The dreaded nap transition. Or, at least it was dreaded by me. We’ve been through a lot of nap transitions so far, but the transition to one nap was the one that has been looming over me. I had grown comfortable with our two nap routine. It felt like the perfect setup – the first morning nap allowed me to nap myself, if needed, then the second nap was for getting things done around the house.

Now, I can just about say we’re through the transition and have landed safely on the other side with one nap a day. It’s going pretty well so far, and actually not as bad as I originally imagined. We’re still working out a new routine, but we’re getting there. The transition part is behind us now, and we’re moving forward. I’m glad that it’s over with and that we’ll get to keep this one nap routine for a while now.

I wanted to share a bit about the transition with you in case you’re approaching this particular nap transition. I have a good friend to thank for some tips that I found extremely helpful in our transition. So from one mom to another, here are some tips that you might find handy.

Signs

It can be hard to know when your baby is ready for something, especially a nap transition. I knew Petit Macaron could be ready to transition anytime since many of his friends that are the same age just went through the transition. I probably over analyzed everything. Then there is the questioning – is that a sign he’s ready or something else? Maybe he’s teething? Maybe he’s got gas? I was in denial for a little while at the start. He seemed so tired in the mornings. How was he ever going to make it on just one nap? But all other signs pointed to him needing to transition, so we dived in. Here are some signs your baby might be ready:

  • Skipping the second nap
  • Fighting naps and bedtime
  • Waking up early in the morning (like 5am)
  • Waking in the night when your baby had previously been sleeping through

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You might not experience all of them. Petit Macaron was skipping the second nap and then fighting bedtime. He was also waking up at 5am (or earlier) in the mornings. However, we didn’t experience frequent wakings at night, thank goodness.

Transitioning

You’ve decided it’s time to transition to one nap. Now what? Below is what we did in our transition. It took just over a week for us to do the transition. We’re currently at an 11:45am nap time, and we are still hoping to reach noon. But for now, I feel close enough.

  • Start to push the first nap back 30 minutes every few days.
  • You can try for a second nap for the first part of the transition. You’d want to do it about 3 hours after first nap. However, keep it short – like 30 to 45 minutes. And don’t have the nap go after 5pm.
  • Be sure to give your baby a snack or lunch before the nap so as to avoid waking due to hunger.
  • If your baby seems tired, you can move up bedtime by 30 minutes for a while. Once the nap transition is feeling good, then back to your normal time.

Results

Awesome. You transitioned to one nap. Your baby will likely have a long nap lasting about 2 to 2-1/2 hours. You also might see your baby sleeping in a little longer in the mornings. Petit Macaron is still working on the length of his nap. Unfortunately, he’s got some major teething happening so he’s having difficulty staying asleep. I’m hoping that once the acute teething is over, he’ll sleep longer. We are seeing him sleep until 6am or 6:30am now, which is so much better than his former 5am wake-up call.

The one nap does make for quite a long stretch in the morning. During our transition, I went out to get a latte in the morning to help the passage of time and keep Petit Macaron awake. Now, I’m working hard to have an activity in the morning to help out.

I’m glad this nap will stick around awhile. One hope I have is it making meeting up with people easier. I also foresee more brunches in our weekends – ha!

Have you done the one nap transition? Any advice to share?

Please Note: I am not a doctor nor have I had any medical or baby training. This is just mom-to-mom advice. There are many methods and approaches on nap transitions, so find what feels right for your baby and you.