what is it with this wakey thing at 5 mths???????

[nailpolish]

dd2 has always been a good sleeper. since she was 12 wks she has always gone to bed awake at 8pm and slept til about 7am.

now, she is 18 wks and still goes down awake about 8 pm but now wakes at 5 am. over the last few days its been 30mins earlier each morning, im dreading tomorrow and according to the pattern itll be 430 am!

its just such a long day with both dd's, dh doesnt get home til 6 pm and with this deep snow and coldness there is not much to do all day really.

ANY helpful suggestions would be much appreciated

TIA xxx

[Toothache]

Nailpolish - Me too! Dd (7mths) has been doing this now for 2 mths. And ds wakes at 6.30-7am! It's very tiring. Now I'm back at work I have to leave the house at 7.15am, so don't get a chance to go back to sleep.

Ds and Dd have to share a room so we can'teven just leave her to sing/gargle/cry herself back to sleep.

Is your dd2 in a room on her own? If she is could you possibly try to leave her for half and hour or so? Is she hungry when she wakes? My dd isn't, so I'm looking for suggestions too.

Sorry I can't help you very much, but at least you know it's not unusual.

[nailpolish]

yes she is in her own room, we leave her 10-15mins but the gurgles just turn to cries, and yes shes hungry when she wakes.

dh suggested starting her on baby rice, but i cant see what a few spoons of baby rice would do

[Toothache]

Oh definitely sounds like she needs weaning. Are you bf? If not, have you moved her onto the 'hungrier' baby milk? That can help delay weaning for a week or 2.

I started to give dd a big bowl of baby rice at around 6.30pm when she was 16wks old. It allowed us to cut out the night feed and she's not hungry until maybe an 1.5hrs after she wakes. So she goes from 6.30pm to 6.30-7am without being hungry.

A bowl of baby rice will make a big difference coz it takes longer for them to digest it. It'll keep her satisfied for longer.

[nailpolish]

shes on farleys second milk already, so maybe ill give her baby rice, thanks toothache. shes old enough now i suppose, and shes taking an interest in food at the table so i bet she would enjoy it.

i cant actually wait to give her rice, i love it when they take it off the spoon and then poke it all out with their tongue!

ive got some in the house

do you really think itll make a difference?

[Reethi]

My 7 month old ds has started doing this too. He used to sleep until 7.00 am then gradually started waking up a bit earlier and yesterday he wanted to get up and play at 4.00 am! To begin with I had thought he was hungry but now he is on the second stage of weaning and is definitely getting enough food, he eats nearly as much as me! The GF book reckons it is because he is having his morning nap too early, he sleeps from 8.30 am for about 30/45 mins instead of 9.30 am. I have tried keeping him awake but can't as he is too tired, which is not surprising considering he is up at the crack of dawn! I am going to move him into his own room at the weekend and get some black out blinds. Worth a try?

[Toothache]

Reethi - We have black out blinds, but it doesn't seem to make a difference. 5am on the button her eyes pop open and she starts singing, cooing, shouting, rolling on her tummy and getting angry.... then once the whole house is awake... she's all smiley!! Grrrrrrrr! She too has a morning nap around 7.30-8am.

At least I'm not alone. Doesn't solve the problem though.

[Reethi]

Oh well. To get more sleep, perhaps we will just have to make 5am the new 7am and do everything two hours earlier.

[Toothache]

Reethi - The clocks go forward in 4 weeks time. So 5am will be 6am.... which sounds more humane!

[nailpolish]

black out blinds are good when they are older - definitely help my 2 yr old sleep longer in the summer

good news about the clocks!

i try and keep dd2 awake after 4pm til 8pm but it doesnt always happen - she does sleep better if i manage it. i know what you mean about the morning nap tho, dd2 has just had her nap and its still 9am!

[lucykatie]

give dd some grub....happened to us and i was not happy, so started to give her real food and she sleeps loads ................heaven.

