Do Kids Perfer Certain Things for Naps??

well people call me a horrible mother, but the only way I could get either one of my sons to take a nap is to put on a disney movie. They say you should not let a child fall to sleep with tv. But if thats the only way he will go to sleep, than so be it.

I did the same thing you did when my kids were a lot younger and then when they got to six mos I moved them to their crib to nap. They do need peaceful sleep but it is so great you have gotten him used to the noise. It can be a double edged sword as too much being used to it he will constantly need it. I have never used a night light for my kids as they share a room and my son loves it dark and it just works for us. I think whatever works for you is great. I think moving him in a few months would be the answer so he doesn't have to have all this noise to sleep every time.

My son, until he was about 4 - 5 months old, could sleep through anything. At some point, he started not sleeping well - except in his dark, quiet room in his crib. Your son is now probably more interested in the world around him than in sleeping. Putting him in a quiet, boring room should help him to nap better. I found that this worked for me. Also - a great book I would recommend to ANYONE is "healthy sleep habits, happy child" by Dr. Weissbluth. It addresses all kinds of sleep problems by age, including naps!
Good luck!

Both of my children wanted to hold things while they went to sleep. They almost always held on to my nightgown because when I would feed them they felt the softness of the nightgown. My daughter slept with her silky jacket and my son slept with a piece of an old nightgown I had. They also had a small special stuffed animal to sleep with.

I think if your baby is a busy boy the noise will distract him. He is getting older and may not need to nap as long as he used to. Don't fret! But you may have to alter your schedule a little bit.

Hi!

Around 5 1/2 months babies tend to become much more aware of their surroundings which you are noticing. I think the best thing for you to do is put your son down for his naps in his crib. Do a little naptime routine and make his room dark so he understands it is nap time. You might need to experiment with the white noise at nap time. My daughter has had her room dark and white noise since day one.
Goodluck!
C.

I think right about 4-6 mo babies become very aware of everything that is happening around them and I would move nap to his room if I were you, pull the shades maybe some classical music on repeat would help too. It make take him awhile to get use to the new sleeping arrangements up in the end it wil be what is best for your little man

I STRONGLY recommend a book called "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child." It has been perfect for both of my boys. It talks a lot about quiet (not necessarily silent), dark sleep areas from about 4 months old on. My boys have all napped very well and slept for 11-14 hours at night. If you really want a well-rested family, get the book. It's also a good resource as your child grows and their sleep needs change. Good luck!

yes! you need to get the book "healthy sleep habits, healthy child," by marc weissbluth. i was a nanny for 10+ years, specializing in sleep. (i don't like to call it training- it's understanding) once you understand how sleep works for baby and why it is so important, you will find it easier to take care of your baby's sleep needs. 30 minutes are not naps- the duration needs to be at least 45 minutes. this is a baby's minimum r.e.m. cycle. the book i recommend is very respectful of attachment parenting styles, too. the other recommendation i would make if you're not already doing this is to wear your baby. get a sling or a wrap (and not a commercial one you find at babysrus- get a maya type sling or a moby type wrap). mamatoto.org is a great resource for how-to. my experience says that the more secure baby feels, the easier they fall asleep (less anxiety) and the best way to make them feel secure is to wear them. you'll also be amazed at how much you can get done! best wishes and if you're in salt lake, feel free to contact me personally and i can assist.
mare

I remember reading that adults need to simulate night to nap well, but babies need to have light in their rooms when they nap so that they can keep their days and nights straight. So no dark curtains, etc.
I think I would try putting him down for a nap in his room, so if he wakes up, he won't see anything of interest and will learn to fall back asleep on his own. That, believe me, is a very very important skill you want him to learn!

I have always put my kids down for naps the same way you do and have always found them to go through periods just like you described, when I would try to move them to a quiter room they would sleep even worse, so I put them back on the couch and do all the cleaning that required less noise and then when they woke up I would do the louder cleaning. I don't know if that really answered your question but that has been my solution.....good luck! And keep the t.v on I and my children like background noise, I go against the norm.

My Daughter did the same thing. I could make all kind of noise and she would sleep in the living room with no problem until she was about 4 months old. Then i started putting her in her crib. I also got her a sound machine that just sounds like air or a fan going. That kept any noise from waking her up and it also gave her some calming noise so it wasn't too quiet in her room. Also during this time babies are very interested in everything so he might go through a little faze of not napping well but he will get over it. My daughter now 15 months old as gone through a few napping fazes like that.

My son just turned 7 months old and from the reading I've done, babies around 5-8 months typically nap at least an hour in the morning (around 9am or 2 hours after waking) and then take a longer nap, about 2+ hours, in the afternoon (at about 1p). Consider pickig up a copy of Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth. It helped me understand how a baby's natural biorhythms influence the time of day he/she will tend to feel tired, etc.

