Read Good Night, Sleep Tight Workbook Online
Authors: Kim West
Tags: #Family & Relationships, #Life Stages, #Infants & Toddlers, #Parenting, #General
4. Sometimes feed your baby when he wakes up from a nap—not just when you’re trying to get him to sleep.
5. Put him down drowsy but awake at least once every 24 hours.
6. Introduce one bottle a day—even if you are committed to breastfeeding—around the third or fourth week if breastfeeding has been established.
7. Create a sleep-friendly environment.
8. Carefully think through bed-sharing (or co-sleeping) and room sharing. Make an informed safe decision. Read the Sleep Safety Recommendations on page 96.
• not allowing her to get overstimulated (keep her out of brightly lit, overly loud environments).
• preventing her from becoming overtired (she should only be awake for 1½ to 2 hours at a time during the day).
• exposing her to natural light or turning on the lights when she’s awake during the day.
• waking her after three hours of daytime sleep to feed her (you want to save those long stretches of slumber for night time).
• At 6 weeks, start putting your baby down “drowsy but awake” at bedtime.
• Between 6 and 8 weeks, focus on helping him to fall asleep
without
a breast or bottle in his mouth, or by being rocked until he’s totally out. Sit by his side and pat him,
sh-sh-sh
him, or pick him up if need be to calm him, but then put him back down. Stay by his side until he dozes off.
YOUR TASKS THIS MONTH• Continue to put your baby down drowsy but awake at bedtime.• Move her from her bassinette or co-sleeper bed to her own crib (unless you’re planning to practice the family bed for the long term).• Your baby’s bedtime should be around 10:00 or 11:00 p.m. at the beginning of this period; start moving it earlier (to about 8:00 p.m.) once she can sleep for eight hours at a time and/or when you notice that she’s getting tired earlier.• Her daytime nap schedule won’t fall into place until the end of this month. Meanwhile, don’t let her get overtired: Use the swing, stroller or baby sling to make sure she naps during the afternoon.
YOUR TASKS THIS MONTH• Get your baby to bed between 8:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. If he consistently falls asleep during his before-bed feeding, move his bedtime earlier.• Start reducing middle-of-the-night feedings. You can do this by either feeding him just once during the night—the first time he wakes up (as long as he’s been asleep for at least two hours) or by offering him a “dream feed” just before you turn in yourself—in other words, getting him up around 10:00 or 11:00 p.m. See
Good Night, Sleep Tight
for more details.• If he’s able to put himself to sleep independently at bedtime and is getting up once at night for a quick businesslike meal and then going right back to sleep, I would leave it alone. He’ll probably outgrow that last feeding soon. If not, you’ll learn how to gently end it at 6 or 7 months in Chapter 5.• Don’t nurse your baby or give him a bottle right before each nap. Feeding him when he’s up and alert, instead of ready to go to bed, helps weaken the food-sleep association and reinforces the message that he can get to sleep and stay asleep without a breast or bottle.• Help lengthen, organize, and improve his naps:• Watch both the clock and his behavior to know when its time to put him down for a nap.• Nap him in his crib for all naps except the last nap.• Naps should be longer then 45 minutes and ideally 90 minutes or longer. If your baby is cat napping, go to him when he wakes up and help comfort him back to sleep. Experiment to see what soothing technique works the best. Be patient and try to resettle him for 20-30 minutes. He may reward you with another 45 minutes of sleep! Slowly phase out your intervention as he gets better at learning to put himself back to sleep.
(Shift earlier if your child wakes between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.)
7:00 a.m.-7:30 a.m. Wake up; diaper change; breakfast (nurse or bottle feed plus solids). 9:00 a.m.-9:30 a.m. Start the morning nap, 45 minutes minimum to 1½ hours maximum.When baby wakes up, nurse/bottle feed plus solids. 12:30 p.m.-1:30 p.m. Start the afternoon nap. Baby should be asleep within 2 to 3 hours of waking from his morning nap and sleep for 1½ to 2 hours. Upon awakening, nurse/bottle feed. 3:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Optional short third nap depends on previous nap time, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Window from afternoon nap to bedtime should not exceed 4 hours.
5:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. Nurse/bottle feed plus solids. 6:00 p.m.-6:30 p.m. Start bath/bedtime preparations, which may include giving a bottle or nursing. 7:00 p.m.-7:30 p.m. Bedtime.
(Shift earlier if your child wakes between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.)
7:00 a.m.-7:30 a.m. Wake up. Nurse/bottle/cup and breakfast. 9:00 a.m.-9:30 a.m. Start the morning nap. If your child is sleeping 11 to 12 hours uninterrupted at night he might be able to stay awake until 10:00 a.m. (or 3 hours after waking up). Some children need a small morning snack after the nap. 12:00 p.m.-12:30 p.m. Lunch with nurse/bottle or cup. 1:00 p.m.-2:00 p.m. Start the afternoon nap. Snack upon awakening . 5:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. Dinner with nurse/bottle or cup.
Changes and Challenges: Weaning and Transitioning to a Cup• Some babies are ready to give up the breast or bottle during this time (or Mom and Dad are ready for them to!). If a child isn’t generally overtired or doesn’t need a feeding to get to sleep, weaning should be an easy, natural transition. Some signs a baby may be ready to move on from the breast or bottle:1. She looks around while nursing or feeding2. She mouths the nipple without sucking3. She tries to slide off your lap before polishing off a bottle or emptying your breast• It’s a good idea to introduce your baby to a cup by 9 months old, so by the time she’s 12 months old (or very soon after), she’ll be taking
all
liquids from one. Do your best to stick to this guideline: Around 15 months, many babies become attached to objects like bottles and pacifiers, so if your child is still drinking from a bottle at this age (especially before going to sleep), it’s going to be especially tough to wean her off of it.