Everything is just so so wrong...

[shimzy]

What went wrong? my gosh... and things were going so well (14wks old, 13lbs, bottle fed)

As an update to everyone, we weaned off the pacifier. I put her back on the swaddle because she kept flailing her arms and smacking herself awake. But the soother is long gone!

Where do I start...

Well we started with increasing her awake times which did help her because a) her naps were getting shorter and b) she wasnt taking as much at each feed.

So we got her to an awake time of 1.5 hours, sometimes. Her naps vary from 1.5-2 hours but I never let her nap past a feed (whatever EASY I happen to have her on that day).

She was doing really really well on the 3.5 EASY for a few days and so I started to extend her to the 4 hour EASY. That last ONE day. YEP ONE day. So I put her back down on a 3.5 EASY and suddenly the last two days she wants to be a 3 hour EASY.

But the whole reason I believe that is, is because she doesnt want to eat breakfast! She didnt eat a bottle during the night last night and still would only eat 1oz for breakfast! She lasted until 10am (should have lasted to 10:30 or later) but because of her meager breakfast she could only last the 3 hours. OR SO I THOUGHT.

She then woke from her nap early (12:45pm) and wanted a 4.5oz bottle (a full feed for her) at 1pm ( 3 HOUR EASY). She then napped from 2:10pm to 3:50pm and again 3 HOUR EASY took 5oz.

SHe wakes up for 7am, and goes to bed at 7pm. I have been doing the dream feed but am thinking about dropping it because I truly believe that its affecting her breakfast bottle.

Whats going on here? How come I cant get her on a proper 3 or 3.5 or 4 hour easy. I know I know they dont eat "on schedule" but at least a resemblance of one? Sometimes its 3, sometimes its 3.5 and even the odd time its 4!

What should she be able to do at this age? With some work and distraction I can keep her up to 2 hours but it causes her to wake alot at night. She will not take the fast flow nipple so I cant get her to take any more than she wants and putting her on a longer EASY time does not cause her to take more in her bottles, she takes what she wants and thats it. I cant "sneak" more into her.

Im so at a loss...................I thought about getting the miracle blanket but then saw that really should only be used up to when they are rolling over, and earlier this week she started rolling from belly to back.

  Just when you think you have it cased...

[HeatherC]

I wouldn't worry too much.  I think that at this age, they are going to go back and forth a few times before reaching the 4 hour feeding intervals.  She's still young.  Many babes I know, including my own, didn't get to 4 hrs until 5-6 months.  I would give her a few days to see if it sorts itself out.  I don't know why she isn't taking her morning bottle, but she'll eventually resume.  Until then, you'll just have to go by her cues.  Don't push her A time too much or you'll end up with another problem.  If you suspect the df is filling her up too much for the morning bottle, try cutting back 1 ounce at a time to see if that helps.  Otherwise, I really suspect it's just a phase that will pass.
Best wishes!

[Jazmyn]

I think as long as you stick to the EAS routine, times really dont matter.  Its the routine itself thats the point!!  So if she is doing her Eat, Activity, Sleep then just roll with it.  Sounds to me like she is doing ok.

[yaya]

I agree with PP but could u post ur routine for us to take a peek at?

[shimzy]

The last week has looked something like this
7am wake - eat
8:15-8:30 Depends.. is when she naps
Sleeps to about 10am
10-10:30 eat
11:15-11:30 nap
11:45 have to wake her so we can get her brother from kindergarten
12pm - lay her back down for a nap. she will nap to about 1 or 1:30
2:15-2:45 nap, depends on when she last ate
4 or 4:30 eat
cat nap from 5-5:45ish depends on when she last woke up
wake at 6pm
6:30 bath, massage, jammies, bottle
7pm bedtime
dreamfeed 10pm

Last night even though we did a dreamfeed, she still woke at 2am and had a 4.5 oz feed (that is a full big feed for her)

Sometimes its 3 or 3:30 she eats, sometimes she refuses to eat in the middle of the night at all but still wakes up asking for food. Its erratic night waking.

This morning I am totally confused because she woke at 6:30 but didnt feed her until 6:50ish.. Its now 8am and she is not showing signs that she is tired.. so she'll have an awake time of about 1.75 or 2 hours... isnt that too much at her age? (14wks)

I cant get her to eat anymore than she wants to. If I feed her on a 3 hour schedule or a 3.5 hour schedule she still eats the same amount of oz at the end of the day. She would even skip feeds so that her oz at the end of the day would be the same (not like she does this cause she really knows, I guess her body tells her to? lol I dont know...)

Giving her gas drops doesnt do much to help her to take more. She just farts more. She's not a spitter. Her poops are normal, she's about 13ish lbs...maybe 14lbs..

