6 mo. old EASY - can't get it right

[Mjaz]

Oh Elf, we need your help, too   Elijah has been feeling better these past two days...but his sleep is really off.  1:15 min naps, 30 min CN and a pretty short day due to short A times and short naps...  I'm trying to follow cues, but they seem to be really early - like 1:30/1:45??  So I'm not putting him down then and waiting for us at least 2 hours...he usually goes down around 2:15/2:30.  I don't get it.  And though he's STTN from 6:30ish till 4/4:15am...he wants to BE UP FOR THE DAY at that time now :/  Ohhh...we had such a blissful week and now this...What do you guys think?

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

Hmmm.  Melinda, we're having the battle of the 1:15 nap over here, too!  It's the weirdest length and I have no chance of extending it.  For me I think it's an A time issue, I think he's telling me he really needs a bunch more.  I've tried pushing out by 5 or 10 min and it's not helping.  I also tried dropping back and that didn't work.  So I think my next step is to really push a bunch and see what happens. 

Maybe he's finally caught up from his OT hole after last week and now he really needs a big jump?  I know you're reluctant to tweak but that would be my thought.  Especially with the EW I would think he's UT at night.  Glad he's STTN until then, at least that's good?

Fingers crossed that DLS helps us all one way or another.  (Oh and I mentioned to DH what I was thinking about putting him down when it's a little darker and he reminded me that, no the time changes so it'll be the same - doh!! Haha.)

Oh my, my man is waking up. 1:10.  Fun. 

Another good night ahead, I'm sure.   

[Mjaz]

So how did DST go?  We had a somewhat successful night. E slept from 6:45-3:45 (4:45 DST) and took an HOUR to resettle :/. After 9 hours of sleep he acts like he's totally ready to start the day!  After the hour of resettling he slept till 7:45! Yay! Unfortunately E is having a no sleep cues OT day and we're fighting 30 min naps. Sigh. I am currently letting him nap on me b/c I am DETERMINED to make it to a decent bedtime!

What should I do about this EW/ long NW? He only had 3 hours of naps yesteray, so I don't think he was UT?

Elf, what does your EASY look like these days? 

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

Well I am not one to ask on the ridiculous NWs!!  We have been in the trenches over here lately on that one.  Short naps, long nights with long NWs, you name it.   Last night we were up forever and I realized that when he was teething last week I'd been giving his MOTNF earlier and that was probably part of the NWs.   I've been wanting to drop it anyhow so I just went for it.  Figured  I was up all night anyhow might as well get it over with.   He was NOT happy.   Then today we got OT naps, including a 40 min one this afternoon.  And I was so looking forward to getting us on a 7:30-7:30 day with DST!!!  We're going to have to do bed at 6:45 or 7, I think, so no such luck.  Ahhhh......

Melinda, sorry you're struggling too.  Elf and C_mother must be having great days!!

[Mjaz]

Boo!

I can't believe that I've been waiting to take advantage of DST for weeks and we've had one of the worst days EVER.  All OT naps.  Can't get him out of the cycle.  Even trying to APOP him, he'd wake at the 30 min mark and be wide awake. 

(((FRUSTRATED!)))

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

I TOTALLY hear you!!! I feel exactly the same way!  I've been waiting and waiting for today and we're in disasterland, too.  Ugh......

[Mjaz]

Ahhh Kate, this stinks!  What are Austin and Elijah up to today? 

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

I know!  Silly boys - sleeping is fun!  I would like to do a lot more of it!!

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

Melinda, what time did you do bed tonight?  Austin was sleeping just before 7 so I'm hoping we'll get at least a little bit of a bedtime extension with DST.  We'll see what kind of night we have and what time wakeup is, but I'm trying to be positive.

Hoping for a good night for you, too!

[C_mother]

Hi,
Glad to hear he slept until 7:45!  Yay!!

Well at least the bedtimes are better with the time change   I think the key is to change your mindset about the clocktime - when you are thinking of a 7 bedtime, just reiterate in your mind that it is actually a 6 bedtime according to LOs body clock.

On the other extreme, it is 9 and DS is still awake (at least he is in bed)!!  Feels wrong putting him to sleep at 9    I think that I will gradually adjust him over the next couple of weeks as we do earlier bedtimes with no CN.  We will be up late for the DF 

What should I do about this EW/ long NW? He only had 3 hours of naps yesterday, so I don't think he was UT?

