SOS Overtired toddler
My toddler, who is newly 2, is basically refusing to sleep on a schedule.
Schedule:
-7am wake up
-11:30a-1p nap (often skipped)
-7p quick bedtime routine
-8/9:30pm asleep
Never sleep trained, supported to sleep (rocking, cuddling in bed), fighting naps and bedtime, seems overtired. We’re averaging 11 hrs total sleep, I’d say.
Long version:
We do our bedtime routine between 7-7:30pm, which is just washing hands, brushing teeth, changing diaper and clothes. Then we read a story and do a combo of rocking her to sleep or laying in her bed with her until she’s fully asleep. She falls asleep between 8-9:30 and we wake her up at 7am every morning.
Nap is so inconsistent. She will be obviously tired at 11:30am and will happily fall asleep in the car, but that ends in a short nap. At 11, we wash hands, brush teeth, and read a story. Then I try to rock her to sleep. She’ll be obviously tired and start dosing, then start singing or something to wake herself back up. She either loses the battle and takes an hour long nap and wakes up in a great mood and has a great afternoon, or will refuse to sleep and has behavioral issues all day after.
I try to follow wake windows (5-6.5 hours) but she is refusing her nap the majority of days now and everyone is suffering. I’ve tried skipping it entirely and doing earlier bedtime but she is struggling all afternoon. We don’t mind rocking her to sleep, I just want her to sleep period. She fights both naps and bedtime so hard. We have a mini crib we could try to use but she seemed close to climbing out. Not against anything except full extinction (no hate, just not a fit for us). I’d love any advice please 🙏🏼