when your baby wakes at 5am.....

[GirlWithTheMouseyHair]

and won't go back to sleep what the hell do you do? We had to share a room with DS (7months) last night as SIL was staying, he woke at 4:55am, normally I'd either go in and give him his dummy or just leave him but obviously us being in the room totally distracted him and kept him awake so here I am trying to hold my eyes open with matchsticks while he plays on the living room floor - albeit a bit whingey. I figure at some point he'll want to go back to bed so I will too - but should I still wait til 7am before feeding him, like I normally do?

My ds2 wakes most mornings at 4:30am, so we just get up, by the time I feed and wind him, it'd be gone 5 and ds1 gets up about 6, so not worth going back to bed. I normally fold a bit of washing first and feed him about 15/20 mins after he's woken unless he's screaming.

I usually feed DS in the dark and then put him back down to sleep, he is in his own room though so that helps. Hopefully your DS will go back to this when he's back in his own room. As for today - try and have a nap when he does, maybe in the sunshine so you tan and nap - multitasking !

Hi GWTMH!! Why is it always US on the sleep forums hey . Just to say when DD wakes early I always wait as close to 7am as possible before feeding her, even if it means she goes straight down for her first nap afterwards.

But by early I mean 5.45/6ish... at 5am I'd probably ignore her if she was just mumbling. If crying would send DH off to shush/pat... and if that didn't work, a quick 5 min feed then back in cot.

Difficult when you're all in together though, especially when it's a one off. He probably thought it was Christmas! (plus if he's had this cold that's probably thrown his sleep right out) xx

Dd, she used to potter round the bedroom/watch cbeebies/play in cot/go back to bed with me while i dozed, until 9.30ish or so most days (my 'rule' was I didn't get out of bed til 8am )

With ds, I am lucky if I am still in bed past 6am. It's so light too, and I don't have a clock in the bedroom so often don't realise it's 5.20 til we get downstairs...

We do try and get them in bed early now to compensate (they are weirdly more likely to sleep longer - i mean til 6.30am - if they are in bed by 7 latest)

i find that two isnt it strange the earlier you put them to bed the longer they sleep

It's so strange, especially if the difference in time is just 15 minutes. If I get my 12 month old LO to bed by 7pm then she is more likely to wake at 6.30 or later. If I get her to bed just 15 minutes later then she's more likely to wake 6am-ish!