Questions for Dorothy Waide

Hi Dorothy,

What would you suggest a typical routine for an 8 month old should be now that we're introducing solids before milk. And within that routine, how many sleeps should they have (and what should the duration of the sleeps be)? I only recently started dream feeding in the hope that I would get my baby to sleep through the night instead of waking around 4 for a bottle. It seemed to have worked. Last night I decided not to dream feed and she woke at 3. I cannot resettle my baby and have tried cuddling and giving her some water instead of a bottle. She can easily have a good day of sleeping and then a bad day of catnapping for 30 mins.
Any suggestions? Thanks!

I posted in the wrong link also - let's try this again!

Hi Dorothy, great talk yesterday I really enjoyed it. Not sure if you answered this so sorry if you are repeating things..

I have a 7 1/2 week old boy Jack. He has started to sleep for two lots of 5/6 hours at night - yay! I was just wondering during the day if he is having only short naps of 30-45 minutes do I still follow the feed play cuddle sleep routine? It seems like I am feeding him a lot more during the day because he is waking up often. I am still only keeping him up for an hour at a time but wondering if I should be feeding him every time..

I do try and resettle him initially and sometimes I'll get an extra few minutes out of him but most times he is wide awake/smiling and ready to get up..

Many thanks
Caroline

I am having alot of trouble getting my 10 week old boy to sleep more than 1/2 an hour at a time through the day. Occasionally we will get a 1 1/2 hour sleep, but most of the time its just the 1/2 hours. At night he goes down at 7pm then he wakes between 11pm - 12am, then again between 3am-4am then is up again from about 5am-6am. I am hoping the notes you have on settling 0 - 12 week babies will help.
I also have a 22month old so I havnt always had the time to spend on him to get him to sleep better.

To add to it he fluffs around with his feeding. quite often he is sucking, but his legs and arms are flailing about, and this moring he wouldnt feed at all just cried every time I put him to the breast. It sounds like he has reflux, but other times he is happy feeding, feeds for about 20 mins has both breasts and is really contented. He does loose has suction alot when he is flailing around and takes down alot of air, but he is very easy to burp so I dont think that is the problem

Thank you for any information you can give me

Hello
THank you for the talk. I know you have touched base with some of my questions but i had a bad cold and my little one didnt want to stop crying. I have a baby girl who is 3 1/2 mths old. SHe has a dummy which she is very attached to already and i want to get take it away! how do i do this ? THe other thing is i was told she is grade 4 tounge tie and lip tie. I was told to do nothing and leave it but i breastfeed and feel she does not latch and doesnt get a bigger enough mouth full. ? what are your views on tounge ties ? should i go and get it sniped ? or just leave it? its starting to effect me feeding and questioning do i want to keep breastfeeding but i dont want her on formula as im sure she is lactose intollerant and when putting my son on forumla thats when sleep problems started. thank you. P.S- coud i also have the first foods guidelines you were talking about. my email is jessica.cusiel@hotmail.co.nz

Hi i tend to use lower tones than the baby squeal/screech and hopefully she will learn to lower her tone.

Noodlebug wrote: Hi Dorothy, What would you suggest a typical routine for an 8 month old should be now that we're introducing solids before milk. And within that routine, how many sleeps should they have (and what should the duration of the sleeps be)? I only recently started dream feeding in the hope that I would get my baby to sleep through the night instead of waking around 4 for a bottle. It seemed to have worked. Last night I decided not to dream feed and she woke at 3. I cannot resettle my baby and have tried cuddling and giving her some water instead of a bottle. She can easily have a good day of sleeping and then a bad day of catnapping for 30 mins. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Hi this totally depends on how long your baby is up for and how long she sleeps for. This routine is based on being up for 3 hours and having 2 hour naps.

I have also posted the settling notes on the forum so use these as a guideline as well to resettle.   It does take time, acceptance, consistency and tranquility (TACT) but eventually the resettling does work.

At eight months when they wake during the night I do not offer water, infact I do not offer water to babies overnight at all. My goal is to encourage them to sleep well so I always opt for resettling and feed milk as a last resort. You also did not mention whether you were fully breast or bottle feeding so just put her milk feeds in as milk feeds.







6.45   Wakes – should be able to play in her cot – if she doesn’t then encourage her by using small stepping stones and stretching her out by 5 to 10 minutes at a time              



7.00am Breakfast
        Cereal and fruit plus toast or finger food
        Offer milk in a sippy cup
        Milk after food

9.30    Morning Tea – breast/formula

9.45    Nap

12.15   Lunch
        Veggies with protein and good carb
        Offer water with this meal

2.00    Afternoon Tea – breast/formula

2.15    Nap

4.45    Dinner

Veggies with good carb – should be totally different from lunch
Milk in sippy cup

Breast/formula

Bath

Breast/formula


6.45 – 7.00   Bed for the night


THESE notes are GUIDELINES ONLY and should be used as such.   Remember YOU are the babies’ mum and listen to your heart and instinct.   Yes we all don’t do it by the book, or get it right the first time – but you need to make ‘mistakes’ to get it right.   It’s a time of learning a little person’s personality and figuring out what works for your home life.

mandiimoo16 wrote: Hi Dorothy, (think i may have posted this in the wrong place before... so have reposted here...) Thanks for the talk yesterday in Hamilton, I have an almost 1 year old, generally she is fantastic, sleeps well and eats pretty well also (not too fussy). She has three bottles a day (all approx 15min prior to going for her morning, arvo and the night sleep). Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner are usually about an hour or two before her bottles. My question is more about variety and ideas for food as I seem to get stuck in what to give her, particularly finger foods - so really just after ideas on how to i guess structure her mainly lunch and dinner meals - I do try to give her what we eat to a certain degree but we tend to eat dinner after she goes to bed so this isn't always practical. (Breakfast she has cereal, yoghurt and fruit). Let me know if you need more detail! Thanks Amanda

HI Amanda
At your toddlers age I tend to stick to quick and easy meals for lunch time and I give the main meal at dinner time. Two ways of doing dinner time - save the meal from your dinner and reheat the following night. This means you are not cooking twice in a night. Finger food should be what is in the meal and I tend to give most of the vegetables in finger food form. If your toddler is still having mash them mash 80% of the food and 20% in finger food.

Lunch ideas - mac and cheese, rice risotto, pasta with corn and peas, sandwiches, soups, homemade pizza, avocado, cottage cheese, tomatoes and ciabatta bread,
Dorothy

Hi Dorothy

Should I be changing my routine for my 8 month old to slot into daylight savings time?

Thanks!

No. The only issue with daylight saving is that the night it changes when you put your baby to bed then you lose an hour. Wake them up at the normal time the next day and start the day as normal. That night when yo put the baby to bed she will sleep her normal hours for the night.

Night sleep hours do not change - a baby sleeps lets say 12 hours a night. The first night they will sleep 11 hours and then next night they will be back doing 12 hours.

Hi yes resettling is more difficult and it does take time, acceptance, consistency and tranquility (TACT). You will eventually teach your daughter to resettle but it will not happen overnight.    See my notes on the wall for sleeping, settling and resettling.
Dorothy