So, from day one from the hospital Noah was a fairly pleasant baby. He slept like a newborn should sleep and when he was awake he was alert and looking around. However, at about 1 month he started to show his cranky side. Generally around 6:00pm he'd start fussing/crying and only calm down if he was being held. He'd be like this until 9:30pm or sometimes 10:00pm at which he fell asleep but only for a few hours. At that point we'd repeat the process - I was exhausted!
Now, we tried a number of things thinking it was gas - gas drops, new bottles, different formula and each had an impact but it was minimal. So, being the ever loving, ever doting, my-child-is-perfect-in-his-own-way mom that I am I just accepted that he was going to be a grumpy baby and prepared myself accordingly (and reminded myself that this too shall pass). Until one day I was reading a book on sleep training (in preparation for the months to come when we'd set a routine and hopefully have a happy, protest free naptime and bedtime).
The book suggested that no newborn/infant should go more than 2 hours without a nap of some sort (and some nap every hour). I looked back at my babybix.com sleep charts and realized that Noah was going for 4 and 5 hours during the day time hours without a single nap and that I was putting him down waaay late. Little man was only getting 12 hours a sleep a day (which apparently is not enough). His cranking in the evenings had to do with him being uber tired and unable to soothe himself to sleep (and I likely didn't help what with my singing, dancing, and trying to get him to play with me all the time)
So, I started to watch more closely for his sleepy queues and at that point would try to wind him down into a nap. It took a while to get it right and I still fight it here and there but it seems to be working. DH has even commented on how pleasant he is in the evenings now. Plus, he's sleeping longer at night! Now, that may just be maturity but it could also be the naps!
Who'da thunk that more sleep during the day ='s more sleep at night and a happier baby!
Here's his schedule:
6am he's up for a bottle and then back down till 8 or sometimes 9. Then generally he's napping every 2 - 3 hours for at least 30 min each (there's usually one longer nap in the AM or early mid day and sometimes a second in the afternoon. If he misses that then we just cat nap thru the afternoon ever hour or two). We start the bed time ritual by 7:00 and he's generally out like a light by 8:00. There he sleeps until 11, wakes for a bottle and immediately goes back down. Then, depending on how much he took in that 11:00 bottle he'll be down until 3 or so. Last night he went from 1am to 5am before he woke up!
I'm sooo happy my pleasant baby is back! Now, when he's away he's calm and usually smiley (unless he's hungry). But as soon as he starts to zone out or rub his eyes we know it's time to wind him done and try for a nap! Hopefully this continues thru our first days at daycare!!
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