# How long does your toddler nap?



## newmamalizzy (Jul 23, 2010)

DD (just shy of 16 months) has always been a lousy napper. For the past month or two she's started napping once a day for exactly 1 hour and 20 minutes. At least once a week, something goes wrong and she can't sleep at her normal time. Then she naps for 40 minutes several hours later than usual. I'm pretty sure this constitutes the low end of the napping spectrum for a baby her age, but I'm curious to see what other toddlers do at various ages.

Edit: Honestly, the latent scientist in me just REALLY wants to see a histogram. I'm hoping for a bell curve


----------



## wishin'&hopin' (Jun 2, 2008)

DS (15 months) has been napping anywhere from 2-3 hours. However, if he wakes up after less than 2 1/2 hours he has a VERY hard time--lots of weeping and gnashing of teeth. When he sleeps close to 3 hours he wakes up smiling. Overnight he sleeps 10 (10 1/2 on a good night)--so I've actually been a tad worried that he's not getting enough total sleep!


----------



## dancingflower (Oct 5, 2009)

Ds is 17mo. He does a solid 2 hrs (sometimes more, less often less) in a quite late nap (5 to 6 hrs after waking. With him, contrary to most moms experience, I found that he sleeps best if I push his nap for as late as possible.

This amount is pretty good. But this is new. He was never this great of a napper. It started probably a month or so. Before that, his naps would be just around one hour and never longer than 1.5hrs, whether it was his first, second or the only nap of the day.


----------



## P.J. (May 18, 2010)

I voted 1.5 hours. DS is 14 months and usually has one big (for him) nap either late morning or midday that lasts usually 1hour or 1 hour 15/20 minutes. On the rare occasion he has slept 2 hours, which was just unbelievable to us! Also, if he wakes up and I get in there and lie down with him and nurse him, sometimes he'll fall back asleep and sleep either 30 mins or another hour. I was just reading that this is a common pattern. Maybe you could try going in as soon as you hear her stirring and helping her fall back asleep.

We are also transitioning form 2 to 1 nap and it's tough because he often would fall asleep late afternoon, but if it's too late (like after 5), he will then be up til 10pm. But if he doesn't have that second nap he can be real grumpy for the last couple hours of the day. Also a typical toddler drama, and I expect the transition to one nap will take another few months at least.


----------



## coldandsleepy (Aug 5, 2008)

When my son was 16 months, I considered myself lucky if he napped an entire hour. What's interesting is that when he was a bit older-- around 19 months-- he suddenly started taking these enormous 3+ hr naps. Changed my life. 

He's 22 months now and has dropped back down to napping about 1.5 hrs but oh what a beautiful month or two we had.


----------



## Coconut Chronicles (Aug 31, 2006)

DS is 23 months and naps 2.5 to 3 hours a day


----------



## somegirl99 (Aug 22, 2009)

DS is just over 12 months and is napping anywhere from 1 hour to 3.5 hours.


----------



## Dot-to-Dot (Sep 27, 2010)

I just want to say that I am UBER jealous of people who have toddlers who nap 2-3 hours. My life would be SO different if my daughter napped like that. There's should be some sort of tax benefit for people who got short nappers.







It seriously limits your ability to function properly when you have a baby/toddler who doesn't nap or only takes a short nap. At 22 months, my dd naps about an hour, sometimes not at all though. If she napped for 3 hours I'd be in there checking on her every 5 minutes wondering what was wrong with her!


----------



## Agatha_Ann (Apr 5, 2009)

My guy naps from 1-4 everyday. He will be a total monster if he sleeps less than 2 hours. He'll function fine on a 2 hour nap, but the next day he'll sleep for 4.


----------



## Snapdragon (Aug 30, 2007)

3- 4 hrs total (2 naps)


----------



## Hannah32 (Dec 23, 2009)

I have a 13 m.o. He does two naps, usually about 1 1/2 to 2 hrs each. Sometimes, we have trouble with the second nap. He sort of wants to give it up, but he's not ready to do so. When that nap is only 45 minutes (usually preceding by 45 m of goofing around in his crib), it's often a sad afternoon with lots of grumps.


