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When do babies start moving toward a later bedtime?
DD has been a challenge to get to bed lately, which is unusual for her. I've attributed it mainly to teething pain and probably some developmental milestones but I'm just wondering when she'll start going to bed later. For the last few months we've been starting bedtime a little before or right at 7:00 and she's definitely asleep no later than 7:30, usually earlier. She STTN - wakes up usually around 7am. But the last week she's been fighting bedtime and wants to play, sometimes cry, and doesn't seem all that tired. She'll eventually crash by 8:00. Should I move bedtime back or just keep with our routine? I don't want her to be overtired but I'm not entirely sure when babies start needing less sleep at night. She's a great sleeper once she's asleep - hardly ever wakes up unless something is wrong so I don't want to mess with that too much, but bedtimes are rough.
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Re: When do babies start moving toward a later bedtime?
I'm a firm believe in early bedtimes. If anything, I'd try putting her down earlier. Sometimes when babies fight sleep it's because they are overtired and that adrenaline rush is keeping them from being able to calm down and sleep.
Warner is almost 3 and we start heading to bed at 7:30 and he's usually asleep by 8pm.
Ditto BH. We've had issues with T being a nightmare at bedtime periodically (usually when we've let it push past 7 pm for a while because she didn't seem to need to be tired), and inching it 15 minutes earlier generally helps.
I asked the ped. once and she said generally kids start needing less sleep around 2.5, whether it's later bedtimes or shorter/no naps. I'm hoping T keeps her nap when she hits that point, because there's a crazy rush every night between getting her home and getting her into bed (lights out, us leaving the room) at 6:50/7 pm. I would love even another half hour in the evening!
Is she taking 2 naps a day? You may want to drop the 2nd nap and make her bedtime EARLIER.
As to your Q, I hope it's never LOL 7pm is our bedime and my kids are 19mo and 39mo. DD does not nap on weekends anymore and sometimes we can do a 6:45pm bedtime.
I've been wondering about that lately, too. For the last 2-3 months, we've been putting J down at his usual 6:30 bedtime. I'd say 2/3 of the time, he doesn't actually fall asleep until 7:30--he lays there, talking to himself, singing, kicking, whatever. So I was thinking maybe we should put him down later (I mean, if he'll fall asleep at 7:30 regardless, it would be nice to see him for that extra half hour).
But the last week or so, he's been OUT as soon as we put him in the crib at 6:30. I don't know if it's a growth spurt or what but he's been sleeping like a log. So who knows.
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I'm going to be a voice of dissent. I don't think you need an earlier bedtime or to drop a nap. My 13 month old is still taking 2 naps a day and sleeping well during them. I think this is a sleep regression, and you're at the right time for it (9mos).
https://www.motherhoodsupport.com/2010/08/sleep-regressions-what-they-are-and-how-to-deal-2/
Given she's out for the night only an hour later than usual, I'd just keep your regular routine and ride it out for a bit.
TTC #1 Cycle 14 - IUI#1=BFN, IUI#2=BFP | TTC #2 Cycle 8=BFP!!
Statistically, night wakings peak at 9 months because of teething, growth, social needs, anxiety, etc. So, this could just be a phase she'll naturall grow out of.
As to the bedtime question, I think this must just go by child. We've always gone by LO's cues rather than the clock. Until recently, he was up until 9-10. Just in the past month he's wanted to settle in at 7-8.
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