Naps for a 4 1/2 is that not going to happen

[SingleFatherofDD]

Just have a quick question.

 

My DD is a 4 year old and is very active. She goes to school and camp during the day and does two days of gymnastics. Normally she doesn't get any time to nap during the day. We are going on the Veendam in 3 days now and was wondering about naps. I want her to enjoy everything that the cruise has to offer. From the youth club, to the ports, to the shows. Her normal bed time during the week is 8:30. I know the youth program goes longer than that. Am I asking to much to try to change her schedule and have her go down for a nap sometime in the afternoon. Also do you think a 4 year old needs a nap.

 

Thanks in advance.

[RoadTripFanatic]

If you come back from an excursion and she is exhausted then I would try for a nap or some quiet time before going anywhere else. Even 30 minutes of relaxing is better than nothing. Even if she lays down and watches some tv it will give her some downtime. If she normally does not nap she probably won't nap on the cruise ship. I have a go with the flow attitude on vacations. Schedules are trashed. I've always been that way. DD has always been a night owl so it makes our lives easier. If she is very crabby have her rest. If not let her go. It's vacation. Yes, getting her back on 'schedule' might be rough for a few days when you come back but that's just part of life.

 

Oh and as for the do 4 year olds need a nap it just depends on the child. DD stopped napping at 3. I know some kids who napped until they were 5.

[Kerry's Girls]

My girls, who were 5 on our last cruise in Jan and who do not nap in real life or on land-based vacations, always nap on a cruise. It's much easier than at home. I tell them they don't have to sleep, but they do have to relax if they want to stay up late at the kids club after dinner/go dancing/see the show, whatever. With the cabin completely dark and the motion of the ship, they're OUT, sometimes for even longer than I'd have liked. It makes dinner SO much more fun, since they're well rested, and we get to enjoy our evening.

 

I'd at least give it a try. Momma goes down too - for me a nap is a luxury I look forward to on vacation.

 

Best,

Mia

[Julienatul]

She may be mopre worn out than normal from all the excitement. You might try just having "quiet time" in the cabin in the afternoon. My DD almost age 5 wont nap anymore even though some days I know she needs it so I make her have "quiet time" where she lays down and can do something "quiet" like look at a book etc. That way if she really is tired she can sleep.

[cb at sea]

If she doesn't "nap" at home, don't expect it (or force it) on a cruise! I was one of those kids who would NOT fall asleep at nap time....I was afraid I might miss something!

 

If she's tired, she'll sleep...if not, you'll be miserable forcing her!

[6rugrats]

Her normal bed time during the week is 8:30.

Wow; I have a 10.5 year old whose bedtime is 8:00 p.m.!

[tropiclvrs]

Wow; I have a 10.5 year old whose bedtime is 8:00 p.m.!

 

And your point is what???? Each parent has the right to set a bedtime that fits their family.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but just becuase your child is older and goes to bed earlier...doesn't make you the better parent.

[6rugrats]

And your point is what???? Each parent has the right to set a bedtime that fits their family.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but just becuase your child is older and goes to bed earlier...doesn't make you the better parent.

No, it illustrates the fact that I am a tired parent, and have a child that goes to bed earlier, and am surprised a four year old who doesn't nap manages to stay awake so late. There's no judgment in my statement, but there's an awful lot in yours.

[SingleFatherofDD]

DD is closer to 5 than she is to 4. Her birthday is in October. That isn't important, what is important is that every child is different. The medical world recommends different amounts of sleep for different age groups. I try to follow that with my DD. She is a very active little girl who loves to do anything she can do. Plays with her friends in the neighborhood and also gymnastics. However, after her bath and a good book she just collapses and falls asleep within minutes. I know that at camp they have rest time so maybe she will be use to that and it will carry over to our cruise. She has been in day camp for the last 7 weeks. She will be missing her last week because of our cruise. She says she will miss her friends, but I think she will forget about the once she finds new ones on the cruise.

[mcfam5]

My youngest, who ended normal life naps at the age of 18 months, always naps while cruising. With the curtains drawn and the air kicking it is the perfect atmosphere to crawl under the down comforter and catch a few Z's. I myself nap most days while cruising!

 

And in comparison of children's bedtimes ~ my youngest (seven years old) goes to bed at 10:00 p.m. He gets up at 7:30 with out an issue, plays soccer, takes swimming lesssons and is a cub scout. For so long we tried to put him to bed earlier and would just fight with him until he finally feel asleep (around 10:00!). Our pediatrician said some kids just need less sleep, and so we gave up the struggle and have found a happier evening routine as a result. All kids are definitely different! (Although is a trait both of mine have, most likely inherited from me!)

