I am going to sound like a broken record but I CAN'T get my DS to nap for longer than 30 mins. Well scratch that I can but only if I continually bounce him in his boucey chair or I nap beside him. Both situations don't allow me to get anymore done around here than the 30 minute naps. I have tried all the tricks I have read about. Trying to stir him so he's at a different stage of the cycle at the 30 min mark. Waiting until he starts to wake and then getting him back to sleep(that one doesn't work as he goes from asleep to wide awake without a grace period in between!) I have tried making the room nice and warm to keep him drowsy. I just don't know what to do anymore!!! Am I doomed to have a cat-napper forever??? Will the only way I will get anymore length out of him is if I bounce him in his chair until we pass the dreaded 30 min mark??? Has anyone else gone through this and came out the other side with a longer napper?

My first daughter was a total cat-napper. As an infant, she would take like five 20 minute naps. So annoying, but she slept at night great, so I didn't complan all the time.

My son also showed signs of the cat-napper early on. I decided to let him nap on the living room floor on his belly. It made a HUGE difference. I put him on the floor so I could watch him if he put his face flat down. He did several times, but I would just move his head back to the side. I was able to get a ton done in that time, but I would just check on him often if I left the room. Eventually when he was about 4 months old, I moved him to his crib and put him on his belly there. He had much better neck strength, but I still checked him often.

For some reason he didn't mind being on his back at night. I only put him on his belly during the day and at night it was his back since I couldn't watch him. He has always been a good napper and still is.

I sympathize with you b/c my daughter can be like this too. I am lucky in that most of the time, she at least gets a long morning nap of 1-3 hours, but after that it's always 30 minute naps the rest of the day. And you could set a clock to her, 30 minutes exactly LOL. But I feel your pain, b/c when she doesn't take a long nap in the morning and I have to deal with those all day, you just can't get anything done. I wish I had a secret tip for you to make your DS nap longer, but I can't figure out why my DD sometimes naps long in the morning, and sometimes doesn't.

My DD used to nap in the swing, that's the only place we could get her to sleep in the day, now we've moved her to a raised seat that sits in the crib (she has acid reflux, so we keep her elevated 30-60 minutes after feedings). And she naps fine there after about 2 days of adjusting to that. Some babies take up to a week or two to adjust to a change in their napping spot, so have you given him enough time to adjust (without changing it again?)--I assume you have, but that's the only thing I can think of!

Good luck. Perhaps as he gets older his naps will change naturally too (hopefully longer). :)

E1979 ~ How old is your son? When my daughter was a little younger, she also did the 20-30 minute cat naps...so annoying, but she was too young to establish a pattern.
Now I am blessed with a WONDERFUL napper and a WONDERFUL sleeper at night. I'll share what I've been doing...
First, do you have a mobile over the crib? We use the Rainforest Mobile that they sell at Walmart. It's great! She is 5 months now and is still mesmerized (sp?) by it to this day. We put it up at about 2 months. It has music and the leaves move while it's spinning.
Also, keep your son's room slightly cooler...kid's sleep better when it's about 67-68 degrees. If it gets too warm, he's bound to wake up. No one likes to sleep in a room that's too warm.
Have you tried warming his sheets up before you lay him down? We used to use a heating pad because my daughter would wake up as soon as we put her down (Not with the heating pad though!!!). Just lay the heating pad on his sheets until you're ready to put him down.
I know that my daughter is ready for a nap after she's been up for about 2 hours. I lay her down in her crib with a blanket by her cheek (she likes this) and her pacifier. I start the mobile, say "goodnight" and walk out. When she did wake up too early, I did the same thing...I DO NOT pick her up until that one hour mark.
I hope this helps!!! Good luck!!!
Laura

DS is 6 months old and we do have a mobile above his bed. He sleeps really well at night but only cat naps during the day. We don't do the "put him down and leave him alone" thing. It just doesn't work with him. I get him to sleep before I put him down. And we do the same thing with the heating pad to warm his bed up first. Now before anyone says anything about him needing to learn to fall asleep on his own, he sometimes wakes up during the night and will put himself back to sleep so I know he can.
Maybe I will try the cooler room idea. For some reason I just thought if the room was warmer he'd be more sleepy. I find warmth makes me drowsy so I just thought it would work on him too. Never tried putting him to sleep in his belly. Not sure if he would like it but maybe I will try it tomorrow.

I second the tummy sleep or swing idea. Both tend to work very well.

Nancy

At 6 months you can definitely put him on his belly. I wouldn't give it a second thought!

My first daughter didn't start to take better naps until she was more mobile and would tire herself out. And then the longest I got was 1.5 hours, but it was way better than the cat-naps!

So my next question is how do you put them down on their belly without them waking up? I rock DS to sleep or walk with him but he's on his back or kinda on his side/back while I do this. How would I put him down in his crib and turn him onto his front without waking him up? Does anyone have a technique for this? I was going to try the tummy today but once I got him to sleep I chickened out because I didn't want to risk waking him by trying to flip him over before I put him down. :rolleyes:

I'm not sure if I can still help, but I'll try! As far as putting him down when he's still asleep, he'll probably still wake up. Does he take a pacifier? Have you tried room darkening shades so he associates darkness with sleep? Soft music?
If he stirs or even cries, let him for a few minutes - Just don't pick him up. Gradually let it go longer until he soothes himself back to sleep. It can't hurt! He'll get the message. I'm not trying to play the "mean mommy" but he's at a great stage where it's hit or miss. If you continue, you may end up doing this for a lot longer than you want.
Good luck!!! :cool:

Well since he sleeps through the night I have no problem rocking/walking him to sleep. I love my cuddle time with him before bed, he recently stopped nursing cold turkey(his decision not mine!) so I need my cuddle fix.

Why not practice it when he's awake and see which way is less disturbing? I'm not trying to be a mean mom either, but letting him fuss if he slightly wakes isn't a terrible thing. Maybe you can pat his bottom or rub his back to reassure him. I will say this, and it may sound mean, but it's better to let them fuss and learn to go back to sleep before they can pull themselves up and stand. Once they're able to stand, well, forget it, they're awake now and forget the nap.

Well at today's nap I tried to put him down on his tummy and it went well. He didn't wake up at all when I put him down. He did wake up 20-30 mins after and he lifted his head clear off the bed and looked at me (I was laying right next to him) I started patting him bum and he just dropped his head back down and went back to sleep. Then the dogs started to bark and woke him up again. This time he didn't go back to sleep so I picked him up and after just a few minutes of walking he was asleep again. So I once again put him on his tummy. Then he went on to sleep for another hour. He stirred a couple of times so I just rubbed his back or patted his bum.
I did want to mention again though, that he can and does put himself back to sleep in the night unless he is really wet, dirty, or hungry. But that's to be expected. Most nights though he sleeps from 9pm to 7-8am.

Hi E1979,

Have you considered using a baby Bjorn carrier? It's like a backpack that you put on your front & the baby can either face you or outwards. I have one & i find it great if my little girl (7 weeks) just wants to be close to me & won't settle when i put her down, because i can still get things done around the house & she is happy :D

Numb xoxoxox