----------



## MJB (Nov 28, 2009)

My 12 mo. old naps once a day, for 1-3 hours. I voted 2 because it's usually between 1.5 and 2.5 hours.


----------



## newmamalizzy (Jul 23, 2010)

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Dot-to-Dot*
> 
> I just want to say that I am UBER jealous of people who have toddlers who nap 2-3 hours. My life would be SO different if my daughter napped like that. There's should be some sort of tax benefit for people who got short nappers.
> 
> ...


I TOTALLY agree! Mine was the type that did 4 40 minute naps a day on my lap until she was, like, 8 months old, then did two 40 minute naps a day for a while, but I could only get her to sleep in the car during that stage. These 1:20 naps in her bed are just amazing to me. I can't believe all the stuff I can get done! I can't even imagine how different my life would have been with a baby who napped for hours in a bed throughout babyhood. It's totally, to me, the difference between parents who think having a baby is easy-peasy, and how crazy and stressed I've been the whole time I've had an infant. I'm definitely claiming that tax benefit.


----------



## kitteh (Jun 25, 2009)

My 18-month-old usually naps 2-3 hours a day, but never at any real predictable time. We have a late-to-bed, late-to-rise lifestyle right now and she's a natural night owl. DH works nights, usually from 2-10PM or 3-11PM, and Ela likes to be up when he gets home. We wait for him to get home to have a late dinner together, so that forces our nights to be later.

She usually falls asleep for the night around 1AM (though last night she decided sleep was for suckers and tried to keep playing in bed til almost 3AM! wtf) She generally sleeps 10 hours a night, down from 12 a few months ago. The best-case scenario is when she takes her nap around 5PM and sleeps til 7PM. But sometimes she fakes me out, acting like she's sleepy but fighting it til 8 or 9. Those are usually the nights when she stays up well past midnight.

I'm starting a part-time job at the end of August, and I'll have to start getting up around 8AM. It should be interesting to see what this does to our schedule. I wouldn't mind it if we all started getting up and going to bed a bit earlier than we currently do, but I'm not sure how that will pan out with DH's schedule.


----------



## Adaline'sMama (Apr 16, 2010)

My 16 month old either doesnt take a nap at all and is really cranky or she takes a 2-3 hour nap and stays up all night. grr....


----------



## Terrilein (Jan 9, 2007)

ds is 12 months and stll has 2 naps mostly. He never sleeps for more than an hour at a time. So he basically gets 2 hours naptime during the day. He sleeps anywhere between 8-10 hours at night, usually waking once for a feeding, but sometimes it's all night. Like last night.


----------



## octobermom (Aug 31, 2005)

16 months she takes one "alone" nap in the am ussually about 1.5 hours then sometims cosleeps a power nap around 20-30 mintues around 4pmish.


----------



## EmTheWife (May 28, 2010)

At 15 months, ds sleeps 1.5-2.5 hrs for his nap, which is 5-6 hours after waking. He's happiest if he gets the full 2.5 hrs. He sleeps 10.5-11 hrs at night, usually 7:30pm-6:30am.


----------



## Marissamom (Dec 17, 2009)

at that age DD was taking a 2 hour nap every day. now, at 26 months, she takes a two hour nap about once a week and doesn't nap the rest of the week.


----------



## Xavismom (Dec 22, 2009)

DS (20 mo) wakes up around 7:30-8:00

Nap begins somewhere around 11:00-Noon, lasts anywhere from 2-3 hours

Bedtime is 9:00ish.

This is his schedule, not mine. I just follow his cues. It changes every few weeks, just when I start to get used to it =)

Some days he has a much shorter nap, around 45 min to 1 hour... late afternoon to bedtime on those days is AWFUL.


----------



## NWnewmom (Nov 6, 2009)

DS is a week shy of 15 months and naps twice a day for 1.5-2 hours although I have a feeling he will be transitioning to one nap in the not too distant future. He goes to bed at 7pm and wakes up between 6 and 6:30am.