 

Have fun with your daughter!

[Snorkel Dawg]

I'm 49 & always find time for a short nap each day during cruises.

We have been taking our children with since they were 5 yrs old & they also nap each day. We find by napping we are able to all stay awake later & enjoy some of the evening activities. Part of a cruise vacation is relaxing too. Don't feel like you have to do everything

[A&Jfamily]

Just have a quick question.

 

My DD is a 4 year old and is very active. She goes to school and camp during the day and does two days of gymnastics. Normally she doesn't get any time to nap during the day. We are going on the Veendam in 3 days now and was wondering about naps. I want her to enjoy everything that the cruise has to offer. From the youth club, to the ports, to the shows. Her normal bed time during the week is 8:30. I know the youth program goes longer than that. Am I asking to much to try to change her schedule and have her go down for a nap sometime in the afternoon. Also do you think a 4 year old needs a nap.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

The key is to build in some quiet time during the afternoon before dinner. We take along a portable DVD player and pop in a movie around 4. If my son doses off, great; it means he was tired and needed it. Otherwise, he has rested up and seems to be prepared to go til at least 10 when we get him from camp.

[Ula]

I'm 49 & always find time for a short nap each day during cruises.

We have been taking our children with since they were 5 yrs old & they also nap each day. We find by napping we are able to all stay awake later & enjoy some of the evening activities. Part of a cruise vacation is relaxing too. Don't feel like you have to do everything

 

True here also. Very easy to nap on a cruise ship. Never do that at home. Some down time in the afternoon really helps.

[MamaParrotHead]

I am a bedtime WARDEN at home...8:15 and lights are OUT for my 7 YO and 11 YO. And they sleep until 7 a.m. Out like lights.

 

I was concerned about bedtime and rest and such before our cruise as well. Being in the sun and the water and getting up early and going to bed late...and the kids just rolled with it. No crabbiness (this goes for my 4 YO nephew as well), there was always so much going on to entertain them that I don't think it crossed their minds to be tired, LOL.

 

The one thing, however, that I learned was that no matter how much *I* would like to plan to be on the go-go-go on the cruise, to maximize our vacation, the kids really appreciated the few chances they got to just CHILL out. The beach in Roatan, they had such a good time just splashing and swimming in the shallow water and playing in the sand. That I ended up cancelling our tour I had planned in Grand Cayman and we just cabbed it to 7 Mile Beach and let them have another beach day. Then our last sea day it ended up raining, and they opted to just hang out in the cabin, play with the few toys they brought with them and watching TV. Which gave us a chance to pack and get organized for debarkation.

 

In a nutshell I'd advise to keep things flexible and play it by ear. She might be fine, she might benefit from heading back to the ship a bit early and laying down in the cool, quiet cabin for a bit before getting ready for dinner. Use your gut and just be observant.

 

Good luck! :D

[Onessa]

DD (now nearly 15YO :eek:) accompanied us on several European and other trips throughout her life.

 

At 4.5YO we did a short (5 day) cruise in the Med followed by 9 days land tour on our own in Italy. I remember it as one of our most pleasant trips because we bought an inexpensive umbrella stroller. We'd plan some active play time each morning combined with sightseeing, and then stop at about 11:00am get her something to eat (plain pasta, some fruit, etc.) and then give her a ride in the stroller for a bit and she'd doze so that we could stop at a resturant and get a "real" meal while she snoozed. It worked beautifully. She was an "active" kid, and a daycare kid who was used to daily nap time (if not sleep, expected to lay and rest).

 

A few days she didn't nap, or napped later. She liked walking around with us, but when her feet would get tired, was thrilled to get a ride -- and generally with the ride, she'd at least doze.

 

Her daily cycle was a bit messed up with the time change, but she adjusted well. We tried to keep wake up time early and that helps. This kept her a happy camper throughout the trip.

[sparky-elpaso]

Just don't mention the dreaded N-A-P word. :D

[2preschoolers]

My girls were 2 1/2 and 4 when we took them on their first cruise . (7 nts). The 4 yr old hadn't napped since she wad 2 1/2 - she is very active. In preschool 5 mornings a week. My younger one typically would nap at home but....on the ship it was near impossible. They just were too excited in the cabin (bunk beds!!!) and always wanted to be in the kids club. But --- if I took them to a shady spot on deck, I would make them lay on the lounge chair and " relax" for a bit and they would easily

doze off there.

 

Nonetheless, even with short naps on deck, they were exhausted by the time (early) dinner was over and rarely made it past 8p. They did make it to 2 of the shows.

