Need help with some tweaking

[Gage and Sophie's Mom]

I hate to beat a dead horse, but I need some help tweaking Gage's routine. I am tired of calculating and I just cant think anymore. Here is my dilemma.

1. Gage needs about 11-11.5 hrs of night  sleep. I would prefer him to wake at 7am, but if it's 6am then it's 6am.

2. His first A time is 2.5hrs, second 3.0, third 2.5 and forth 1.5-2.5. I am working on increasing the last to drop the catnap, but Gage gets tired after 2.5 hrs. Well by then it is kind of late for a catnap, so he has a later bedtime.  If I make his bedtime earlier then he wakes earlier and well the cycle continues. His late A time should be about 3.0-3.5 hrs right? I wonder if his second A time is too long. Is 8pm too late?

3. He usually has one nap of 45m-1hr, a 1.5-2hr, and 30 min nap. He needs a catnap and will take on 99% of the time.

Los this age need about 15hrs total sleep right? Maybe there is no solution right now as this is a huge time for change.

[marlowho]

My personal thought is 8 pm is not too late- especially if it helps keep the schedule that works.
My girls went down to 2 naps around that age, though.
And use the "hrs of sleep" as a guide- don't be too anxious if it's a little less (or more) than the typical.  The problems come in when the hrs of sleep is drastically less than the norm for that age. 

Sounds like you're doing a great job!  But you really don't have to be a clock-watcher.  That's what the sleep cues are great for (in my opinion.) 
From his picture he looks like such a cutie!

[Lªuren]

gage's mum

I could have written your post 

Calum also has huge A times and wakes at different times each morning.
Today
Wake 0645
E 0730
A
S0900 - 0930 - 30mins in car, woke when transferred to pram
A
S1100 - 1130 - 30 mins in buggy, woke when transferred to car
A
E1200
A1245
S1315 - 1545 - I let him lie longer to compensate for poor AM sleeps
A
E1630
A1715 inc bath at 1900ish
E1930
S hopefully for 8pm
I had brought his bedtime closer to 1930, however he has woken at 0530 somedays ready to start the day and WILL NOT go back to sleep. I am putting it back to 8pm tonight to see if it makes a difference. Last night he was in bed late by mistake at 745pm and slept until 0645 - that I can handle.  Here he was up from 1545 and will not be put to bed until just before 8pm, he did show sleepy signs at 6pm, however I was preparing tea and he was more bored than anything ( I know if I had tried to put him to bed and would not sleep and anyway its too near his bedtime) he is now in his jumper having a ball and its bath time soon.

Yesterday:
W 0530/0600 - not sure he he put himself back to sleep for 5mins 
E0730
A
S0900 - 30 mins again
A0930 swimming to tire him out
E1200
A
S1300 - 1515
A
E1630
A inc bath
E1920
S1945

If he wants to do 8pm to 7am that is more preferable for DH & I anyway. I don't think 8pm is too late, especially when daddy works shift or long days.  Here he was up from 1515, every day from 6pm Calum goes crazy, this is his most active time and goes into fits of giggles even when looked at, so it gives him a 2nd lease of life to see him through to bedtime.

Not sure if this will help you or not, but we both seem in the same position 

Lauren



P.S - Alice I am sure your routine is perfect and you just like coming here to talk to us   

[Gage and Sophie's Mom]

Hi Lauren! Yes I do like to talk to you guys, I just wish it were in the "Y" part of EASY Being a stay at home is rough sometimes, and I am begining to think you guys are all I have

Glad to hear that we arent the only one struggling (not that I want you to struggle too), but it makes me feel normal. Well Gage went to bed at 8pm and woke at 5:45am Holy Cow, this little man is sneaky! Usually he wakes at 7am ish if his bed is 8pm. I dont know anymore. Maybe they need around 13ish hr of sleep during the day? By the time I figure this one out another dillemma will come along. Well we can hand together on this one
Alice

[Lªuren]

I am beginnning to thing Calum doesn't need that much sleep either    I put him in bed at 1950 tonight after a bath and bottle and he started his legs going up and down and leaping about. I knew he was tired because he was rubbing his sleepytime bear in his face. He is finally sleeping unswaddled I went cold turkey on the arm swaddle last night, so he is cuddling his bear instead.

Just a thought, have you tried to reduce the number of minutes in his catnap, Calum would only get/take 15-20min somedays 

[*Natasha*]

Hi Gages Mom,

I don't think their is such a thing as getting the routine correct, we are in the process of tweaking Catherine at the moment as she is staying up alot longer now and waking at around 6.30am instead of 7am. Just when i though we had her last routine sorted out she goes and changes it again. This is how things look at the moment:

Woke at 6.55am this morning  usually 6.30am
7.30am - Breakfast
8/8.30am - Bottle
9.45am - Sleep 1.5hrs
Sometimes a snack after nap but latley she has been too busy playing to worry about it.
12.30pm - Lunch
1.30pm - Bottle
2.30pm - Sleep 1.5hrs
Sometimes a snack after nap but latley she has been too busy playing to worry about it.
5.30pm - Dinner
6.15pm - Bath then bottle
7.15pm - Sleep (yesterday it was 7.20/25pm so we are going to try that again to see if she will sleep in again)
So just rememeber you are not alone we are all going through the tweaking of the routine at the moment.
Who said after 6months it gets easier 
Thought i would share my sleeping photo as well.

[beamama]

My dd is about the same age--7.5 months. WE are down to 2 naps and it is working well.
I try to get her in bed at 7 and up at 7 but sometimes it's 8 before I can get her in bed, esp if I'm flying solo.
She usually naps from 10 or 10:30 to 12 or so then from 2-4:30 or so. There's a good deal of flexibility as she is lugged around to fit her older siblings' schedule. So if her morning nap is short I try to get home so she can take a longer pm nap. I also am having a hard time fitting lunch into the schedule.  Poor thing!
She does get cranky in the evening so I try to feed her dinner earlier than later or she's too tired for dinner.
Good luck!
bea

[Gage and Sophie's Mom]

Oh my word! those photos are so dang cute! I am too afraid to take a pic of Gage for fear he will wake up We are still using the Aussie Swaddle. About a month ago we went without it and he fell asleep just fine, but all his naps went to 45 min. I finally figured out that was the prob. so we went back to it. However, your pics have inspired me to try again so he is in there right now without it for his catnap (I always try new things with his catnap so if it bombs then no big loss). I used a sleeping bag before but it is too hot for it today so I just have his lower half wrapped in the sheet and a thin blanket over him. I noticed both of you have blankets folder under the mattress, is that how your los sleep? I am afraid of putting a blanket in there after we ditch the swaddle as I dont want his to get it on his face.

[Lªuren]

Alice that is just a folded fleece to keep his head warm and more importantly take any sick, instead of the fitted sheet. Although he hasn't really done that for a while and just keep putting it there.