Hmmm....Could it not be about the total number of hours he slept in the day, but more about the distribution of sleep?  Even without a lot of sleep during the day, having a CN late in the day alters the night???  I am just thinking of how it feels when I take a nap late in the day...my sleep is never quite right during the night for some reason.  Just trying to figure out the 9 hrs!  Personally, I would guess that it is not OT if he is eventually going back to sleep for a couple of hours, but that is a total guess.  I find OT early mornings to be really unsettled here, where DS simply cannot fall back into a good sleep, so he sleeps on and off every 1/2 hr.  I also wonder if those 30 mins naps are UT (at least starting out that way in the morning).  If he goes back to sleep with APOP and only sleeps another 30mins, that sounds UT to me  I think??  What kind of As was he doing before the 30 mins naps?  I am just worried that if you don't have long enough As moving forward, then you will never be able to do anything about the shorter nights iykwim.  He is tricky, isn't he?!

Good luck tonight Kate!  I hope that dropping the feed will go smoothly.  And, at least you will get the sleepless nights over with while he is teething too.  I am sure your persistence will pay off 

[elf]

Hi...  Yes, things are still good here.  Basically last night was night 7 since stopping the night feeds.  On Sat night he slept from 7pm - 7am.  No dummy replug.  Last night he slept from 7pm - 6.30am - gave dummy at 5.30am but back to sleep.  I think stopping the night feeds has taught him how to go back to sleep.  I am doing set nap times, as we really seem to have once and for all dropped the catnap this week with these great nights.  EASY pretty much looks like this:

Nap 1 9.30am  (1.15 mins usually)
Nap 2 1.30pm (1.5 hours usually)
Bedtime 7pm... STTN

Regardless of length of naps I have stuck with this and it has worked.  Got some great advice from another book I've just read (I know I shouldn't have read even more about sleep but it really has helped us!)  I'll PM you if you're interested and explain a bit more what I did...

[Love, laughter, & PJs]

So good to hear, Elf!  We had night 2 of no night feeds last night and it was, well, pretty horrendous.  Up at 2:45 (when I had been doing the NF last week when he was teething), on and off until 4 when he really started getting p*ssed.  I finally APOP'd and got him to sleep in my arms from 6-7:30 so at least I got something!  Keeping my fingers crossed that tonight will be the turning point and things will start to get better.

Thinking about really going at it again with set naps.  So you haven't had bad nights despite slightly short naps?  Hmm....

[Mjaz]

Elf, I would love more information oh how you're approaching things/what you're reading.  I so wished things would have been better over here by 7 months.  I just keep saying that, don't I?  Sigh.  So, if Elijah woke at 6:20 this morning, I would not put him down till 9:30?  Was your LO an OT monster/have OT naps at first?

His naps are a complete mystery to me again.  DH had him this morning and said he saw sleepy cues at 1:30 and then never again.  Put him down at 2:17 (b/c that was about the time that has been working).  Up at 30 mm., back to sleep for another 45.

He was cranky during this next A, saw cues around 2:10.  Got him to sleep by 2:21, was up after 53 - could not get him back. 

Yesterday when my mom had him in the morning, she put him down after 2:39 of A time and said she saw NO cues.  30 minute nap, went back for another 30 and then was up.  Seemed OT all day.  Only had 3 hours of day sleep total, all broken naps, and had a loong, hard NW at 2am.

Good thoughts, C_Mother - thanks.  You're right, he is tricky.  I feel like the nights aren't UT or OT...!  Maybe his EASY was working SO WELL a couple weeks ago simply b/c he was catching up on OT and now he's ready for more A...but at the same time, he doesn't seem to be when he's getting SO TIRED and cranky after 1:30 of A in the morning! 

Oh, set naps, we may be ready for you.  Look forward to hearing more Elf!

[C_mother]

Look forward to hearing more Elf!

Me too!!

Maybe his EASY was working SO WELL a couple weeks ago simply b/c he was catching up on OT and now he's ready for more A...but at the same time, he doesn't seem to be when he's getting SO TIRED and cranky after 1:30 of A in the morning! 

I think that maybe your LO is a practical joker   He just wants to make your head spin!

I really hope that you are able to figure him out soon.  If it helps at all, we are up to 2:45 A and getting good naps.  I do feel as though he shot up all of a sudden. We also get the tired signs after about 1.5 hrs in the morning...I have no idea why. I have been doing his CN after about 2 hrs A. So, he will go down sooner if prompted.  Maybe that is what is happening with your LO 

I really hope that we can figure this out!

[Mjaz]

Wow, 2:45 for the first A - and your LO is now 6.5 months or so?  I don't understand how a 2:15 A time in the morning can get me a 1:15 nap (usually) and a 2:40 A time in the morning got me a 30 min. nap yesterday.  Oooohhhh dear...will I ever have more than a week of success?  My gut tells me he's building OT again with these short naps and long NWs.  Sigh sigh sigh. 

How are things with you and your LO C_Mother?