 

Oh - chiming in on bedtimes. They are now 3 and almost 5. And they normally go to bed about 8p during the summer. They sleep till 7a-ish. During the school year, bedtime about 730p. Each child has diff needs. Our pediatrician said 3-4 yr olds should get 10-11 hrs sleep per day.

[emcamm]

Just have a quick question.

 

My DD is a 4 year old and is very active. She goes to school and camp during the day and does two days of gymnastics. Normally she doesn't get any time to nap during the day. We are going on the Veendam in 3 days now and was wondering about naps. I want her to enjoy everything that the cruise has to offer. From the youth club, to the ports, to the shows. Her normal bed time during the week is 8:30. I know the youth program goes longer than that. Am I asking to much to try to change her schedule and have her go down for a nap sometime in the afternoon. Also do you think a 4 year old needs a nap.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

It totally depends on the child. My older daughter still napped every day at 4.5 years old. She would sleep 11-12 hours at night and go down for 1.5-2 hours in the afternoon. However she gets drained VERY easy from activities, and even at almost 10 years old, comes home from school just pooped! She still does sleep 11-12 hours a night too!

My younger daughter who is 2.5 years old sleeps 11-12 hours at night and takes a 1.5-2 hour nap in the afternoon. If she misses a nap she gets pretty cranky and is short tempered. The more activites she does the more she naps.

I say take it day by day and see how tired she gets from her daily activities. She may stay up late one night and then rise early so a nap may be in order.

[zstell]

My grand-daughter (3 y.o.) naps almost every day and when she doesn't she can get pretty irritable. I booked an interior room for us next April so it would be easy for her to get her nap. That 1.5-2 hours in the afternoon are priceless, the only time I get anything done around the house. She will occasionally give us a hard time to avoid her nap, but more often when 1:00 rolls around, she is carrying her blanket to the stairs.

 

I forgot to mention that she stays with me during the week while her parents work. My kids napped until they started school, just part of their routine and they had an 8:00 or 8:30 bedtime. My youngest son is almost 17 and during the school year he still has a "bedtime"....cell phone off and settling down by 10:30. Oh no, I have become my mom :D

[ellp]

My grand-daughter (3 y.o.) naps almost every day and when she doesn't she can get pretty irritable. I booked an interior room for us next April so it would be easy for her to get her nap.

 

Just a little off-topic here... You mentioned booking an interior room and having a little one who naps... What do you do while they're napping? I'm assuming that you stay in the room with them?

 

When my oldest was under 2yo, we took her on an overnight trip which included a stay at a hotel. Since we had never stayed at a hotel before with her it never occured to us what we would end up doing once Dd was asleep at 7:30pm. She was a very light sleeper and the slightest noise or light would wake her. Dh and I ended up sitting on the bathroom floor reading by the vanity light!

 

Is this what some people do on a cruise too?

[zstell]

I honestly didn't really think about that :eek: Maybe a balcony would have been a better choice so the adults could sit outside while the child sleeps. My hubby is not a sun lover like me and might enjoy "watching" her while THEY nap. Also, I have never cruised with a 3 year old and she is capable of wearing me out. I imagine I wll be the one needing the nap, lol.

 

I try not to project too much and know that it will all work out. When we travel alone as a couple, it's our vacation. When we take the kids and/or grandchild, it's their vacation and with that mindset I always have a great time. If they are happy then I am happy.

[Bound4Bermuda]

My daughter is younger: 2.5. Last year when we went to Disney World, she would promptly fall asleep in her stroller right around lunchtime. That worked out well for us--my husband would just sit with her in the air-conditioned restaurant while the older kids and I did "big rides." I'm hoping we'll have a similar experience on this trip! I'm not intending on going back to the room at naptime, but rather just putting her in her stoller (or a deck chair, or a beach blanket, etc.) and let nature take its course. ;) We were away this weekend and went on an hour long trip on a yacht, and she fell asleep within about 10 minutes of being on that rocking boat--and was zonked out the whole ride! Granted, the cruise ship won't rock as much, but it eased my mind that I think she'll nap fine.

 

Since your daughter normally doesn't nap, I think I would just go along with what others suggested: have her lay down for a bit in the shade or rest a bit in the room before dinner. I wouldn't try to force her to sleep or make a big deal about it being "naptime," but even just some quiet resting might be enough to rejuvenate her.

[RizzoLee]

Just chiming in on the 'what to do while napping' post - this is why we booked a balcony cabin. We'd prefer an interior since it would be more budget-friendly for us, however, balcony it is so we can still do something (read, etc.) while baby naps.

 

My mother should be in the next cabin over, and while she doesn't want connecting cabins (LOL), we will open the balconies up so we can visit back and forth while LO naps.

 

As well, we plan on bringing a cheap stroller with us for the mobile-napping quality they provide. :)