Feeding before a Nap

[cwolff]

My DD is a sporadic napper.  She takes naps frequently, but who knows how long they will be.  Consequently, sometimes when she wakes up, she's not ready to eat.  Then, if we play, etc., we end up feeding before a nap.  I don't want to create a terrible habit so what should I do?  Here's a scenario that happened today, she didn't want to eat when she woke from her nap at 12:30pm.  So we played, changed diaper, etc.  Tried 2x to feed her and she barely took any.  Her nap had only been a little under an hour, so at 1:30pm I tried to put her for a nap.  We struggled and I finally gave up at 2pm and came downstairs because I thought maybe she was hungry after all.  Then, she wolfed down 3 oz.  So I changed her diaper, swaddled her up and she started to act like she wanted more.  So I kept her swaddled and fed her, and then put her to bed at 2:30PM.  Was this horrible?  She'd been up so long and I'd already changed her diaper, that I just let her sleep.  She's been asleep for 2 hours now.  I hope she doesn't think it's nighttime!  Ahh!!  I'm going to wake her up her in a few minutes.  How much bad parenting did I do?

[GG]

How much bad parenting did I do?

*hehehe*  Well... Bad parenting? None.  Accidental parenting? Just a little bit.  :wink:

What was her routine before she woke up from her 12:30 PM?  What do her days look like in general?  For example, my DS has an erratic schedule (sometimes he wakes up at 6 AM but usually it's 7 AM), but his routine is always E.A.S. (or, when he's on a growth spurt or hungrier, it's E.A.E.S.).  That way, he knows to expect to eat when he wakes up.  Then he expects to play after he eats.  Then, when he's tired, he is put down for a nap (he's spirited so he doesn't like it very much but that's what comes next).  Then it starts all over.

What you need to do is get your DD used to expecting to eat after she wakes up, then to play, then to go down for a nap.  If she's not hungry when she wakes up, maybe she's ready for a longer EASY routine (at 3 months she should be on a 3-hour EASY but maybe she's ready for a 4-hour EASY).

Read the thread that talks about suggested 3 & 4 hour EASY routines.  If you have any other questions, let us know!   

[cwolff]

You know I'm such a chicken about the 4hour easy routine.  She seems to get tired sometimes after only 1 1/2 hours awake time total, including winddown.  But she's a bit Touchy too, so I really watch the clock as well as watch her tired signs.  Interestingly today though, she was awake for 2 hours total (before the long nap) and then slept a long time.  Her routine before the 12:30 nap was awake E 6:30, A, nap 8:30 - 10am though she woke up a couple of times for the pacifier, so I dont know how great a nap that was.  Then sleep 11:40am-12:20pm.  I actually woke her from the long nap at 5pm, and figured she'd be ready for bed by 7pm.  She looked tired before, but we continued with the bath.  Then she fought me for 1/2hour.  7pm is early for her, it's usually closer to 7:30, but also sometimes she takes a catnap in the evening and sometimes not.  I don't know whether she was overtired and that's why she fought me, or undertired.  We don't do the feed to sleep often, today was the exception.  And she's erratic about her nap lengths, so we dont have a clear schedule.  But I think I need to move to the 4hour easy and see if that helps.  Cross your fingers

[GG]

Don't forget that you need to move to 4-hour EASY slowly.  Just add 15 min at a time - don't go directly to 4 hours.  She will definitely fight you.

Btw... your DD sounds similar to my DS.  He can go 2 hours awake if he naps for 1.5-2 hours, but not always.  It depends on what his activity is.  However, I didn't move him to 4-hour EASY until he was around 4.5 months old.  He just didn't seem ready for it before then.

Definitely read the Sleep Interview (posted under Naps) if you haven't already.  It really clears things up!  (I just re-read it yesterday and today to refresh my memory.  There's so much there to keep in mind!)

Keep up the good work!!