BF 8 month old wakes frequently at night... leaving the house?

[Catheroooo]

Hi, as the above says... She can wake 30 mins after going to bed, the most she has done is 3-4 hours before her next wake, meaning at the latest it's 11pm. Sometimes she cries for a while before going to sleep (We comfort her). I always offer the boob, she generally comfort sucks I think but does feed too.

I can't express, She's never taken a bottle, but I'm conscious I've never left the house of an evening with my OH.

She's a snacker day so I've never been 100% confident that it's not hunger she wakes for when it's 11pm. although I do think before then she wakes just because rather than hunger.

I would love an evening out, but I feel selfish and cruel doing it knowing she may wake up, want boob but be comforted by someone not me or OH. Plus if she does want boob she will be a nightmare for grandma. I've been telling myself I'll do it when she's reliably sleeping a long period... But it's clear this isn't happening (funnily enough she has tended to do one the second half of the night).

What do others do?

Has grandma looked after the baby during the day?

I only ask as I'm thinking if the baby is used to grandma then maybe leaving the 2 of them together would be ok in the evening. My ds plays up when I'm around and he's always well behaved when with the rest of my family on his own.

How does she nap during the day? It sounds to me like she might be over tired? My DS is 9 months, ebf and I know if he wakes before midnight it's because he's overtired from the day.

In terms of going out, if you need the time off you need the time off. One night won't kill her, and if it is really bad you can always come home? My son always seemed to be better with other people than with me, although I waited a long time before having an evening out (have only done it once!). It's ok to want some time away from your baby!

Thanks.

Yup Grandma has looked after her before.

I do think it overtiredness, she usually has two naps of just short of 1.5 hours a day but every other day or two one or both will be 30-45 minutes. I can't get her to go longer though. I also think she is in between 2-3 naps but I can never get her to take a third nap. So we roughly go by the 2,3,4 hour routine. If she's had short naps I bring bed forward though. We've also had teething and separation anxiety so 3 or so nights of the week are spent with an hour or two of crying.

Did you ever hear ofthe 'wake to sleep' technique to extend short naps? I'm trying it at the moment with much younger babies. Basically you very slightly rouse the child a short time before the predicted (typical) wakeup time in the hope that it will induce them to commence another sleep cycle.

Wake to sleep can definitely work - very gently though, so just putting a blanket on can work!

8 months is a notoriously challenging age for sleep!

Thanks... I have a super alert baby who wakes up at the drop of the pin and is wide awake. She would find wake to sleep very stimulating!

Currently thinking about this myself (think I commented on your other alert babies thread too ). Could you work up to it slowly? I'm going to go to an evening exercise class and leave him with DH. Perhaps you could go to a nearby pub for a drink while grandma looks after him and then you have the reassurance of knowing you're not too far away if he does need you?