Wake Time/Activity Time

I am a follower of the Babywise/Baby Whisperer routines which are pretty much the same thing:

Baby wise: Wake/play/sleep routine
Baby Whisperer:  E(eat).A(activity).S(sleep).Y(you) routine

One of the trickiest elements of this type of routine is... when is my baby ready for a nap? How long should their wake time be? What happens when they have had too much play or activity?

When is she ready for a nap?
Look for sleepy cues, which vary from newborn to older babies. Note that some babies do not show sleepy cues so let the clock help you in deciding when your little one may become tired. Also, newborns until around 3 months can only use a head turn or yawning since they do not have control over their limbs - yet!

-Yawns
-Fidgeting/loss of coordination
-Involuntary movements
-Eye rubbing or red around the eye
-Unexplained fussiness (this can be the trickiest cue)
-Stare (as if they are looking 7 miles into the distance without wavering)
-Turns head away from objects
-If carried, burys head into your neck (as if they are trying to block out all things visual)

How long should their waketime be?
Waketime varies by age and temperment but always becomes increasingly longer the older the baby; note this includes feeding time as well.

-Newborn: 1 hour
-3 months: 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes
-6 months: 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours
-9 months: 2 hours
-12 months: 2 hours to 2 hours 30 minutes

*Note* These are averages and I have noticed that the first waketime of the day is the shortest and the following waketimes will be longer. Example: 1 hour, 1.25 hours, 1.5 hours, 2 hours)

What happens when they have too much play or activity?
In our society we are always filling our schedules to the maximum. Be very careful to not overstimulate your baby with toys the jiggle, bounce, sing, flash, light up or are too busy. Even though we may think 'There is no way you can be tired!' the little one may be!

-Overstimulation: most common result of too much anything. The length of wake time may be just right but the activity during the waketime may be too much. Lily can play in her jumperoo/exersaucer at the beginning of waketime but if I put her in them right before nap, she is too amped to settle down.
-Short naps: YUCK! 30-45 minutes naps are the bane of my existance! After the baby's first sleep cycle has concluded (around 40 minutes), the baby will awaken and will be unable to fall back asleep because she was too buzzed from her previous play time.
-Fussiness when waking: Around 3-5 months, your baby should be waking happy from naps. If they played too much/were up for too long during the past waketime, they will still be grumpy.
-Unable to fall asleep easily for nap or at all: You could rock, sing, hum, bounce and shh the little one until no end and they still won't want to nap! If I sense I have overstimulated Lily, I take her to a dark room with her blankie, rock her or sit with her until she sucks her thumb. Sometimes this is for 10-15 minutes.
-Meltdowns: This is the last resort for overstimulated babies. It seems as though they are done with life, forever. They scream, kick, cry, squirm and can become aggressive! This is the baby trying to tell you, 'Mom., please take note you kept me up too long and those hanging toys are too much.'

Learn from your baby, watch her. She will tell you in her banguage (baby language) that she is done with play time and is ready for some rest. Respect the fact that some waketimes will be shorter than others and that it may throw off your 3 or 4 hour schedule. For goodness sakes, listen to the baby when she is tired and act immeadiately instead of worrying about what time it is!