Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Sleep

Join our Sleep forum for tips on creating a sleep routine for your baby or toddler. Need more advice on your childs development? Sign up to our Ages and Stages newsletter here.

Flip

Original poster

Newborn baby boy - Questions!

21 replies

MrsGTW2 · 14/02/2015 06:54

My baby boy is a week old and, as a first time mum, there are a couple of things troubling me that I'd love some thoughts/advice on.

The first is that he keeps on waking with his clothes wet through. I'm putting his nappy on correctly, with his willy pointing down, so I'm not sure why his wee is escaping. We're using pampers newborn size 1 and he was born weighing 8lbs12. Has anyone else had this issue and how did you resolve it?

The second thing is bedtime routine, which has left me feeling a bit confused. He's sleeping in a Moses basket, which is always in a room with me, as advised, day and night. However, when we start trying a bit more of a routine and putting him down at 7pm, all of the books talk about creating a calming atmosphere, dimming the lights etc. We can't really do that in our sitting room, when we're trying to eat dinner, catch up etc, so does this mean that I should be retreating to the bedroom with the baby at this time? I hope not, because I don't particularly want to get into bed at 7pm, especially not having seen my DH all day. I'm just a little confused about how you create this calm bedtime atmosphere with the baby in the same room!

Any advice here would be gratefully received!

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

BikeRunSki · 14/02/2015 07:04

1- you need larger nappies. There is overlap between the sizes.
2- just kept him with you until you go to bed for now. He's too young for bed time routines yet - that'll come about 3-6 months.

icklekid · 14/02/2015 07:05

Hi OP as for nappies we always found going up a size when he wet through solved the problem - Could do only at night if not needed in day although I think ds used to poo a lot at night as a new born.

As for night time I don't think we did proper bed time routine until 10/11 weeks as he was really colicky. We then put him down upstairs with monitor on. I guess it depends if you are happy to do that otherwise keep him downstairs until 10/11pm feed then move upstairs when you go to bed?

Athrawes · 14/02/2015 07:10

Aw bless. I remember. Just keep him with you until you want to go to sleep. If you want to, have the lights down a bit lower, so that when you are both snuggled on the sofa he doesn't have a light shining in his eyes.

Batbear · 14/02/2015 07:16

Another vote for changing nappy size (and considering changing brand - pampers didn't suit my boys).

I used to put the eldest down in the bedroom with a monitor but when he was small he'd sleep anywhere for really short periods so he could sleep in the same room as us eating without worries

Finlaggan · 14/02/2015 07:25

Re the nappies, definitely try a different brand, pampers were rubbish for DS but not DD I found supermarket own brands were better.

Congratulations & just enjoy having him around in the evenings for the moment

BauerTime · 14/02/2015 07:40

Nappies may be the size but also some babies suit other brands better as they fit slightly differently. I thought this must be nonsense before we tried Huggies but it's true!

At a week old I also wouldn't worry about a routine of any kind or creating a calming atmosphere, you can leave that till he starts sleeping longer periods at night and less in the daytime.

I'm not saying this will be right for you but we didn't start trying to do 'bedtime' until 6 months. For now I'd just go with the flow, don't concentrate on trying to put him down to sleep at bedtime, you will miss out on so many cuddles! They grow so quickly that honestly, cuddle him as much as you can, all evening on the sofa if you want. Special times you won't get back but bedtime will come later.

Enjoy your baby

Original poster

MrsGTW2 · 14/02/2015 09:09

Thanks everyone, really helpful advice. The routine thing is so confusing as so many people advocate starting one straight away, but with my baby feeding every 2 hours max and definitely not to any particular times, it did seem a little bit silly to be thinking about it now.

I'll try going up a size in nappies and using these at night, as we only seem to have this issue overnight, otherwise the Pampers nappies have been working well.

Such a relief to have this site to ask such questions!

OP posts:

tak1ngchances · 14/02/2015 09:19

Just to confuse things, I am going to go against the other posters

I would make a distinction between day and night as much as possible. So bright noisy house from 7am to 7pm and then dim the lights and keep the noise down. I used to put the Moses basket in the room next to us with both doors open so I could see and hear DD but she was in a quiet dark place.

