We keep the apartment dark and switch to 2 hour feeds instead of 3 at around 6.
My LO is only 5 weeks so it's not much of a routine. Right now we change, extra diaper cream, feed, swaddle half way through feed (has to be milk drunk to allow it), rocks then bed with white noise. We give him a bath 2x a week so on those days, it's bath and massage first.
This came at a great time because we really need to get on a routine. I can't for the life of me remember what we did for DS and how early we started a routine.
What I DO know is that we are putting her down too late and I need to work on getting her down sooner. She is 10 weeks now and is pretty much consistently sleeping through the night... but leading up to bedtime is ROUGH. I can tell she is super tired and cries so hard... which is challenging when I am trying to do DS night time routine (which includes bath/books/songs). DH and I tag team the kids but I need to find a better routine!
Diaper and change to pjs. Swaddle and final feed. I try to get him to feed as much as possible. Then rock him until he wakes from feeding and then is just about to fall asleep and into the bassinet he goes to help w sleeping on his own. We run a fan for white noise and keep the room dark. At 7 weeks, that gives us about 2, 4hour chunks at night on a good night.
Both kids get into their pj's at 7. It signals quiet time. DD get 15 minutes of screen time while I feed DS and put him in his swing. I finish DD's bedtime routine and DS sleeps in the swing until 9:45ish when I feed, change, and swaddle for the night.
We do a warm bath (which he loves) around 7, change into PJs, and then he does a long feeding and gets rocked to sleep in his nursery with lights off by 8, I'll top him off at 9, and he'll usually sleep until midnight or 1. That's then longest stretch we get. At 8 weeks, he's still up every 2 hours to fed after that.
DD (8wks) gets a bath every 2-3 nights, followed by lotion. After bath or around 7 we do a fresh diaper and change to pj's. Then cluster feed and cuddle. During the last feed she will usually be a bit lazier, with longer breaks between sucks, and that's when I know she's almost done for the night. Then swaddle and transition to the bassinet, with a fan in the room. If she fusses, I give her a pacifier without any other engagement, repeating if necessary. There's a certain fuss that cues me to pick her up and do some brief rocking and shushing. She'll usually go ~4hrs on the first stretch, then 3hr chunks after that, and is great about falling asleep right away at night.
Sadly, none of these tricks work for naps. She will pretty much only nap if she is being held. Or sometimes in the swing or carseat. Sigh...
We don't really have a routine leading up to bedtime, which we probably should. About 9:30, sometimes earlier if she is acting particularly tired, we put the baby in her swaddle (no pjs, she fights it if she has too many layers), then into the bedroom. I turn on a YouTube video of water running through bamboo (10 hours, so I don't have to turn it back on throughout the night!), turn off the lights, and feed while rocking. She falls asleep eating, then I wait until she pulls off on her own. If I try to pull her off too early, she wakes up and we have to start all over again. Once she is in a good sleep, I put her in her PnP. Sometimes, she wakes up, but usually she stays asleep. Anywhere between 1 1/2 and 4 hours later, she will wake, and I usually pull her into bed with us. She sleeps between us for the rest of the night, maybe half waking two or three times to suck a few times, but not usually a full feed. I feel guilty about co-sleeping like that, but it works for us, and we are both really light sleepers, so I don't think it is as dangerous as it could be.
slp330
member
Re: Bedtime routines
My LO is only 5 weeks so it's not much of a routine. Right now we change, extra diaper cream, feed, swaddle half way through feed (has to be milk drunk to allow it), rocks then bed with white noise.
We give him a bath 2x a week so on those days, it's bath and massage first.
What I DO know is that we are putting her down too late and I need to work on getting her down sooner. She is 10 weeks now and is pretty much consistently sleeping through the night... but leading up to bedtime is ROUGH. I can tell she is super tired and cries so hard... which is challenging when I am trying to do DS night time routine (which includes bath/books/songs). DH and I tag team the kids but I need to find a better routine!
Will be tuning in to see what others are doing
*side note DD is 2
Sadly, none of these tricks work for naps. She will pretty much only nap if she is being held. Or sometimes in the swing or carseat. Sigh...