Feeding and bath time

[pamelamcgahon]

Just wondering what the best order is to feed/bath.  We keep missing baths because we get the feeds too late or mixed up due to them coinciding with our won meal time etc.  Just wondered if people gave full feeds and then bathed straight away or part feeds or bathed half an hour before feed is due (which is what we were trying to do as we were lead to believe that baths after feeds weren't good! We also have reflux to battle with.

Pamela

[lilisuze]

hi pamela,

Can you post your normal routine at the moment like this:
E
A
S

and then your normal bedtime routine?

And also how old is your baby?

Lili xx

[~ Vik ~]

Hi Pamela!

Not sure if you're talking about a milk feed or solid food, but we've bathed ds directly after a solid food meal!  Often he gets so covered in food that we just strip him and put him in the tub right after he's done

As for milk feeds, we tend to bathe before, usually about 30-45m so that he can bath, have some "naked time", then diaper, sleeper, feed, song and bed.

HTH
Vikki

[pamelamcgahon]

I should have said we are new to this so don't really have an actual pattern yet.  I will put down what has happened yesterday as we do follow EAS but not necessarily at the same time intervals yet.  Keira is 6 weeks today and weighed 7lbs 13 oz last wednesday at her clinic.  She was a tiny baby at 5lbs but only 10 days early.  We are now formula feeding after some bf and some ebm/formula comb.  SHe also has reflux meds in her milk.  She had day and night totally confused at first so we are slowly regaining them.  We often don't bath her every day, as mentioned, but would like to.  This is due to my DH's working hours resulting in our own routine going pear shaped.  Also, the millions of appointments I have to take her to (clinic, docs, physio) as well as my appointments mean we sometimes get strayed from the schedule.  We usually do nappy change before a feed as reflux makes it a nightmare after - unless she has pooped during the feed.   She also often drops off to sleep during the feed making them take longer and wakes up to continue after 5 minutes and a burp!  Often also falls asleep after and doesn't have A time.  We are trying to rectify this though in the afternoons.

Approximate from today so far:

E 3:30am 4oz
A
S 4:30

E 6am 4oz
A 7am chatter with mummy - if still awake
S 7:15

E 8:30 4oz
A 9:30 chatter, stretch - if awake
S 9:45

E 11am 3-40z
A 12pm kicking/tummy/chatter
S 12:15pm

E 1pm 2oz (after a shorter nap!)
A 1:45pm - dressed (this was later as I caught up on sleep earlier and often do if not going anywhere)
S 2:10pm

E 3pm 2oz - after waking early at Docs
A 3:30 chatter in shop waiting for prescription
S 3:30 Sleep in car

E 4pm 1oz after waking on return from Docs
A
S 4:15pm

E 5pm 2oz
A
S 5:30pm (fell asleep during feed)

The evenings often start with a 5pm ish feed then the following:

If not bathing we keep going with 7:30pm feed, no A and sleep straight after (8:30is) but we have had evening issues meaning she naps for 10 minutes at a time and doesn't sleep much til she has had a feed at 10:30pm when she can go til 3:30am on a good night or just til midnight/1am on other nights followed by a 3/4am feed.

If we bath we try and do it after we have eaten (DH gets in from work and we eat by 7pm one week but nearer half 7 the alternate week).  We would take her  before the 7:30pm feed and bath her and then give her a bottle after putting her in her pyjamas.  We would then cuddle and soothe her til she falls asleep - sometimes on us with the bottle sometimes after the bottle in her basket.

DH likes to do the bathing, hence the problems with times although I have said I will have to bath her on his late weeks as it gets silly.  We have also had to ban visitors after 7pm as this often interrupts all the routines including delaying our dinner then missing her bath.

Hope this makes sense.  I really want to get her onto EASY properly so we can better know where we are!

Thanks in advance.

Pamela

[bovi]

Pamela, It is a great idea to put her on EASY! It has worked for so many of us! For now as she is only 6 wo dont worry too much to get there soon.It is a process and she is so super duper young so for now just try  what you can and watch her reactions so that you can try to get to know her and her temperament, that will help you big time all the way. No stress at all, you ll get there surely!!

For the bath: there are no rules! really the more I talk to mothers the more I discover how different approaches can be.
For many it works to only give a bath twice a week. Why not? if that saves you hastle and fits you and your husband better. You can also  give her a "dry bath" as they call it here. Meaning you do not actually put her in the bath tub, but you wash her where you normally change the diapers with gloves from a small plastic whatever containing water. It is also an option just to wash her butt when you have no time for a normal bath.

 Does she like taking a bath? If she does and it calms her down then of course it is nice to do every day. We have been giving a bath almost every day since DS was born. he loves it and that is the cornerstone of our evening routine. that is how he know it is good night time. But there are many other ways to set your routine.  For us I always fed (BF) after the bath, because it was soooo easy to put him to sleep after (for a while he fell asleep while nursing and in the beginning I did not mind.)

Have you checked the boards for reflux info? there are many many good advice that helped us (my DS had reflux too but had outgrew it by around 7 mo) remember to keep her upright after feeds, my lo could sleep like that in my arms and then I put him down to sleep. Have you elevated the head side of the crib?

HTH
hugs and  s

[bovi]

of course the non-daily bath is for the tiny lo s like yours. My DS was playing in the sand like crazy today, the bath was essential so that daddy can recognise him when he gets home 

xx

[lilisuze]

hiya, thanks for replying and congrats on your little one. its hard to believe that my DS was ever so tiny and feeding so often, but he was, and only 40 weeks ago!!

We have always done a bath every day, or as bovi says a "dry bath" if we did not have time. When he was feeding at 5.30 and 7.30 we always did a bath at about 6.40 after his final 10 minute catnap. Bath routine consisted of wake up from nap, run bath and get undressed, have some nappy free time, in bath just for a few minutes and then towel dry and maybe skin to skin if we were feeling flush with time. Then we stayed up in the bedroom and by about 7.15 he was having a feed up in his room with the lights down

HTH

Lili xx

[pamelamcgahon]

Thanks for the replies.  Will try the dry baths and i might still take her in the bath/shower with me on weekends as she seems to like both.

We just saw the doc again this week after the health visitor suspected lactose intolerance so have soya formula to try now which may help things.  Although last night's antics saw her go down properly at 4am this morning til 9am! Back to old ways so sleep needs working on as does A time rather than sleep after eating!  We also need to sort out the daytime catnaps, she must be shattered.

Think i needs to spend a couple of days in the house next week to work on things as trips out mess it all up!

Thanks again
Pamela