Early waking/nap times/bf/ help!!!

[Elizabethsmummy]

My dd is almost 12 months old. We've had all kinds of problems with sleep - when she was about 8 weeks old she slept through for... oh let me see, about a week, then that went out of the window! She started on solids at 6 months and I naively imagined the night-time waking for bf would end there. Ha! She started waking twice, then three times a night. At ten months we knocked feeding at night on the head by DH going in to her and reassuring her, settling her down etc, and that was fine... for, let me see... about two weeks! Now she is waking at 5am. I was fairly insistent that she shouldn't feed before 7am; She is still having two naps a day - one at 9am, one at 2pm (about an hour each). She goes to sleep at 7pm. Am I expecting to much to think she will sleep through until 7am? Also, when she wakes up at around 5am, should I feed her? Should I try to shorten both naps, or let her have just one nap? Any advice please - v. tired Mum wishing she could see light at the end of the tunnel!

[readinginbed]

Poor you nothing worse than lack of sleep! We got our 15 month old to sleep longer than 5am by giving him weetabix and warm milk last thing at night, at 7pm. This worked great for a while but then he started refusing the weetabix and is now back to waking at 5. My plan now is to give him supper earlier, at 5pm, so by 7 he is hungry for his pudding. Also we will try oats and banana with milk instead of weetabix as this will take longer to digest. Also, bought a bunny alarm clock that has picture of a sleeping bunny before 7, or whatever time you set it, then the picture changes to an awake bunny. You start off setting it so it goes off at their usual wake time of 5 or whatever then put it back by 15 minutes each day till you get them sleeping till later. Apparently this works!! Good luck!

[readinginbed]

p.s.... the length and timing of the naps sounds fine, our ds slept till 7 when he was 12 months old and he used to have half hour at 9am and 45 mins at 2pm. Also if i were you i wouldn't feed her when she wakes at 5 or she will wake for the milk every time.