cot). When I got her up from the cot we didn't have the usual grumps she was happy straight away. She was showing signs of being tired before bed, hence me putting to bed.

So after all that do you think a rest/time in her cot is as good as a sleep? I really think she still needs 2 sleeps but the desire to stand and move around the cot sometimes appears more important to her than sleep.

he, he....whilst you might think she needs 2 sleeps a day, she obv has other ideas....

All my girls have dropped to 1 sleep a day after they turned 1. DD#3 dropped to 1 sleep at 10 months.....:o . How much sleep is she getting in a 24 hr period???? If she is sleeping 12,13 hrs a night, 2-3 hrs in the day maybe enough for her. Also, what is she doing in the morning? Is she being worn out? Is she doing any physical activities ? She simply may not feel tired enough for a sleep in the AM.

Maybe try alternating the days - having 2 days sleeps 1 day, 1 day sleep the next....

Good luck !

ETA - you said she is showing signs of tiredness....are they signs of tiredness, or boredom ? Just something to observe.......

Yep, I think she's dropping down to one sleep a day. Oskar used to wake around 7ish and be back down for a sleep around 11:30am a few months back, now he's gone to going down after lunch ...so around between 1 and 2 and sleeping for 2 hours roughly and that's it for the day. I would say that she's not wanting/needing the second sleep anymore.

DD generally sleep 11hrs overnight and her morning sleep is 1hr 15mins so really only getting 12hrs in total for the day that is why I would like her to have a second sleep but I do think she has other ideas.

If she is healthy and happy then she is probably getting enough. I think if she has been in her cot for 1.5 hrs just playing then she definitely isn't tired enough to sleep. Try to push her back a bit until you see some actual signs from her that she is tired. I know with my DS (18months) that he starts to get very unreasonable eg. cries for no good reason. Good luck!

My littlest hasn't had 2 day sleeps since I don't know when!

He sometimes doesn't even have a nap!

This happens with my 13 month old as well; some quiet time perks her right back up again. I think it's normal, other people have said the same things about their toddlers.

Sometimes Claire wont sleep either. If she doesnt sleep, I am not to worried. As long as she has some quiet time on her own, in her bed, then I am happy. I always wait for tired signs though and I only put her in bed if she shows me that she is tired or might be tired. Even if she doesnt sleep, and just has some quiet time, she always seems better afterwards. I wouldnt worry about it too much. Some toddlers just dont need as many sleeps as others.