Day sleep for 51/2mth old

Ds is 5 1/2mths and has always been a terrible catnapper. I think this has more to do with me miss interpreting his tired signs etc as they are very very subtle and we struggle with them.

Anyway, I have just discovered that if I put him back to bed after 1.5hrs first thing in the morning he will sleep for 2-2.5 hrs, which is great. The problem is that the rest of the day continues to be catnaps.

Today we were up at 6.30, back to bed at 8. Up at 10.30 back to bed at 1330. SLept for 45min. Back to bed at 3.30 and is still asleep and not sure when he will wake??

Also because he goes 4-4.5hrly for feeds, by the afternoon I am often feeding and then putting him straight to bed.

I would love a routine but am thinking that I am just doomed on this.

I have tried the whole 2 hrs up but the 2hrs down that is supposed to follow is a complete no go.

What are others doing around this age??
What age do they normally drop down to 2 naps? Is this maybe what he is heading towards?

My boy is 5 and 1/2 months old too, and he is just getting over the whole catnapping thing, I think! He changed his tired signs a month or so ago, and I had to relearn them all over again! But now if I catch him in the sleep window and get him to bed, he'll usually have at least 2 naps that are 1 and 1/2 hours long, the others may be shorter.
Cam is still feeding every 3 to 3 and 1/2 hours, so may be on a different routine to your son, but Cam is usually awake for 1 and 1/2 hours to 2 hours now.

He might just need to learn how to self-settle to get him thru to the next sleep cycle. Check out the Sleep Store website for some good info on this - www.sleepstore.co.nz.

Good luck, you never know he may just grow out of it himself!

Sounds like what we have! Ninety minutes up time after breakfast, usually two hours sleep,, but after that any naps are 45 minutes until bedtime. I often try ro get a longer nap in the mid aftrnoon, but it rarely works. If he gets two good sleeps then he fits three into a day, but otherwise it is four. Sounds pretty similar to what a lot of the other Feb mums are getting at the moment. See the Feb mum thread to find us if you want to ask more!