Bedtime routines

[TORino]

What do you do with your baby of an evening?

I haven't bathed her yet and was planning on doing so tonight so what order and time do you do things to get your LO settled?

This is my desperate plea for some sleep between 1-6 overnight!!

 

[Lilelephant]

I do feed at 7.30 bath between 8-8.30 then a massage with dim lights and put him in cot by 9pm :/)

 

[marley]

Hi torino,

How old is lo ?

My little girl is 6 months . I bath her at 6 ish and give her last bottle at 7 in a dark quiet room and put her to bed.

She sleeps through until 7/7.30 . Good luck hun. Xx


Apologies for any typos!

 

[Hemera]

I dont bath as it wakes him up but we do a massage, into night clothes, book,boobie,bed. I think anything can be part of the0routine as long as you're consistant, Drake goes down about 7.30-8, has a dream effect 10.30-11, and then Will wake up once or twice between then and 7.30am. Not perfect but not bad.

 

[Smithy1980]

We do bath at 5.30 (after dinner very messy) and then massage and chill time. Bottle at 6.30 and in bed for 7pm.

We use sleeping bags and she knows its bedtime as soon as she sees it x


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[Roo3]

When my LO was the same age as your LO, we would top and tail wash him at about 9pm, then pop him into his sleepsuit, give him a bottle, then swaddle and into his crib downstairs with us until we went to bed. He would wake twice a night and go back off pretty much straight after a feed, once we had stopped changing his nappy unless it was dirty in the night. We found that if we changed his nappy it woke him up too much and he'd be awake for hours after his feed. We kept the room dark during his night feeds, didn't talk to him or make much eye contact at all.
I hope your LO sleeps more for you tonight. x

 

[TORino]

Baby is 6 days old

I know she's still very new and we are finding our feet still but I am desperate to have at least some sleep if she's going to be awake after the 1am feed so I thought a bath would help

 

[i.love]

I do massage, exercises, bath, then food in a dark room, and then off to bed. The idea is that physical exercise is good (this includes splashing in the bath) for tiring babies out. Emotional overstimulation is a no-no though, as it will wake your baby up (rough play, exciting toys, etc). That's why I don't do books before bed yet - g loves them and gets too excited! But that's just him I guess.

 

[hesty14]

I've just started one with my LO. Do bath about 8:30, sleeping bag on then bottle and bed. Sometimes she will sleep as soon as bottle hits the mouth others she dozes in my arms then in cot and music box on and She usually goes ok.

 

[hugsy]

That might be little young for routine hun, think u have to just go with what they want at the age, Kayla is 5 weeks and were only starting to think of a routine now, i defo found doing the night feeds in the dark with no chat helps, we got a dim nitelite that we leave on all nite and its enough to manage the feeds and change then pop her back in her mosses basket, at that age we put her down in her mosses in the living room and took her up with us at bed time hoping to put her to bed on her own from next week

it is so hard at the start but will bet better, were down to last feed at 11 ish then one nite feed and up for day from 630 to 730 ish

 

[littlemiss83]

I take LO upstairs at 5ish, I take him into the quiet bedroom, we have some bedroom only, relaxing toys he plays with while I organise his bath & jammies & bottle ect, then bath time, bit of a massage after & bottle & bed. My LO still fusses most nights at bedtime, but he always goes off to sleep after a wee while & sleeps 12/13 hours, sometimes he stirs around 5am but he always goes back off to sleep without me doing anything

xxxxxxxxxxx

 

[Sleepy sue]

T I've sent u msg x

 

[Elfs Mummy]

When lo was very young I used to sleep when she slept and still have the odd nap with her now. Do you swaddle? I'd probably feed and swaddle 30 mins before you ideally want her to go to sleep and then play white noise if you're desperate. Have you seen ewan the sheep my friend swears by him xx

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[Mrs CW]

We didn't start a proper routine until LO was about 8 weeks. We bath at 6, then read a story, bottle and bed, usually by 7 - this is the time LO set for himself really. We dream feed at 11.30, he will sometimes wake around 4 but the past few nights has slept through until 6.30 x

 

[clairebear22]

Jack has dinner at 6pm, bath between 7-7.30pm, then he has a runa round in his baby walker (chasing the cats) to wear him out. The we do story bottle and bed and he's usually asleep between 8-8.30pm x

 

[Hunnie]

Truth is, I'd say you're going to struggle to get her to be in a routine at that age. However hard it is, you just have to go with what baby is telling you for now.

Sophie only got in a routine from about 2 weeks old and it only started to make a difference really from about 5 weeks when she knew bath and bottle then meant sleep in her crib for longer.

I have to admit I think this is why I'm glad I followed on with formula feeding as it meant me and OH could share the workload between us and it gave me a break from having her all day and then again all night.

There were obvious added problems from formula feeding such as the increased chance of trapped wind and colic, which she suffered from but I think it's important that mum is happy as well for it to work!

Have you also thought that you being stressed isn't helping her to settle either? Sophie used to drive me mad and OH would have to take over as he was a lot more calm and just used to put her on his chest so she could listen to his heartbeat.

 

[TORino]

It's got to the point now where I am just trying anything to avoid making her cry because once she is crying it is very difficult to get her to calm down

When I said routine I was just wanting to know whether to feed first then bath or the other way round. Probs a daft q really cos feeding is the only time she is quiet!

I am really concerned about how I am feeling at the minute tbh. I can hear the baby crying when she is not in the house!!! It's ringing in my ears all day long

 

[marley]

Hi Torino,

I used to get ringing in
My ears too. Those early days are so hard , the lack of sleep etc...

It will get better, I know everyone says its so cliche but it does.

Things I did in the early stages
Which I believe aided LO to become a good sleeper:

1) When she looks sleepy but not
Fully asleep , put her down in crib and allow her to fall asleep on her own.

2) avoiding over stimulating with noisy toys and lots of people in her face.

3) as soon as she looks tired get her down for naps before she becomes aggravated.

4) teach her night and day

5) dummy/ comforter

6) general perseverance- keep at it(if that makes any sense?)

Be consistent!

This is what I did and by the time LO was 6 weeks she figured it all out.

I really do believe the more sleep they get the more they want my LO sleeps 12-14 hours plus naps in the day.

I'm sure your doing a fantastic job, sleep will come soon!!




Apologies for any typos!

 

[Samsgirl]

Hope you are okay. I know all about how you are feeling. I was the same. It does get easier.... I promise.

We boobie feed Hannah about 6pm then lie her in her baby gym fully stripped to give her some no nappy kicking time (they love this!), while I get her bath ready. Then it is bath, top up bottle of formula in the darkened bedroom and bed. She has got used to being put down awake and she takes herself off to sleep but we only started doing this the past week.

She sleeps til about 1am and then feeds and then usually goes til about 5/6am. Xx

 

[marley]

How are you getting on hun? XxA


Apologies for any typos!