[nailpolish]

lucykatie, what time of day did you give food to start with, and what?

you know, i should remember all of this, i only did it 2 yrs ago with dd1, but i cant recall how when or what!!!!!!!!!

[nailpolish]

bump

[moonshine]

Sorry but don't think giving her food will necessarily help her sleep better - didn't happen here and if you search I'm sure it's been debated on several threads before. Baby rice is not more calorific than milk.

Does she sleep enough during the day? Better sleep in the day oddly seems to help them sleep better at night. Or maybe it is too much sleep? Could she just be restless due to teething starting? Did it start after an illness and has now become a habit?

Maybe she just needs milk - is she taking in enough milk during the day do you think? Sorry, not much help, but she is not far off 6 months, after which she does not need food at night, whereas before then they might still, and you will also be able to try controlled crying (if you agree with it, natch), which will teach her to go to sleep and to go back to sleep on her own.

[nailpolish]

she sleeps loads during the day and i always put her down awake, so she goes to sleep on her own. sometimes she wakes through the night but just chatters, then goes back to sleep. when she wakes in the morning i know its cos shes hungry cos she starts crying and when i give her a bottle she scoffs it in a oner!

i dont really think shes teething, there are no other signs, although it could be i agree

she takes about 30oz of milk each day, give or take

baby rice is all i can think of, apart from keeping her up later which would be difficult cos she exhausted by 8pm

[dinosaur]

nailpolish if you give her a bottle at 5 a.m. will she go back to sleep then?

How much does she nap in the day? I know Gina Ford recommends three hours as an absolute maximum.

[nailpolish]

3 hrs!!!!!!!! she must sleep twice that

after the 5am bottle she is awake maybe 2-3 hrs max

im just dreading tomorrow cos if the pattern keeps up itll be 430am tomorrow and 4 am the next day

[moonshine]

My ds was grumpy etc for about 3 months before first tooth appeared but I now know his particular signs. Would she take some more milk during the day to get her total calorie need for the whole day?? Back in the good old days when ds slept all night (at 4-6 months, now he doesn't at 8.5 months ) he would neck between 40-45 ozs a day (but he is a big boy!!!).

[moonshine]

She naps for 6 hours during the day?????

[nailpolish]

almost, she always has

[moonshine]

Lucky you! But maybe it is too much at this stage? Can you help her cut down a bit on the morning/lunchtime ones?

[dinosaur]

Well...maybe it's time to start gradually cutting back on the day time naps?

I do remember with my DS1 that when he stopped waking up at 6 a.m. was when he stopped having an early nap at 9.30 a.m.

[nailpolish]

ok cool ill try that. i have started trying not to let her sleep after 4pm but maybe im better trying to keep her up longer in the morning

she would sleep on a bed of nails though, she just can nod off anywhere anytime

thanks folks

[dinosaur]

I am not really a dyed in the wool Gina fan but I have always found her rather good on the timing of naps.

FWIW she strongly advocates keeping the morning nap pretty short (45 mins to an hour max) and having the longest nap after lunch, with maybe a very short late afternoon nap if your baby can't go through to bedtime.

Babies and their sleep, eh? Am trying to sleep-train DS3 at night atm, have eyes propped open with matchsticks today...zzzzzzzzz

[lucykatie]

hi sorry been out, but i give my dd 5.5months...

breakfast....bottle 4oz and porridge
dinner.... bottle and 1 rusk using the milk from bottle
tea....a small dinner, say half a jar if using food in tin or jar plus half a jar of pudding
supper ...another bottle, maybe a rusk again.

and yes i know its alot but she takes it and seems to need it, she never throws it up and seems so much more happier than when she just had bottles, you have to play it by ear but i would start baby on some solids...rusks are great...just mash it up with some milk.....yummmmmmmy.

[nailpolish]

thanks lucykatie, nice advice

dinosaur, it seems we are not alone, it just feels that way sometimes