4:30 AM

YaraC · December 2010

Caroline has decided that the day now starts at 4:30 AM. With only one exception she has done this everyday for the last two weeks and it is about to kill me and DH. We take turns getting up with her but it is just too early.

I can't put her to bed later, she is a mess by 6:15. If I try putting her to bed earlier, I will never see her. I only get an hour in the evenings as it is.

Any other suggestions other than wait it out or start going with it and getting to work super early (which would work except I tend to have a lot of late in the day meetings (stupid west coast and your time zone Stick out tongue ) and wouldn't necessarily get to come home earlier)?

mtnrider · December 2010

YaraC:

Caroline has decided that the day now starts at 4:30 AM. With only one exception she has done this everyday for the last two weeks and it is about to kill me and DH. We take turns getting up with her but it is just too early.

I can't put her to bed later, she is a mess by 6:15. If I try putting her to bed earlier, I will never see her. I only get an hour in the evenings as it is.

Any other suggestions other than wait it out or start going with it and getting to work super early (which would work except I tend to have a lot of late in the day meetings (stupid west coast and your time zone ) and wouldn't necessarily get to come home earlier)?

Hey West Coast is the Best Coast! Wink Just wait it out, S started 4:30-5 a.m. wakeups about 2 months ago and just recently dropped that and now sleeps till 7.

ShannonLK · December 2010

Could she just take a nap @ 6:15 instead of going down for the night?

I hope things resolve quickly and you and your DH can get more sleep!

itsmexine · December 2010

Being in the mountain time zone I have a lot of 6 am meetings yuck! Anyhoo....

If you don't have any, try some toys in her crib that may buy you some time before she calls for you. Other ideas - try pushing off her first feeding a little if she is waking up hungry so she doesn't expect to eat right away. This will also help to shift her whole schedule by a few minutes so that in the end she may be able to stay up a little longer and sleep a little later.

superaunt · December 2010

Sabrina's bedtime is at 7 because she has to be up by 530 but she rarely makes it to 7... the only way to make it to 7 is if she takes a really late nap (like 5-6pm). Is that an option for you guys- to let her nap later? Do you automatically just get her up and out of bed when she wakes at 430? When S wakes that early, we treat it like it's 2am and soothe her back to sleep. If she's hungry she'll refuse to go to sleep so we feed her and she'll immediately go back to sleep for several more hours (if it's not a workday).

YaraC · December 2010

We could try a late nap, though she isn't much of a napper doesn't really act sleepy until she hits her wall around 6:00 PM.

I treat the 4:30 wake-ups like a middle of the night wake up initially but you can tell the difference immediately because she is babbling and singing. I keep the lights off and don't talk but she is just up.

Letting her cry in her crib for an hour or more is not an option. It's just not the way I parent.

Thanks for all of your advice. I'll consider some of the suggestions and see if they might work for us.

fiazo · December 2010

Can she get a nap like 4:00? That WAS my routine with Sienna. A nap at 11:00 & then at 4:00. The big WAS is because I have a vent of my own to post regarding sleep routine now.

fiazo · December 2010

I love Caroline's Christmas outfit.

Piranha54 · December 2010

Ugh. I was going to suggest letting her CIO as suggested in Healthy Sleep Habits, but since you said it was the 'I'm awake" babbling and cooing that's just not going to do it. We can get about 20-30 minutes when Ellie wakes up early that she is happy and playing in her crib, but after that you'd better get her out. So I'm really no help. Hopefully, she'll grow out of it as Mtnrider suggested.