How long nap at 24 mos.

[PiperPizzaz]

I wondered if anyone had a child at or around 24 months when they went to WDW. I am guessing he will want a 2 hr nap or so is this right. I just don't know how we will get him to go to sleep in a strange place. He will ONLY go to sleep in his crib now. Any advice? Should we try to keep him out longer in the afternoon and hope he falls asleep on the bus?

 

[LynnTH]

Neither of my kids had any problem sleeping in strollers. So, we would just stay all day at the parks and they would doze off when tired and we would just do stuff that didn't involve getting them out of the stroller. We never had a problem. We never went back to the rooms for naps - that would take too much time out of the day (especially when we would go in Feb or early March when the parks were not open as late - so, we were back at the hotel by 8 or 9 at the latest usually if not before)

 

[Kahana-ri]

Our son is an avid napper as well. In the stroller he went out like a light a few times a day. There is so much for them to see and take in at this age that getting our son to sleep during the day was never a problem. I agree with the PP, going back to the room was too much trouble and that's when it gets hard to put the kids down.

 

[Tigger&Aidan]

We waited it out and DS took a nap in the afternoon when we went back to the condo (maybe around 3:00-4:00). DS wouldn't fall asleep in his stroller - too much to see and he's way too nosey to miss out on anything!

As for only sleeping in the crib - have you tried to put him other places or do you just assume he won't sleep anywhere else? We figured DS would only do a crib for a nap, since we really never put him anywhere else to sleep. I worried about it before our trip but he was fine, he just slept on our bed.

 

[PiperPizzaz]

As for only sleeping in the crib - have you tried to put him other places or do you just assume he won't sleep anywhere else?

Well, last year when we went it was a big struggle. We actually did a lot of co-sleeping at home and he wouldn't really have anything to do with that either. The pack n play he would just stand up in and now he can climb out of those so . Sleep was our big struggle last time.

That said there is a big difference from an 11 mo old (our last trip) and a 24 mo old. We might just have him sleep in the other double bed, maybe with a rail. At 19 months now he is kind of more babyish than some other 19 month olds we know/have seen. If that makes sense. Maybe because I stay home with him I am not sure.

I am trying to think this through now, so I can 'train' him. I usually can only get out of the house in the mornings. If I am out too late he will fall asleep in the car, so maybe he would sleep in his stroller. We actually like going back to the hotel, we will be there in Sept and it is so hot in the afternoons. I made all my dinner reservations for around 5:30 and we usually leave the parks around 1:00 for break. If we are at World Showcase it might be nice for him to nap in the stroller though. It is something we don't have to take him out for.

 

[krystalleigh1]

Will you be able to go back to your room during the day for a nap? I would really recommend this. My ds was 2.5 when we went to WDW and our first whole day we tried to see if he'd nap in his stroller. He didn't. By 3:00 he was having a MAJOR melt down. From that point on we went back to the room and he napped or rested and it was much smoother sailing.

I think in all of the WDW resorts you can get a pack n play. I've even heard of some people renting cribs from a local baby supply place to use for their stay.

My ds took at least a 2 hr. nap at 2. I think 2 hours would be a good nap. I'd plan on a minimum of 3 hrs. of down time every day (factor in travel time to and from your resort).

 

[Luvin*Livvy]

I am really nervous about this with my daughter, who doesn't sleep ANYWHERE but a crib...never in the carseat, never in a stroller..and she gives me a 2-3 hour nap during the day when we are at home! I am thinking we are just going to "wing it", and hope she sleeps best at night, and will TRY and nap her during the day, and go back to the hotel!
GOOD LUCK!

 

[hrsmom]

We've gone several times with small ones. My DD was just over 2 the first time we took her and this time my DS will be 22 months when we go (it'll be his 3rd time!). We usually end up co-sleeping if they don't nap well during the day. They do so much during the day that it does wear them out - you might be suprised that they will fall asleep in the stroller.

 

[Elmo888]

We went with a 26 month old in January, and she needed a 2 hour nap everyday. We went back to the hotel, and, including travel time, it was closer to 4 hours. She slept in a pack n play from the hotel, and it was fine. She never falls asleep in her stroller and rarely falls asleep in the car (even on a 3 hour car trip, she might fall asleep for only 30-45 minutes when she usually takes 1.5 to 2 hour naps). I think that you just have to know how your child is.

If your DS won't sleep in a PNP, I'd try renting a crib. Everyone will just be more comfortable and rested, and he will be safe. This one is mentioned here often...http://www.abbf.com/ I took their phone number with me in case we had a problem (if she wouldn't sleep in the PNP or our stroller broke, etc.), but I didn't use them.

If you find that you don't want to go back to the resort one afternoon, you could just power through an afternoon and see if he falls asleep and naps in the stroller. If he didn't, you could always go back to the resort.

I wish that we had powered through an afternoon just to see how it went, but our DD6 also napped nearly every day!

I think that part of the problem is that even if they do fall asleep in the stroller, the nap is much shorter than if they are in bed. And the other part is that when they finally do fall asleep, it might be much later than when they need it (and in the middle of dinner). Again, it depends on the child.

To me, it boils down to knowing your child (if he falls asleep anywhere easily or not) and being flexible with your plans.

 

[ErinSLP]

we just went in Jan with our 2 year old, here is our experience:

The first day, she fell asleep around 2, and we walked back to our resort (BWV), thinking that we could rest/change/relax while she slept in the stroller. WRONG--she wok up as soon as we got back to the room. We tried to get her to go back to sleep in the crib, but it wasn't happening. We decided from then on we weren't going to do that again, so every day after that, she slept for 2- 2 1/2 hours in the stroller with no problem. We would just recline her stroller, cover her with a blanket, and walk somewhere quiet for a few minutes until she fell asleep. My DH and I would then take turns riding the bigger rides, or we would just stroll around, shop, etc. It worked out very well. We did this at night as well. We would take her PJ's with us and she would fall asleep on the way back to the resort. Only on one day did we actually go back to the room and put her in the crib for a nap. That day we had a 6 PM ressie for Cali Grill, and I wanted her to sleep earlier, around 1 or so. She slept for 3 hours that day! When she slept in the stroller, she wouldn't fall asleep until later, around 3.

By the way, we rented a crib from ABBF, but brought our own bedding, even her bumper, and she slept fine.

 

[Traveliz]

I am really nervous about this with my daughter, who doesn't sleep ANYWHERE but a crib...never in the carseat, never in a stroller..and she gives me a 2-3 hour nap during the day when we are at home! I am thinking we are just going to "wing it", and hope she sleeps best at night, and will TRY and nap her during the day, and go back to the hotel!
GOOD LUCK!

This is ABSOLUTELY the best plan -- really there is no way of knowing how a child is going to be at WDW -- nothing in their past is a good indicator of Disney sleep or behavior patters. Being able to adjust and go with the flow is absolutely the best plan.

Now I was one who never had a baby on a "schedule" to begin with as my daughter is ten years younger than her brother and I was not about to miss out on hockey trips and such so she could sleep and we managed just fine.

Liz

 

[Aristomommy]

DS was 25 months during our Disneyland trip. He usually takes about 2 hour nap at home. Due to the time difference and so much stimulation he would NOT sleep in his stroller except for one day. I would usually go back to the hotel and have him sleep in the pack n play. It was a nice rest for me as well

 

[happypooh]

Our son slept in the stroller for about an hour and a half - a little shorter than the 2 hours he usually does at home...but at least we didn't have to make the long trek back to the hotel for naptime!