What time does your 8 month old wake up in the morning? (long, sorry, but could really use some help please MNers)

[champagnesupernova]

I am a bit lost atm. We're trying to get 8m/o DS to sleep more but he seems to be WAKING more in the night.

We're doing a bit of baby whisperer PU/PD and DH is helping (as DS wants milk when he sees me) and this is helping him settle but I'm wondering whether it's my daytime "routine" that's putting him off.

Usually DS wakes up around 6.30 ish and I bring him back to our room (my bed) for a feed and a play and then try and get him to go back to sleep with me for an hour or so.
And then we have breakfast around 9ish.

Then some mornings he'll have a sleep (and some not)
Then lunch around 1 sh

And then some boob and another nap but the time of this will vary from half an hour to 1hr 45. (again - )

Then playtime until dinner between 5 and 6 with more playtime and then bath story, boob and then bedtime between 6 and 7.

He will wake usually once if not twice before we go to bed at 11 ish and then again at least twice more before he wakes up at 6.30.

It's kinda driving us crazy as when he was 8 weeks old he slept 12 until 6 regularly and then until about 5.5 months he was just waking the once for a feed and would go straight back to sleep afterwards but it's getting a bit much now. (can see end of tether emoticon).

He is crawling and is quite active and HV is happy with weight. My friend says that "sleep begets sleep" so I'm wondering if he's getting enough during the day, shoudl I be enforcing a morning nap more and getting up with him when he wakes at 6.30 (hence thread title, sorry, this is MUCH longer than I'd anticipated)

Could it be he's not eating enough?
Should he be having snacks?

Anything else I have missed?

Any advice really appreciated.
TIA

you will find as they get older you have to find a new routine that works our routines changed several times the older and active he got i had to cut naps banc as he simply wasnt tired enough at night i think he had morning nar and no nap later then 2 bed at 7 dream feed at 10-11 and he would wake at 5 or 6 and would get up with him

his brain and body needs more stimulation and as it gets older he will want to do more also growth spurt maybe from all the actiivity had my ds waking for feed pccasionally at 2-3 then he would go back off till 6

try new routine the ones that worked when inactive newborns dont always stay that way as i say we adapted the routines around him and found new ones that worked for all that way it was easiewr then feeling he should be doing something that just isnt working now

i did find not sure if yours can eat toast or not but my ds always liked a small slice of roast right before bed and this seemed to settle him for longer along with his milk

he also gave up his naps around this time could normally get him to sleep for morning nap but not afternoon id put him down but he would play

i would always have quiet time bath then soft music in his room while doing feed and singing to him and sometimes baby massage and then would send him sleepy then would settle him and dream feed before bed every child is different so dont compare my ds woke for 1 nightfeed until he was 19 mths but he needed that anfd grew out of it himself

Personally I would start the day at 6.30 when he wakes up - get out of bed, give him breakfast and let him play etc - chances are he will be ready for another nap by 9ish then.

Iirc, when DS was 8 months old, we used to get up at 7ish, he would nap from 9-11ish and then have a shorter nap in the afternoon (2-3 maybe??). He soon dropped the afternoon nap and just had a long nap in the mornings until he was 18 months old then he switched to a nap after lunch like 'normal' children .

What is dream feed? Thanks

At 8 mo dd got up for the day at 5 am and it was hell. Shifted forward from about 12 mo. I agree it sounds like your day is starting at 6.30 I'm afraid.

Becca22 a dreamfeed is a feed you give baby while they are still asleep. You gently pick them up and feed them around 3-4 hours after you put them to bed (around the time you would be going to bed) in the hope they then don't wake for a feed later on so you get more sleep! You shouldn't need to wind them afterwards as they are so relaxed and sleepy that they don't swallow much air so you can just pop them straight down again. It worked a treat with my ds. He went to bed at 7:30pm, dreamfeed at 10:30pm slept through til 7. It was fantastic, I really think the midwives should teach people about it in hospitals as it was a life saver for us and got ds sleeping trhough from 10 weeks (with the dream feed obviously).

I would start the day when he wakes up. I used to be able to get DD back to sleep but now, at 8 months, when she's up she's up.

I think your day needs to start no later than 7am to ensure that he gets enough sleep during the day - he would probably be ready for a good nap by 9.30ish then. Sounds like he isn't getting enough daytime sleep to me.

My DD is now 11 months but 630 is a "lie in" for us and we start the day immediately.

We come downstairs, bottle of milk, play, cereal.

830/9am back to bed for a bit (no more than an hour)

10ish - snack

Play

12/1230 - lunch

1230/1 - nap for up to 2 hours (this is a fairly new thing as she used to be a rubbish sleeper)

3pm ish - milk

530pm ish - tea, bath, bottle

630/7pm ish - bed

Its slightly GF but it works for us.

Message withdrawn