7 month I sthis still EASY?

[Debprins]

Hi I have been battling with 30-45 min naps for quite a while but as my dd wakes up full of beans and can last 2 hrs till next nap i have just gone with it. This means up to 4 catnaps a day. The prob is this tends to disrupt her eating times as i try to stick to 4 hrs if poss.
Her first awake time is only generally 1/1/2 - 1/3/4 hrs then there after 2 hrs is this suitable for a 7 month old? she sleeps through the night as of last week and I am afraifd to "Tweak anything in case it throws out all the good work we have done so far.
If bub is still eating every 4 hrs but is not directly when she wakes up is this still easy?

[Nikki~Nathan&Danielle]

I think the question would be: are you happy with the way the routine is?  If so, then I'd just go with it and you'll notice that it changes as she gets a little older anyway.

My dd generally always has A after S and before E.  FWIW, my 7.5mth old dd is awake for 2.5hrs after waking up, down for 45mins, up for 2.5hrs, down for a long 2-3hr nap and then awake 3.5-4hrs until bedtime.  This most definitely isn't the "typical" EASY, and is different to what my ds did, but it works for us. 

If you want to change anything then you would need to gently work on extending out activity time working with the first one.  There is a plan in the new book if you're interested.

If you do want to work with what you're doing but want to figure out how to slot in feed times etc, how about post your typical day and we'll have a look and maybe give some suggestions and you can take it from there.

HTH

[Debprins]

6.15/6.30am wake and bottle
7am activity
7.30 cereal not usually too interested
7.45-8am sleep this can be any where from 45mins to 1/1/2(usually 45  though
9/9.30 wake
10 bottle as a snack
10.15 activity
11.30 sleep
12.30/1 wake lunch
2 bottle as snack
2.30 sleep Has lately been a bit longer was generally her catnap
3/3.30 wake
pretty cranky till bed time which is usually around 6 any longer and it takes forever for her to go to sleep.
I know i need to extend her morning awake time but by 1/1/2 hours she is all but falling asleep in front of my eyes.
I would absolutely LOVE any tips I have Traceys new book.
She has been stirring a bit at night which i thought was due t teething.
TIA

[alison toms mum]

we do easa aswell, although tom is a lot younger it seems to work. He use to get up at 6 am then be tired after about 1 hr, like your lo. We stoped feeding him when he woke at 6 ( he wasnt eating more than 4 oz anyway) and now he can go longer am activity (now goes 2 hrs without getting overtired... i put him down as soon as hes tired aswell).If you LO needs to eat early, you could try treating it like a night feed and put them back to bed as soon as theyve eaten :wink:

Heres OUR routine it MAY help you, tom has a lot of a time for a 5 month old, but hes happy and not grizzly on it so ive stopped worrying and thank my blessings he sleeps through the night)

7.30E
8.00A
9.30S
10.15 wake, i leave him in his cot babbling till he gets upset!
10.30ish A
11.30E (bottleand solids)
12.00A
1.00S
1.45 wake and babble!
2.00ish A
3.30E(bottle and solids)
4.00A
4.30S
5.00A
6.00Bath
7.00E
7.30S
10.00 Dream feed

I make the A time imediatly after he wakes very laid back (having a cuddle while readin to him, or watching tv) and this seems to pevent him getting grizzly for food too early. Not much Y time   but at leas toms happy :wink:

[Debprins]

Hi Alison,
Marli usually has a full bottle when she first wakes and then is in our bed to have a quiet start to her day, I offer bfast about 1 hr later and normally is not interested in it all. I cant offer later as she is a sleep.When you say Tom eats at 730 does he wake at 6? Does that mean you keep him awake for 2.5 hr? I have extended her first awake time by 15 mins and she has slept a little longer although i have to walk around this entire time i cant put her down in the last 1/2 hr or so. She has started a few night wakings maybe sep.anxiety kicking in. :cry:

[alison toms mum]

no tom doesnt wake at 6 any more, but he didnt use to wake from hunger, more out of habit. Until recently i also had to carry tom around for the last half hr before naps as he was grizzly (i found my papose/baby pouch very useful as i got tired carrying him around in my arms!)but since we gave in to the 45 min naps and left less of a gap between them i dont have that problem any more.I think it also takes a while for them to get use to changes in there routine, so if you do think she needs her A time extending your LO should get use to it soon and not need carrying any more. The longst tom ever stays awake between naps is 3 hrs, but i try to get him down after 2.5 hrs as 3 hrs seems much too long for his age.

I think every baby has there own sleep rythum, so maybe your lo cant stay awake as long as some babies in the morning. Tom gets tired earlyer in the morning so has a shorter A time then than later in ther day . Have you tried putting her to bed as soon as shes even slightly tired for a few days and keeping a note of when she naterally preferes to sleep? Thats what i did with tom in order to fig out his routine (as standard easy just didnt work for him). If your lo is starting to have trouble at night its definetly worth looking at your routine, but dont get too hung up on following easy to the letter as every baby is different, and really its just a guideline, not a rule book (i tried to follow it as a rule book and ended up so stresses :oops:  it was only when i re read traceys books i realised that wasnt how its suppose to be! :? )

Anyway sorry for wittering i guess im just trying to say that maybe your LO needs less activity time in the morning. I think as long as you are consistent with the routine you choose to follow.