----------



## Nicole730 (Feb 27, 2009)

My almost 17 month old naps about 2 hours a day - from 10am-noon. She could do with a late afternoon nap - around 4pm, but I try to skip it because her bedtime is 7pm at the latest, usually more like 6pm. And I enjoy the early bedtime!

My son was not a napper, when he was her age is was the "struggle for one hour to get him to sleep so he can nap 30 minutes" nap. I love and appreciate how well my daughter naps.


----------



## McGucks (Nov 27, 2010)

Holly--I really, really feel for you on the no-napper. DS1 did not nap at all at that age and it was bad.

DS2 naps around two hours a day. He recently switched from two shorter naps to one long one, but has (fortunately) been able to go to sleep between 8:30 and 9:00 instead of 10:00-ish like he used to. He's typically up around 7 or so.


----------



## BeachLove (May 10, 2011)

My DD is just shy of 2 years old, and she naps anywhere from 1.5-2.5 hours a day (2 hrs is pretty typical). The only thing is, she HAS to be in bed with me for naps. At night she sleeps just fine in her own crib. But nap time has become "snuggles" in our house, and it's rather nice for me, since I get a nap or I get to read while she is sleeping.

The downside is, of course, no "me" time during naptime, but oh well.


----------



## lovepickles (Nov 16, 2010)

Beachlove I am in the SAME boat only I hold my 19month daughter in my lap while sitting on a giant exercise ball with a boppy and some extra pillows in front of my computer. Otherwise she won't sleep for longer than 20 minutes at a time. She sleeps for 2.5 hours and by the end of it my backside is numb. I can get her to sleep at night just fine in our bed but she wakes so frequently during naps anything short of holding her is impossible. She gets so upset if she wakes up alone during the day that she cries so hard she wakes up for good ... and is miserable the rest of the day. I don't mind holding her but I'm tired of hunching over her for 2.5 hours a day.


----------



## Jewels* (Sep 20, 2010)

My almost 12 month old sleeps for 1.5 to 2 hours, from about 10 am to noon. *ALWAYS* falling asleep in the ergo on my back while i do dishes! (I have occasionally scrubbed the kitchen sink spotless when there were no dishes)

She could use an afternoon nap, but then wouldn't go to sleep at 6:30 - 7 pm for her bedtime... if she does have an afternoon nap, she'll be up until 10 or eleven. Then it takes days to get back on track!

And I sure do looove the early bedtime like someone else already mentioned.


----------



## Asiago (Jul 1, 2009)

My 21 mos. old naps 2-4 hrs.once daily, but I nurse him back down at least every hour. Otherwise his nap would be only one hour, at the most.

Overall he sleeps on average 13 hrs daily. Every baby is different and perhaps what matters more than napping duration is the overall amount of sleep in a 24 hr. period (?)


----------



## sarahr (Mar 29, 2007)

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *newmamalizzy*
> 
> I TOTALLY agree! Mine was the type that did 4 40 minute naps a day on my lap until she was, like, 8 months old, then did two 40 minute naps a day for a while, but I could only get her to sleep in the car during that stage. These 1:20 naps in her bed are just amazing to me. I can't believe all the stuff I can get done! I can't even imagine how different my life would have been with a baby who napped for hours in a bed throughout babyhood. It's totally, to me, the difference between parents who think having a baby is easy-peasy, and how crazy and stressed I've been the whole time I've had an infant. I'm definitely claiming that tax benefit.


Totally agree with this. My dd was like your daughter when she was a baby, and I thought it was normal to never have time to yourself. My ds has always been a bed (or swing) napper and rarely wakes up in the middle of his nap, and it's a totally different lifestyle.


----------



## YayJennie (Aug 7, 2008)

My son has always slept A LOT of his age. He's currently 28 months and still takes a solid 2-2.5 hour nap (sometimes he'll sleep for over 3 hours!) every.single.day. When he was 16 months he was still sleeping for an hour and a half twice a day. But he's always slept way more than other kids his age.


