2mo. old taking steps backwards

[Rileysmom08]

My 2mo. old DS was doing great with his routine and nighttime sleep.  He's on a good 3hr EASY, taking 5oz. at every feeding.  Naps are generally good.  Sometimes he wakes early from a nap, but I am usually successful at extending it.  For awhile he was taking his last bottle around 7:30/7:45, and asleep by 8:00.  He would then sleep 8-9hrs until anywhere from 3:30-5:00, eat, then back down until around 7:30 am and then was up for the day.  In the last week, he's taken a step backwards.  Nothing has changed in his routine, but he now wakes anywhere from 11:30-1:00a, eats, then back down until around 4:00, eats, then back down until around 7:30a.  Initially I assumed it was due to hunger so fed him, but then I noticed he wasn't taking his full feeding.  So the last 2 nights I've tried giving him his paci and patting.  He'll fall back asleep within a few minutes, but eventually wakes again.  For example- last night he woke up at 12:00am.  Gave him the paci and patted, and he went back to sleep but then awoke again at 1am.  Back to sleep after the paci and some patting, but then woke again around 2:15.  At that point I fed him and he went back to sleep until 5.  Fed him again, and back to sleep until 8am. 

I guess I'm just having trouble deciding what to do.  He's a very big boy (15lbs at his 2mo check up).  When I told his dr. he was waking twice a night to eat again, he basically looked at me like I was crazy and said "He doesn't need to eat, he just wants you to soothe him back to sleep."  So my pedi seems to think that due to his size, he shouldn't need 2 feedings at night.

A couple of additional details- he puts himself to sleep at night and after his feedings, and can resettle (usually) if something wakes him up in the night.  If I feed him, even though he may not take the whole bottle, he will immediately go back to sleep after being laid down and doesn't wake again until the times I listed above.  No waking every hour like I see when i just give him the paci.

Any observations or advice?  I don't mind giving him that extra bottle at night if he needs it, I just want to make sure he does need it!  Especially since those 8-9hrs of solid sleep were so glorious 

[mmom]

I don't know many 2 month olds that don't wake to eat at least once.  Why would a doc say that a baby never feeds then?   If he is going back to sleep, but then waking so soon again, I would think he is hungry.  My LO had 2 NFs at this age, because I didn't DF.  Is your LO FF or BF?  FF right?

[Rileysmom08]

Yes, he's FF.  Sorry, I guess I should've gone into more detail about what the dr. said.  He said waking to eat at this age was normal, but that based on DS's weight (15lbs at 2mos) he shouldn't be waking to eat every 3-4hrs at night.     

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

He said waking to eat at this age was normal, but that based on DS's weight (15lbs at 2mos) he shouldn't be waking to eat every 3-4hrs at night.

I think this whole 'once a baby gets to a certain weight they don't need to wake to eat as often' is pretty antiquated and I've never seen any evidence to support it.  Most 2m olds are certainly waking twice to eat and I think that's quite normal.  I agree that he sounds hungry and I would feed him.

[Colin Macs Mom]

I think this whole 'once a baby gets to a certain weight they don't need to wake to eat as often' is pretty antiquated and I've never seen any evidence to support it.  Most 2m olds are certainly waking twice to eat and I think that's quite normal.  I agree that he sounds hungry and I would feed him.

Couldn't agree more! At 2 mo Colin was waking to eat a lot more often than twice!