Also, at your son's age, you might check to see if he is teething... that discomfort can definitely disrupt sleep. Try Hyland's Teething Tablets -- I've used them with both my children with great success.

And finally, try giving your son a super soft or silky blanket to hold when he's going down for his naps. I call both my kids "blanket babies" because they just fall asleep so much easier when they've got their blankets to rub against their faces. It's sort of a ritual for both of them -- but only at rest times... nothing like Linus, so don't worry about your son creating an unhealthy attachment :0)

One last comment -- avoid ever starting the habit/expectation that sleep time must happen in a quiet, dark room. I know a woman who had "blackout" blinds on her son's windows, and now he is so programmed to have complete dark when he sleeps, that he cannot nap anywhere away from home. Don't let that happen to you...

Best of luck!

Ideally you want him to sleep in both kinds of situations: noisy and quiet. You probably don't want him to have to have noise at night for the rest of his life. Before he was born he napped in both situations, while you were awake and moving around there were noises and while you were sleeping in bed and all was quiet. I chose to have my girls sleep in their beds during the day. I used the radio, the piano, and my vacuum to help them still practice sleeping with noise but at night I left things dark and quiet. I did not want my children learning to fall asleep whenever they watched TV so I did not use the TV as a means to help them fall asleep. (I don't think it helps a child learn good listening skills to have the TV on all of the time as background noise because they learn to just tune that out--not good at school with the teacher.) Also, I found that as my kids got older they could not fall asleep to noise as easily mainly because they knew what those noises were and came to know that they wanted to be a part of them. I would keep things somewhat quiet until I knew my child was in deeper sleep and then make the noises gradually become louder and louder.

Also, know that it is normal for all human beings to wake up at various times throughout the night. We have all learned how to put ourselves back to sleep very quickly though and don't always realize we've woken up. Napping for 30 minutes at a time may be a sign that he doesn't know how to put himself back to sleep. Having too many noisy distractions within eye sight might be discouraging him from being able to put himself back to sleep.

Different kids sleep have differing sleep needs and truthfully, what it sounds like to me is that your 5 1/2 month old is going through a sleep transition and only needs one nap a day. Or maybe one nap one day and two naps the next for the next couple of weeks until he's only needing one a day. He may be slightly young for only one nap a day compared to some babies, but it just may be that that is what he needs. If I were you I'd try skipping his morning nap and putting him down for an afternoon nap an hour earlier than usual now. Then perhaps he'll sleep longer during that nap. I'd try that for a few days.

in short, yes! The older your baby gets, the more aware he will be of his surroundings. While having him nap in a louder common area had been a good thing (helps babies be deep sleepers), he probably needs the quiet distraction free environment for good naps now. The world is just too interesting for naps... =). I'd definatly move him into his quiet bedroom for nap times now. Good luck!

Your baby will probably have several significant sleep pattern changes before he is one, and they will continue to change until he is too old for naps, for many, around 3, for others, not until 6.

These changes will include environmental preferences, times, lengths, and may frequently coincide with the beginnings and ends of eating pattern changes. Many changes are due to growth cycles, so when he starts waking less time than sleeping, he'll probably be a bigger boy at the end of the spurt.

Other things that will help you get your alone time is if his regular nap times turn into self-play times, where he is alone and has interesting toys within reach to look at, reach for, and play with. He can also watch you work; put him in a high chair and give him a fistful of cheerios or something while he watches. In both these instances, make sure you're doing your own thing and not talking or playing directly with him.

I have found that both my children were like that during the day as well. I have been told it is because it is just that...a nap. They are not in their "deep" sleep like during the night. Each child is different as to what they prefer at nap time and believe me...they will change! My 7mth old used to sleep right through the vacuum and now I have to tip toe around during the day. Don't count on always getting things done on a daily basis...I promise you it won't happen. If anything else, get yourself a child carrier. Something you can carry them around in on your back while you do your chores.

My son was somewhat similar. He slept in the living room for naps with noise around him for the first few months (not quite as long as your son, though). Then he started to not sleep as soundly. We started putting him in his crib in his room and he slept great. I think kids (or adults for that matter) don't sleep as deeply when they nap during the day...therefore they are more likely to wake up easily if the surroundings aren't right. From 0-3 months they are still in that newborn stage and need a lot more sleep and, therefore, will get it however they can. My son is almost two now and would totally skip a nap if we didn't give him quiet time in his room (or a long car ride if we are out and about). Try the crib out and enjoy an hour (or more!) to yourself! :o)