Imperial · 14/02/2015 09:20

Make sure you are fully unfolding the nappies especially round the leg bit so that the elasticated but is actually round their leg and not still folded up. Hopefully that will make sense once you actually have both baby and nappy in front of you.

deborah86 · 14/02/2015 12:37

From day one I started dimming the lights at 7PM and turned the TV volume down. I really wanted to make sure my DD knew it was time to chill out before bed. I think it worked. she is 13 wks today and she has a natural bed time at half 8 now and wakes some nights at 5 am for a feed and we've had a few 8 am too this week. I know they don't know the difference at that age but I think it made me feel like I was doing something productive And to be honest I think it worked for us. A few weeks of quiet at nights is worth it. I now get some time with my hubby again

LovelyBranches · 14/02/2015 13:53

My DS is 16 weeks old and we keep him downstairs until about 11pm when we go to bed. We dim the lights around 7/7.30 and watch tv quietly, we stop play and try not to interact too much apart from shushing. DS tends to wake for a feed about 11 and at that point we take him upstairs, feed in bed and put him to sleep in our bedroom. I'm probably doing it all wrong too but that works for us.

juneau · 14/02/2015 13:56

Its fine to put him to bed in your/his room at 7pm with the lights off or a dim night light. As long as you have the monitor on so you can hear him its a good habit for you all to get into. You don't have to have with him you 24/7 in the same room. The important thing is to be able to hear if he's in any kind of distress.

BikeRunSki · 14/02/2015 23:27

I make myself very boring to my children after 8pm, always have done.
I found having a long walk outside in daylight everyday helped them distinguish night and day after a few weeks, but it probably helped that they were both autumn babies for this.

CultureSucksDownWords · 14/02/2015 23:41

I would disagree Juneau. The advice is to keep them in the same room as you for all sleeps till 6 months. It's not so you can keep an eye on them, it's more complex than that apparently.

juneau · 15/02/2015 10:10

Well I don't know anyone who kept their DC with them in the same room 24/7 for the first six months of their life! And all those DC are alive and thriving. Do people really have their DC in the living room all evening? How on earth do those DC learn that its bedtime, if so? Do the parents tiptoe around and read a book quietly with dim lights on? I've raised two DC and never heard of this (and my youngest is only 3, so its not like it was all years ago).

CultureSucksDownWords · 15/02/2015 10:54

Well clearly I'm a lunatic exception. That's the advice on reducing the risk of SIDS so I followed it. The baby can learn about bedtime after 6 months, plenty of time for that. It seems to have done my ds no harm as a 2.5 yr old, he goes to bed at a regular time each evening and has slept through consistently (apart from illness) from about 11 months.

My ds would sleep in the living room with dimmer than usual lighting (not pitch black though) and with the TV quietly on. We went about our evening business as usual and took him up with us when we went to bed. It wasn't exactly a hardship.

BMO · 15/02/2015 11:03

I just had "night time" as 10pm-7am at first, and it got gradually earlier/nights got longer as they approached 6 months. Babies can't tell the time so it doesn't matter if you do bedtime at 6pm or 11pm, just do what suits your lifestyle best.

CultureSucksDownWords · 15/02/2015 11:21

This page from the NHS about baby sleep is from 2012 and has the same advice about all sleeps being in the same room as parents till 6 months. This advice seemed fairly widespread to me, certainly my friends with babies the same age seemed aware of it.

LovelyBranches · 15/02/2015 11:43

Culture, I'm clearly a lunatic exception too, see my earlier post. Glad that your dc is doing well, I'm following the sids guidelines too.

Genevieve1976 · 16/02/2015 09:47

My little boy five weeks old and he has used pampers/boots etc but we love aldi nappies, won awards and brilliant, plus good value. My little man in no 2.

He's grown out of moses basket so last night first night settled him in cot in my bedroom, put lightshow/luulabies on, and used monitor stuck to my ear all night!!!

For these first weeks just enjoy him and cuddle lots!!! I did turn the tv right down, lights dimmed so he could sleep soundly in our lounge before our bedtime. Not too much stimulation. I agree with poster about getting out when your up for it for fresh air/sunlight each day too.

Good luck, every day is different so try to relax and enjoy each other as time goes so fast. I got very sick of everyone's differing advice so started to have the confidence to do what feels right for me and William, you know your son best xxx

BauerTime · 16/02/2015 10:38

I think you are right Genevieve it's about what works for you and your partner AND your baby. I certainly couldn't have put my weeks old baby in another room at 7pm. I just couldn't have relaxed and he most certainly wouldn't have settled.

Another thought had just occurred to me re the nappies OP. Are you changing regularly or putting a nappy on at bedtime and expecring it to last til morning? Because at that age you need to change it at least as often as each feed. I also second Aldi size 1 nappies.

I didn't rate the larger sizes as much as they are quite papery and stiff and restricted DS's movement a bit as he was learning to move about but I used to buy the cheeky boys ones from Tesco in bulk when they have a baby event. A month's worth for £15 instead of the usual price of £30. In fact I don't much like pampers as they have a strong smell when wet (I can always tell when a kid is in pampers by the smell) and have found any supermarket brand to be fine. I do use pampers active fit at night though as they are the only nappy that seems capable of not getting too full and leaking over night now he sleeps through.

Flip