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Do you wake your baby up in the morning?

10 replies

CityDweller · 06/12/2013 08:57

Ok, I know this problem pales into insignificance compared to others (and those that I have previously had), but I'm struggling to get 7.5 mo DD onto a daytime routine because, if left to her own devices, she wakes up at completely random times one morning to the next. She goes to bed (asleep, self-settling) at about 7.15 each night. She then wakes up once in the night, recently it's been either 3ish or 5ish. I feed her and put her back in her cot, that takes about 20 mins. I usually wake her up around 7.15 am, as in order for us to get out when we need to in the morning, but this morning I just left her to her own devices to see what would happen and she didn't wake up until 8.30 (and that was only because we were crashing around getting ready for the day and I opened her bedroom door, I bet she would have slept longer if I'd left her door closed). I have no idea what her naps will do today (she usually naps twice, a morning nap a couple of hours after she's woken up and a lunchtime nap 3 hours after she's woken up from her morning one).

I have a theory that if I weaned her off her night feed then she'd wake up naturally at a more convenient hour (or, she may just wake up at 5.30 and refuse to go back to sleep!), but we're not quite ready for that yet.

So, really just wondering if anyone else has a baby that sleeps with this sort of pattern and, if so, do you wake them up in the morning so that their naps and meals take place on a convenient/ traditional schedule (e.g. morning nap at 9am, lunch at noon, afternoon nap at 1pm, etc)?

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Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
ZingSweetPea · 06/12/2013 21:49

your/her schedule sounds balanced and well thought out, I wouldn't change a thing! Smile

and yes, wake her up if you want to stick to that routine!

CityDweller · 07/12/2013 09:58

Thanks Zing. Yesterday confirmed what you suggest - that I need to wake her up by 7.15 and not just let her sleep in. Naps were a disaster and everything, including her feeds, got thrown out of whack.

I guess I'm just surprised that, if left to her own devices, she'd stay in bed for 13+ hours at night (bar the night feed). I thought babies had strong in-built clocks that woke them up by 7am!

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BettyBoo246 · 07/12/2013 21:11

Is she definitely hungry at 5am? I would offer her just water she will eventually learn that it's not worth waking up for and hopefully sleep thru till 7/8. At that age they can go 12hrs without a feed :)

bundaberg · 07/12/2013 21:16

god no, i've never willingly woken a baby!!!

obv i would if i had to get to work or something, but as a sahm? no way!

but i am not really a routine-y person myself

CityDweller · 07/12/2013 21:38

Betty I too think she could probably go through until at least 6/6.30 without feeding. I'm not sure how the 'offering water' thing would work (she's ebf and has never taken a bottle, and I'm not sure she'd have the wherewithal to deal with her sippy cup at 5am), but I'm going to start night-weaning after the Christmas holidays using the 'No Cry Sleep Solution' suggestions of reducing the length of the night feed so that it stops being something worth waking up for.

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BettyBoo246 · 07/12/2013 21:45

Yh my hv advised water as mine is ff, look at it like a dreamfeed, she is waking for it as she knows it's going to be there, if you don't think the water thing will take, maybe when she wakes at 5am leave her a little bit longer each morning 5mins then 10mins etc and keep reducing that feed, that's how I dropped my ds's dreamfeed and he does now do 11/12 hrs (fingers extremely crossed lol)

neversleepagain · 08/12/2013 17:39

Mine wake around 7am/7:15am, I go in and give them milk at 7:30am. If they are not awake by 7:30am I wake them.

Jackanory1978 · 08/12/2013 22:12

Never had this problem; he's up for the day at 5-5:30.

Every bloody morning!!

EnglishGirlApproximately · 08/12/2013 22:17

I wake Ds at 7 on work days as we leave the house at 7.30 but I leave him to his own devices on days off when he wakes any time between 7 and 9. I do appreciate that I'm lucky that his naps and bedtime aren't affected if he sleeps in. He's 20 months now and had this routine since about 11 months.

amyboo · 09/12/2013 04:58

Ha jackanory I feel your pain. Been downstairs since 5.25am drinking tea while 10 month old DS2 crawls around. He woke me up at 5 and I gave in when he got so noisy I was worried he would wake DS1 (age 3.5). I'm not greedy - I'd happily settle for my days regularly starting at 6.15, just not times beginning with 5 Hmm

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