Trying to Get My 6 Months on a Sleep and Eating Schedule

You should read 'Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child' by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. It is great for sleep training- it works wonders! I just used it for my third, and he's finally taking naps that are longer than 20 minutes AND I know when to expect them. The first day or two of it can be a little rough, but it's soooooo worth it!
Good luck!

Try reading "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" by Marc Weisbluth. It outlines sleep patterns for babies and small children, with allowances for different lifestyle choices (breast/bottle, co-sleep/baby bed, etc). It CHANGED OUR LIVES when our oldest was about 7mos. He went from a nightmare to napping 3x per day and 12 hours nearly straight through at night. (Sleeps like a rock to this day). Adjusted to the habits of our second son when he was born and working quite well. Good Luck!

As the previous posters suggested, reading Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. I have my 4 month old twins on the same eating/napping schedule since 3 months. The book is a great resource.

although i read the healthy sleep habits book, i found the baby whisperer much more helpful. (babywise seemed way too rigid for me.) i'm not a "clock" person and her suggestion is a "routine" not a "schedule." she suggests using EASY = eat, activity, sleept, something for you. you can read more w/o buying the book on her website www.babywhisperer.com - they have good discussion boards. we checked out her second book from the library and it was good. good luck!

When my daughter was about 6 months old we went through the same thing. I wanted to make her schedule more predictable for ALL OF US. I read the sleeping habits portion of Baby 411 for some advice on how to set up routines as well as how to get her to fall asleep on her own. The struggles of getting the routine in place are well worth it. She took about 3-4 days to get into the routine and ever since then she is on the same routine, with the exception that she gave up her morning nap.

Wake at 6:30 am. Breakfast, then active play.
9:00 nap time (about an hour and a half) - establish a specific routine for nap time that you do EVERY time and baby will start to realize it is nap time when the routine starts. We play music, read a book, and cuddle a bit. Put baby in his crib while he is still awake. I made sure my daughter was very drowsy when I first started this, then gradually put her in when she was more awake.

lunch at 12:00
Nap at 12:30. When she was little and still took a morning nap she slept another hour and a half, but now she sleeps at least 3 hours every day.

3:30 wake/active play

5:30 dinner

8:00 bedtime (same routine as nap but before music, bath and brushing of teeth)

After establishing this routine she can fall back to sleep on her own and I haven't needed a nighttime feeding or "Momma time" since then. With exception of illnesses.

Just stick with it. It is hard at first to see such a little one cry, but it will be worth your sanity later. I have soooo much time to my self during the day and time with my husband in the evening. A balanced schedule is good for the whole family!

Hi J.- When my twins were 6 months old, I fed them at the same times I ate. I started them on stage 2 foods @ 6 months (check with your ped if ok to start) in addition to cereal. At 6 months, my twins weren't sleeping that great, I spent some time reading Healthy Sleep Habits & I think Dr. Weisbluth is right on target with his recommendations. Some moms may not agree, but I followed this & my twins are 10 months & have been napping & sleeping like champs since I made some changes after reading the book.

Check into a book called "Baby Wise".....I used this book with both my children and swear by it. Great results!! Good Luck!!

I would suggest doing the Baby Whisper by Tracy Hogg. It has worked well for my son and me. The basis is that you will never get a baby to stick to a schedule, but a routine will work. Its called the EASY routine. E for Eat, A for Activity, S for Sleep, and Y for your time. If you stick with it, your child will fall into his own schedule. I know my son will fall asleep between 8:30-9am for a half hour nap, 12-3 for his afternoon nap which lasts about 2-3 hours, then from 6:30-7:30 he will fall asleep for another half hour nap. He falls asleep by 9:30 pm. He has stuck to that scheule because he made it up on his own and it makes for a pretty easy day because I stick to the routine.

Helathy Sleep Habits, Happy Child - best book on suggested schedule.

CHeck the book for exacts, but something like this. Up between 6-8, first nap about 2 hours later (earlier is seems tired), sleep atleast an hour, second nap about 2 hours after waking, third nap about two hours after waking. Down for the night between 6-8.

You are right at the cusp when most babies naturally get into a more predictable sleep habit. Watch for signs of sleep. Many babies will, depending on what time they wake, need a nap a couple hours later. If a baby wakes at 8 am they will likely be ready to go down at 10 and sleep for one or two hours. If they sleep for two hours they will likely be ready for a nap at 2 pm. Some babies do a short morning nap and a long afternoon. Babies this age usually take four hours worth of naps and sleep about ten hours a night. Just watch for clues and very soon your baby will fall into a pattern. Good luck.

Read "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby" by Dr. Mark Weisblut. You don't mention what is irregular about his eating/sleeping schedule. If you are working, is he at daycare or do you have a nanny? At his age, he should be taking 2 or 3 naps a day. Slightly earlier than that the general rule is no more than 2 hrs wakefulness and then sleep. I did this pretty much on demand - after my little one had been awake for more than an hour, I would look for the signs of tiredness - less activity, rubbing eyes and then once it came pop her in her crib for a nap. She sometimes got some rocking to get her to sleep. It gradually progressed to a 3 nap and then 2 nap schedule. I think the 3 nap schedule was up, breakfast, play, nap around 9-10, up play lunch, nap around 12.30, up play nap, dinner play bed by 8pm. 2 naps was Up, breakfast nap around 9, up play lunch, nap around 1, up play, dinner,play, bed at 8pm. 1 nap is the afternoon nap all else the same. Since I have a nanny, it was and is all on my little one's schedule so it can vary a little but generally the above was what her rhythms set. The only absolutes are if she wakes up too early, I leave her in her crib until atleast 6am and she always goes to bed at 8pm - she may chat with her animals but she is in bed. It seems to work and she seems well rested and so am I as I go to bed shortly after she does and sometimes nap when she does.