Bedtime question for moms of newborns.

I don’t understand how you put your 2 month old down to sleep at 10. I know the point of putting them down that late is because usually they sleep longer stretches and you don’t want to wake up during the middle of the night. Im just confused. My DS needs sleep after being awake for like an hour, so at night we put him down earlier because he is just so cranky and we have to hold him with the binky in his mouth. He doses off, but he really doesn’t fall into a deep sleep. Anyway, I read all these things about you guys putting your newborn down late and I am so confused at how you do it. Do you keep them up until then? Like last night, I fed him at 530 and was due for his next bottle at 830. My DH held him until then because if you put him down at 530 then he will be awake so many times during the night, but when my DH gave him his 830 bottle he was so tired he only drank 2 ounces and then was up at 1215. We fed him and he went back down and slept until 530.

Tell me how in the world you keep your DC up that late, because Im at a loss on how to do it. Not sure if I want to do it either, but I just don’t get it. I need a system because I feel as though this kid will be one of those that will not STTN until he turns much older. He is 10 weeks and his sister was already STTN for a week and a half already (and I mean from 8-5ish).

Re: Bedtime question for moms of newborns.

I'll try to answer but not sure if I am understanding your question. My kids are 7 mos now but when they were that small-they did not have a "bedtime" They would hang with us in the LR and sleep in their bouncys or swings, sometimes in their bassinet-which had wheels so we would wheel it around. They would go to bed with us around 11-12. They were still waking up to eat every 3 hours so thats what we did.

Re: Bedtime question for moms of newborns.

Re: Bedtime question for moms of newborns.

i have to agree with the PP - there is no such thing as a 'bedtime' right now.

when emma is tired - she sleeps - when she's alert - i play with her - do tummy time - rock her, etc.

it's the same thing with eating - is there a schedule yet? NOPE - when she's hungry and awake - she gives food cues and i feed her. when she's asleep and gets hungry - she cries - i grab her and feed her - no schedule (though typically - it's every 3 hours'ish).

we're big time night people - so Emma goes to sleep when she dozes off - last night for example - we had friends over, watching a flick - her schedule went:

asleep at 6:00 - she ate and went right out (we put her in her pack n play)

woke up 8:45 to eat - fell asleep WHILE eating (this DOES NOT happen all the time). (put her in her swing)

woke up at midnight to eat - we fed her and played with her - as she was alert for a short while. (put her back in the pack n play for about an hour and then swaddled her and put her in the bassinet and we went to bed)

woke up at 3:30 to eat and to be frank - i don't remember much after that.

eta: added locations of where she slept

Message edited 7/1/2009 1:14:31 PM.

Re: Bedtime question for moms of newborns.

Re: Bedtime question for moms of newborns.

Jen I put both kids in their beds at 8pm at 8 weeks. They both slept until 3am got a bottle and went back to bed until 6 - 7am. I don't know WHY they started sleeping that long once I put them in their crib, but they did. They were not doing that previously. Somedays they woke at 1am and sometimes if they were stirring around 11 when I went to bed I'd give them a bottle then to hold them through the night. I just went with the flow...it all worked out. Took Jack a year though to give up that 3 am bottle

Re: Bedtime question for moms of newborns.

I put my DD in between 6:30 and 7:00 (on a rare ocassion 7:30)....she can't make it passed that time. She'll wake up to eat between 11-12 and then again....the again time could be 4:00 or it could be that she is ready to wake for the day 6:00. Having a toddler running around & a newborn doesn't allow the quiet for the baby to sleep in the swing or bouncy. When she is tired we put her in the crib with the sound machine on (after I have rocked her to sleep, of course!).

Message edited 7/1/2009 1:57:00 PM.