If I had a crying baby I would take them for a long walk in the pushchair and leave them outside someone else's back door!!Oh Kathy, I so feel for you. My daughter would not nap ever. It was exhausting.
At 17 months they're very defiant and, I hate to say this, but tough love involving a bed in a safe place and a child gate so he can't get out is needed.
You also find that the better he sleeps at night the worse they sleep by day and I know which I prefer.
I used to take her out for long walks in the pushchair. She'd fall asleep and then I would leave her asleep in the pushchair outside the back door (with rain cover and blankets as necessary) while I got on with my jobs. It was the only way.
We used controlled crying to get her to stay asleep at night.
Night 1: She cried, we would go and comfort her but not pick her up and then leave her, returning every 15 minutes until she was asleep. It took forever and a lot of stress for me.
Night 2: Same again, but every 20 minutes - it took about 2 hours.
Night 3: She gave up after half an hour and slept through the night.![]()