----------



## mommy68 (Mar 13, 2006)

About an hour usually. A little more if riding in the van.


----------



## clockworkhobbsy (Jul 10, 2011)

DS sleeps at the exact same times every day it seems -- 30 mins around Noon and 1.5-2 hrs in the afternoon. I'm a nut for routine, and he just got used to it. I carry him in an Ergo for walks at the same times every day so it just works out. Then I lay in bed with him against my chest and I watch a movie or TV with some headphones. It's not because he's any different or more special than other children (though he is certainly special to me!), it's just the predictable routine that makes the difference for us.

Good luck.


----------



## stephbrownthinks (Feb 2, 2010)

My DS is 15 months old and usually takes two, 2-3 hour naps per day. He goes to sleep between 7 and 8, usually sleeps through the night without even waking to eat, and wakes up between 5:30 and 6am. He has a toddler bed that he can climb in and out of so he plays until he decides to pass out, and now that its summer and stays light for so long his bed time has been getting later and later (he used to pass out by 6:30). I work an early shift and have to drop him off at my mom's house in the morning, so usually I have to actually wake him up. I think if I didn't work he would probably sleep much later in the morning and maybe only take one nap? I work M-TH but then we try to keep to the same wake/sleep schedule F-Sun too. Most days he's up around 6, naps from 9-11 or 11:30, naps again from 2-4, then is asleep by 8. He is a GREAT sleeper (climbs into bed and puts himself to sleep), but will ONLY sleep in his bed so I guess its kind of a trade off. He won't sleep in our bed, other people's houses, the carseat... but at home (or my mom's house) he will nap for hours.


----------



## mamabelle (Mar 16, 2011)

We had to get our toddler (23 months) on the daycare nap schedule of about 2 hours in the afternoon. It's working out pretty well. We had one issue with him wanting to nap for 3+ hours but found that it strongly correlated with him waking up at 5am. When we limited the nap to 2 to 2.5 hours, he would sleep until 6 or 6:30am which is much better for us and he seems to adjust fine. He always wants to go to bed by 8pm, so limiting his nap has been the only way to get him to sleep to a more reasonable morning hour. There have been a few times he really didn't want to wake up after 2 hours, and we would let him sleep more, but usually he wakes up happy and ready to play!


----------



## WildinTheory (Aug 3, 2006)

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Nicole730*
> 
> My almost 17 month old naps about 2 hours a day - from 10am-noon. She could do with a late afternoon nap - around 4pm, but I try to skip it because her bedtime is 7pm at the latest, usually more like 6pm. And I enjoy the early bedtime.


Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Jewels**
> 
> My almost 12 month old sleeps for 1.5 to 2 hours, from about 10 am to noon. *ALWAYS* falling asleep in the ergo on my back while i do dishes! (I have occasionally scrubbed the kitchen sink spotless when there were no dishes)
> 
> ...


This is our schedule too. I'm trying to push back the morning nap a little to 10:30 or even 11 just because it helps shorten the afternoon a little for my 13 month old. She is almost always sleeping by 6:45 and will sleep till about 7:30 am. (Yay me! Although she does nurse through out the night.) Yesterday we had an afternoon birthday party and she slept on the drive home and while I did a few errands from 4:00 to 5:30. Boy did I pay for that one! She was up until almost 10. But morning naps have worked really well for both of my kids. Afternoon naps, on the other hand, no so much.


----------



## Lynann (Jul 29, 2010)

My DS is 14 months and he is a great sleeper, and has been right from the start. He was one of those rare babies that starting sleeping through the night at only 6 weeks old without any prompting from us. In fact at the beginning I would try to wake him for one of his night feeds and he would stay asleep, so I had to learn to let him sleep.

He currently has 2 naps for about 2 hours each AND sleeps for about 12 hours at night. I am hoping this lasts for a while yet as we are about to have a newborn, and I have a feeling this LO probably won't be as good a sleeper as DS.


----------

