I'm at a loss and falling apart...

[tigger2on]

 
Our 1 year old still doesn't sleep through the night.... waking once or twice still even though I have stopped feeding her at that time. She is eating purees and soft foods with some finger foods but refuses chucky food still. We also have a 9yr disabled daughter who requires 100% assistance for lifting, feeding, bathing dressing etc... so a lack of sleep makes it hard to have the energy to deal with all her needs too.

Our family schedule is as follows...
7am - 8:15 Ryleigh (eldest) up, toileted, washed, dressed and fed and put on a bus for school
8 - 8:15am  Madigan wakes and plays in her crib
8:15 - 8:30  Washed, changed and dressed
8:30 - 9:00  Breakfast  4-5 tbls of Stage 3 Milupa & a small minigo
9:00 - 9:30 Playtime
9:30 - 9:45 8oz bottle of formula
9:45 - 10:00 Diaper change, outside clothes on, drive to playgroup
10:00- 11:00 Playgroup
11:00- 11:15 Snack... cheerios, veggie puffs approximately 10
11:15  - 11:30 Drive home, undress, change diaper.
11:30 - 12:00 Playtime
12:00 - 12:30 Lunch.... 1 jar Stage 2 meat/veg, 1/2 - 1 jar veg..... 1/2 jar fruit
12:30 - 12:45.... finger foods... cheese, veggies, crackers...12 pieces
12:45 - 1:00 Storytime
1:00 - 3:00/ 3:30 Nap
3:30 - 4:00 wake up, change and a bottle
4:00 - 4;15 ... Madi plays in playpen while I go out and get Ry off the bus, undress and change diaper
4;15 - 4:45  Ry has a drink and a snack... madigan plays in her highchair
4:45 - 5:00 Mommy prepares dinner... kids watch t.v & play
5:00 - 5:45 Afterschool Activity... artsn crafts, musical instruments, block and ball play, puppets
5:45 - 6:00 Mommy finishes, plates and serves dinner
6:00 - 7:00 Dinner for all
7:00 - 8:00 Playtime with dad
8:00 - 8:30 Ry to bed... madigan plays with mommy
8:30 - 9:00 madigan has a bottle downstairs, bath and bed
*** Now if she wakes up twice it is at 1 - 2am and again at 4:30 - 5:15am. If only once it's about 4am.
6am.... bottle
6:15 -8:00 sleep
I have been letting her cry it out but she whines on and off from 1 - 6 and it drives me nuts. I just want to get up and give her a bottle and let her go back to sleep... so I can sleep again.
i haven't had 5 hours of uninterupted sleep in a long time. From 10 wks - 5mths... she slept 10pm - 7am 9 HRS!!!!!!!! We went away to the UK and she never recovered.
I am sooooo tired any advice?

[Aarismom]

Wow! What a schedule. My hat's off to you.

The first thing I would try is an earlier bedtime for her. Is there any way you can put her to bed around the time your other dd goes to bed? Nightwakings are often caused by not getting enough sleep either during the day or during the night. Often an earlier bedtime either helps or eliminates the problem. Your dd needs around 11-12 hours of sleep at night total. That may fix the problem, but it might take some work to get there.

That's great that she takes such a long nap in the pm! Looks like you have that base covered.

It also looks like she's getting enough nourishment during the day, but tbh, I don't have a 1 year old, I have a 9.5 month old. I really don't have a solid reference point for that.

What exactly is she doing when she wakes? Does she have a genuine cry for help? You said she fusses a little...fussing is one thing, but crying out (an elevated cry) is something you'll need to attend to. When mine does nightwaking, I usually ignore it the best I can unless she really starts crying out.

Sorry I can't offer more help...I do know it looks like she needs an earlier bedtime to catch up on some night sleep. Don't worry about her waking earlier than usual to start her day...most lo's have a tendency to get up around the same time every morn regardless of when they are put to bed the night before.

Hope you get more sleep soon!

*HUGS*
Sonya =P

[Tori's Mom]

I absolutely agree on the earlier bedtime.  I have an 11 month old and she is still taking (roughly) 2 naps a day and goes to bed around 7-8 pm.  Sometimes that extra hour of sleep helps them put themselves back to sleep easier.  I know it sounds backwards!!  Also, what are you doing when she wakes in the night.  If you are cuddling her, she may just want to spend time with Mommy.  As far as the feeds go, are you going to switch to whole milk soon?  My Dr. said that when I get my dd totally on milk, she will start to eat more solids because the milk won't fill her like formula.
I also just want to give you a big pat on the back and {{{{hug}}}}}.  You are a very strong woman and you will make it through this.  Just hang in there and take some time for yourself if you can. 
Good luck.

[Mel55]

I would definately say an earlier bedtime too.  It did wonders for my daughter.  Just by putting her to bed by 6:30-7ish she went down without a fight (she's always fought her sleep) and slept through the night beautifully.  It seemed so early to be putting her to bed but it worked amazing.  She was completely skipping naps and once I started putting her to bed earlier she went for her nap no problem.  The earlier bedtime worked wonders for us.  Good luck.