How did you do it? - 7pm(ish) bedtimes?

[Freya]

My kids dont really get into a bedtime routine until their closer to 12mths! How can they when they are still having to fulfil their hunger needs on a regular basis? If she is fine to not go down for the night (assuming she sleeps in solid blocks) til 11pm then let her do it. I never used to really do the whole time to sleep thing til around 10pm with my kids right up until they hit 7 or 8mths. Esp with ds3 who was still breastfed and cosleeping til 11mths. Once they all started sleeping in longer blocks ie 5 or more hours then I would instigate an 9pm bedtime, then make it 8pm. Now Ds1 goes to bed at 8pm and Ds2 and 3 go at 7-7:30.

[Queen]

I feel your pain, and did not force a routine but once 7pm came, I treated her like it was night time.
So from 7pm I would cuddle/feed/change her in the room, no playing just plain old bored Mum, like a 3am feed. Does that make sense?
It took a few weeks but it worked. She now has her *own* bedtime of 6-6.30pm.

[Tuesday's Child]

I'm so glad I came across this thread. DD is almost 6 months old and we have absolutely no routine. We don't even have a gentle rhythm. DD is very strong willed and knows what she wants (traits that are valued in adults yet not children, go figure ). She has her days and nights mixed up and it coincides with approaching wonder weeks. Things are much easier since I've stopped trying to get her to fit in with me and stopped listening to people telling me that I'm doing things wrong. I just stay up all night with her, feeding her as necessary and then sleep most of the day with her. Not sure how I'm going to go once I'm back at work...but I'll worry about that when it happens. It's just great to know that I'm not doing anything wrong by letting her do what she 'wants' (ie needs). And I have hope that she'll work it out eventually on her own. Thankyou

Sue, one thing I'm learning is to trust my instincts. As long as you and bub are happy there's no need to change anything.

[black_rose]

Sue you have just said it yourself, you feel lucky to have such a happy baby and to have a good night routine once she goes to sleep so don't try and change things.

[Mad Scientist]

You are doing a fantastic job. She is sleeping EXTREMELY well overnight for a baby who is 6 weeks old! And like you said, you are happy, she's happy, so why fix something that isn't broken? I can't believe that people think that you can 'spoil' a six week old with cuddles! Both my girls were spoilt rotten then and still are! Keep up the good work hun xxx

[westy]

Hi Sue,

Just wanted to say that your doing a absolutely wonderful job with your gorgeous litte girl Evie.
Please dont feel pressured by anyone. You just keep doing what your doing, there is no right or wrong time to establish a routine and just remember that what works for one bub wont always work for the next bub. As long as you and bub are happy thats all that matters, this is YOUR baby so dont worry about what anyone else might think.

Looking forward to catching up with you and Evie again soon. Take care x

[human bean]

By pure chance we have stumbled into a 7pm-ish bedtime (around 6wks), and every night I am amazed at how DD sleeps! I started noticing she would sleep really heavily around 6 - 8pm, and initially we were doing a bed/bath routine (using the word routine very loosely) from around 8pm, as she was really windy and unsettled and the bath helped. As the wind settled, and the temps here get colder, I decided to bath her around 6pm-ish and have a quieter routine before her first 'evening' nap. The first time we did it she slept from 7pm til 12.30am, woke, fed, slept til 4am, woke, fed, then slept til 7am! I was in shock - and I missed my evening cuddle and play time. DH and I agreed to stick to it (once again very loosely) for a few days and see what happened, as she had been so much happier and settled during the day after such a 'good' nights sleep. It's now been nearly 2 weeks and most nights are like it - asleep between 7 - 8pm, waking around 1am, then 4am then 7am, I snuggle her in with me to feed, she hardly wakes, then goes straight back to sleep in her bassinett next to the bed. I'll admit I think it's fantastic, but we didn't try to 'put' her into it, we just kinda fell into it! I guess she let us know it was what she needed, plus she pretty much only has long blinks during the day so she's probably pretty tired come the evening! With that said, I know it can all change in the blink of an eye, and if it does it does - whilst it's lovely to have a sleeping bub some mornings I lay there waiting for her to wake up because it feels like so long since I've had a cuddle and play! I say go with whatever works for you and bub

[FabFiona]

I do think they get into routine of their own. My little man turns into a feral pumpkin if he is not in bed by 6.30 pm. I would prefer a slightly later bedtime but alas, it's not to be. He normally wakes for the day around 6 am. We've tried to change the day so his bedtime was later so he could see Dad but that ended in tears so we just go with it.

The one thing I will say is that we decided to start doing a bedtime routine around 6 weeks. Even though our little man had no idea I found it gave us time to practice and by the time he wanted a routine we had one down pat.

[Visitor7]

Each child is different, and you've got to work with that particular child. With DD1, she was a night owl as a baby and at 6 weeks was going to bed at around 10pm for the night. DD2 was completely different, by 6 weeks she was in bed by 7pm and sleeping until 7am the next morning (and no, I don't let my children cry it out at all). We had a bed time routine with DD2 from day one, and I guess she just adjusted well to it. Didn't work with DD1 though!

[Miss.September]

DD is almost 14 months and her bedtime routine seems to be at around 10:30. If she goes at 7, she'll wake up an hour later to party for hours! She is slowly getting to bed earlier, but its not something I force, just watch for the signs and encourage her to drift away into her zzzz's when she's ready. Don't worry about what others say to you, do what works for you.

Corelly x