First post...couldn't sit on the sidelines anymore! My wife and I have been struggling for a month or more with our 2.5 year old. She's suddenly reverted to the old "toaster" routine -- popping out of bed for hours after her bed time. We have a one year old so you can imagine the craziness that we're dealing with until midnight. We tried the Supernanny trick of sitting in her room and then slowly moving toward the door after several nights. My kid's too smart for this. She knows exactly when I make it outside the door and then all bets are off -- screaming, crying, yelling and so on. So, my question is: Does anyone have any ideas??? Thanks!
Restless Nights
One idea is to let her cry
One idea is to let her cry and scream it out. Another is to have her quit napping which I know is something you don't want to hear but you may be pleasantly suprised. I had my 2.5 year old quit napping when it became tough to get her down for a nap and for bed later and I actually like it because she goes to bed at least 2 hours earlier than she used to and is easy to get down. She also sleeps in later in the morning so the time I had at nap time has been replaced at night and in the morning. Plus the wife gets more free time which makes her happy.
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child
A book by a Chicago pediatrician, Dr. Weissbluth (sp?)
It is the single most valuable read you can get your hands on for sleep issues. Based on this book, I would suggest the opposite of the previous post. Keep her nap, and get her to bed earlier. Yes, earlier. My 18 mo. old gets a 2-3 hour nap every day, goes to sleep between 6:00 and 7:00, and sleeps straight through till 7:00 or 7:30. My 4 y.o. naps 1-2 hours, gets 10-12 overnight. This book works.
The mantra: Sleep begets sleep
Honest!
Jim
Boulder, CO
Dad to Cole, Luke & Trev
Read up...
And run her ragged whenever she's awake. Ours went through some separation anxiety at sleep time around the same age, so we also had to figure out and work on those issues with her,
we've been fortunate that sleep problems haven't lasted long. Have pretty much just used the APA Caring For Your Child Birth - 5yr book and stuff found online.
My 2 Cents
I think I agree with jpod00. Our 2.8 year old seems to be more difficult to get to bed when we let her stay up past her normal 7pm bedtime. She gets more and more riled up with each minute past bedtime. She still takes 2 hour naps during the day.
I think I agree with Murph too, because a friends 2 yo wouldn't sleep at night until they eliminated nap. Now she goes down by 8pm.
Good point
Yeah, I've suspected this. I have the book and read each chapter based on age. So, we've been trying a version of their program (putting her back to bed without eye contact and so on). No matter how late she goes to bed, she always wakes up right at 8a.m. I think her naps are a little late. So, maybe we make her naps AND bedtime earlier? Worth a shot for sure.
Stick a fork in ...
because she is done with naps. At 2yrs, 9 months, my middle son is a bear to get down if he has had his usual 1.5 to 2 hr nap. Once in a while lately, he refuses to nap and just plays around his room. On those days, he is much easier to get down at night. I really hate it, but most kids outgrow that wonderful afternoon nap.
...Till Well Done
Quote:
but most kids outgrow that wonderful afternoon nap.
No naps is harder on us dads because we know just how good that extra nap in the day that we nolonger get, is.
-Mike DT1 MPCG My Site, http://www.milehidad.com/ and my Blog, http://www.milehighdad.net/.
Make Babies, Not War!
I Wanna Know How Forever Feels...
I thought I was ...
the only one with night-waking 'problems'.
I can almost count the number of times my son has slept through the entire night on both hands since his arrival.
I am going to be checking into that book jpod00 recommended on Amazon.
It's almost as though this forum has some kind of mind-reading ability ... I was just thinking to myself 'now if I could only get my boy to sleep through the night....'
i don't know how much
i don't know how much it helps seeing how my son is only 9 months old but when I put him down at night, the nights i'm here at his bedtime I take him in and lay him down and just have to straight up tell him, not forcefully, but with sincere seriousness in my voice. "it's time to go to sleep, you have a big day tomorrow." I kiss him goodnight and walk out of his room. He fusses for about 5-10mins and then is out cold through the night. 8PM-6AM. He takes two 1.5hr naps during the day and thats it. Now on occasion if it's later then eight say if we're out as a family, then it's a little bit harder but he'll get fussy and let you know he's tired. It's just a routine though. Dinner at 6, bath at 7, bed at 8. just something you have to try and work in with him. and on weekends he gets up at 6 I feed him, we watch cartoons together for about an hour, while mom sleeps in more, and then we both crawl into bed with mom and go back to sleep till 10. just routine really. Don't know if it helps but it's something to look at.
we have a small light that
we have a small light that when it is on a the heat spins a part that cast stars and moons on the walls, that and some soft music helped us, the kids watch the light and listen to the misic and drift off.
~Daniel~
In Maine
Keeper of Erin & Adam and my wife keeps me.
The honey do list never ends!!!
flashlights
My .02
At 2.5 for some it's about the time when naps go bye bye. My youngest ditched them at about 20 months.
For bedtimes we had some fisher-price flashlights. Once they got tucked into bed, the boys could do whatever they wanted as long as the room lights stayed off and they didn't come out. They explored, looked at their books and toys, played with the flashlight, etc for a while and then fell asleep. Punishment for breaking the rules was loss of the flashlight, which of course was the end of the world....... Only took once each to learn I think.
Supernanny will hate me
I know that this sounds horrible and inhuman to some people, but when my kids would start the whole getting-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night thing, I put a latch on their door. On the outside.
Sleep time was sleep time. If they were going to fiddle around and not sleep, I always felt it would be safer to have them do so in their own room as opposed to wandering into the kitchen with the steak knives or the living room with all the shelves they loved to climb. That bedroom was gobs safer, and more confined. I will only say that the first couple of nights of "learning their limits" were the hardest for me.
"But what if there was a fire?" I sometimes hear. Well, if there is a fire, we have smoke detectors in all rooms and a family plan to get out. And a two-year-old is probably a goner without parental guidance there anyway, so I don't think a latch on the door is a relevant issue here. Maybe I'm wrong. But we are a family of five, alive, and well-rested. Just one dad's opinion.
Joined: 2008-04-01
Dad Points: 22