The Importance of nap time
How do you feel about nap time? Is it an important part of your daily routine with your little ones or are you more easy come easy go about it? Find out how mum of 5 and Parent Panel member Amy copes with it in her family.
With all my children I have always been a big believer in promoting a good relationship with sleep. When they were newborns I was a fan of trying to recognise when they were tired, trying to look out for the signs such as, were they starting to get cranky, how long has been since their last nap, do they look tired with that wide-eyed stare.
There is nothing worse than an over tired baby, they start to cry because they are tired, which in turn makes them more tired and if they are little they use a lot of energy and become hungry again. So then you get the dilemma of are they hungry or tired? So you give baby a feed and they don’t take it because they are exhausted, finally after getting them to sleep they only sleep for 30mins if that because it’s taken that long to settle then it’s feed time again and the whole thing starts all over again.
It was hard going when this used to happen and I went through it a lot with my second daughter, she wasn’t a fan of daytime sleep as she slept through at night from around 6weeks. ‘Lucky you’ I hear you say; I would disagree. I would rather get up once a night and a have a baby that napped well in the day.
A good nap in the mid morning and late afternoon can make bedtimes calmer and less fretful. Baby isn’t over tired when it comes to bedtime after a few good naps and it is also easier to promote self settling if they are just sleepy and not distraught.
I found that establishing a good nap time routine is key to successful day time snoozing. With all my children I would do the same thing:
● Tell them it was snooze time
● Pick them up and cuddle them in their blanket
● Take them upstairs or pop in a pram or wherever baby sleeps
● Give them a feed
● Stroke forehead and kiss and say night night
As they got older I would just give them a bottle to drink and they would happily munch the whole lot and then fall asleep.
Another good point is that I tried to keep nap time the same time everyday whilst establishing a good nap routine. Yes we know we have busy lives and sometime we have to go out etc but maybe whilst trying to get a good nap thing going try to forgo any other plans and concentrate on getting this right. A few days of nothing but concentrating on getting a routine sorted will pay off immensely in the future.
My routine is what enables me to look after my 5 children and make sure everyone is well fed, rested and loved. Another good thing about having a regular nap time is that if you have other children you can plan activities to do whist baby is sleeping, we do this with my 3yo, it’s perfect for one to one time.
Nap times are great and if you get it right it can be a wonderful experience for you and your baby.
We love receiving comments from you so please join in and tell us how important nap time is in your family? We’ll be choosing one person who comments on Amy’s post to win one of our Silicone Teethers.
UPDATE 24/05/11 : Thanks for all your comments. The winner of the Silicone Teether is Tina H, congratulations!
Im a big believer in a good nap/sleep routine. My little boy is like sleeping beauty he loves his sleep lol! He currently has 2 naps a day and he will sit and moan until I take him up to sleep in his cot, I can set my clock by him. But if we are out and about he wont nap until he is completely exhausted but I just think he is just too nosey.
I carried on his rountine from when he was in special care as a newborn and we have gone from there. He slept through from 5 weeks although I did swaddle him and had to wait till he was 6 months when he decided that he didnt want to sleep like an sausage roll anymore!! With the help of being swaddled he self settled very well and only now at 10 months we are having some restless nights (so I cant really complain).
with my next baby I will definately try and get them into a good daytime nap routine xx
Hi Keeley, what a great routine you have going there and probably you’ll find your next baby will sync naptimes with your little boy once he/she is over the newborn stage. I always found my 3 slept so much better at night when they’d had a good nap or 2 in the daytime. It gives you time to rest or catch up with housework etc too, so good for baby and good for mum. Perfect! x
My four year old loved he’s naps in the day, i also found it useful to do the housework & plan/set up activites for when he was awake. Now with a newborn i find im napping myself when she does ( although its never long) but i think just a power nap or resting the eyes can help you get along with the day.
My first daughter was a nightmare with sleep, she wouldn’t do more than 20mins for a nap, gave naps up by 18m and didn’t sleep through the night until she was nearly 4… Even now she’s 7 she’s not a big fan of sleep now and has been caught starting the day at 4:45!
My second daughter was a dream in comparison, two 4hr naps and a good 11/12hrs through the night when she was small… now she is nearly 2 she will usually still have a good 2hr nap most days and we rarely have a broken night with her… I always said she was my reward for not smothering dd1 lol…
My newest daughter is just coming up to 3 months old and thankfully is more like dd2 in her sleep habits… off a little sporadic with her naps…
I totally agree! Getting into a routine with naptimes for my daughter was so important to me from day one, so that I got one 2 one playtime with my 3yo son Ben. Now my daughter has a bf and goes down for her daytime naps like clockwork (99% of the time!). It’s great as I can plan activities to do wth my son while she’s having her well needed rest! I just wish she was as good a sleeper at night! Six months old next week and have’nt had a full night yet! xxx
mine have ALWAYS had nap time in the afternoon and bath before bed time… it really settles them and gets them into a nice routine
Hi Tina, good for you, people always tell mums to nap when their newbornns do but it’s not always easy to switch off. Enjoy it xx
Wow Joanna what a difference in sleep habits between your first and second, lucky you that number 3 is loving her naps too x
Hi Jen, it’s so nice to have that quality time with your other children isn’t it? My 3 kids were between 10 and 12 months before thay settled down for a full night’s sleep and the 6 month mark is full of changes with development and feeding etc. x
Hi Nicci, absolutely agree, routine nap time is a great way to help settle little ones at night x
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