From what I understand she is a textbook/angel... Im so lost lol. The 3 hour EASY was so great.. the inbetween 3-4 hour EASY is so confusing and messed up I find myself clock watching and watching her cues because either a) the clock is so erratic in connection with her cues that I dont know whats what anymore and b) her cues literally change from day to day depending on what happened the night before.

I know she can sleep through the night. She did it once when she was 6 wks old and once last wk? or the wk before? ... She can do it! The last time she slept through, she started rolling over the next day.

 

Edited to Add: This morning she did an awake time of 6:45-8:45am and went down to nap no problems. Its now 9:30 and she's passed out still!! Is it typical for a 14wk old to have an awake time of 2 hours but eating on a 3.5 hour schedule? I will see when she gets hungry after waking up (or even how long her nap will last for that matter) and let you know.

[shimzy]

I just wanted to update what happened yesterday (here is a copy of what happened yesterday). I ended up putting her to bed at 6:40pm, we did dreamfeed @ 10pm.. she slept until 5:15am. Thats the best night sleep we've had all week...When we get the A times right, she sleeps great at night, only waking once for a feed (sometimes sleeps through, done that twice).

6:40am wake up
7am – eat 2.5oz
8:45am – nap
Cried out at 9:35 started crying out, got panicky, went in to resettle, smiling all happy
9:40 still would not sleep, pulled out of bed, panicky,
9:45 – eat 3.5 oz
9:50 – poop
11:35-11:45 – cat nap
11:50pm got stuck in the snow outside the school - Madison was up
12:10pm- laid down to nap- did not go to sleep until 12:25pm
1:20pm – got up to eat – 6oz
3:10pm – nap
4:20 – woke up would not resettle to sleep
4:30 woke up – 4.5 oz
Happy as a clam to play in her exersaucer – still chewing on her fists like they were bonbons
6:15pm – bath, massage, jammies, bottle 4.5 oz
6:45pm – bedtime
Dreamfeed @ 10:00pm 3.5oz
Woke @ 5:15am – ate 2.5oz

We woke up this morning for the day @ 6:50am. This seems to be a "her" wake up time.  She would not eat at 7am, but did eat 1.5oz at 8am. I laid her down for nap at 8:40am, went to sleep no problems.

So you see, she can handle 2 hour awake times, but cannot really handle waiting 4 hours between feeds. I wanted to know if that is normal, typical or if Im setting us up for disaster?

[yaya]

When we get the A times right, she sleeps great at night, only waking once for a feed (sometimes sleeps through, done that twice).

This is sooo true. To me it sounds as tho u really are listening to ur LO's cues and if shes happy on 2hrs A time then so be it altho 4 hrs between feeds sounds like a long time for a 3 mo. Is she taking a good amount of oz per day? If so then I?d say its fine. I will get back to re: ur routine but it does sound to me as tho u r doing great, if LO is happy and napping/sleeping well then this is what works for u!
Sorry not to be of more help but will get back to u with more info!

[shimzy]

Yup 2 hours A time works for her. Like I said, she can only handle 3-3.5 hours between feeds, only rarely will she go 4 hours. But I assume that will come as she gets a bit older...

Ive always been worried about her intake, but she takes what she wants and I figure, if she's not going to eat anymore and she's not eating erratically (as in every 2 hours) she must be filling up according to what she needs, you know? She is gaining properly (had her to a pediatric specialist) and he said she was just fine. Her growth curve is great.

She is a super happy baby, and if she is happy to be awake 2 hours, her naps and sleep time must be working for her. We'll see how things get on during the rest of the week.

Thanks!

[rebecaq]

Hi there,

I've been reading through your poast and I agree with yaya, it sounds to me like you're reading her cues properly and attending to them in the proper time. From what I see, your dd is doing several things at the same time.

1. She's learning to self soothe without her paci
2. She's hit a milestone (rolling over)
3. Seems like she's getting over or just starting a growth spurt

My ds would be out of whack for about 3 week prior and post to a growth spurt. Some days he would have a 5 hour nap, the next a 20 mins one.  Just goes to show that these abbies can really take us for a spin sometimes!

I'm wondering how she does with her other feeds. Is she relunctant at other feeds as well? Could she be teething as well?

Hope to hear from you soon 

- Beca

[* Paula *]

Sounds like you are doing great following her cues, and sounds like you are heading more towards a 3.5 hour EASY.

With regards to her refusing feeds - it could be that the flow of the teat is not right for her.  I know that you said the fast flow was too fast for her, but have you tried making another hole in her current teat?  This may help a bit.

Also - do you thing she could be teething?  My DS used to refuse his feeds and only take small amounts when he was teething.  If you think he may be teething you could try to rubbing some teething gel on her gums before a feed.

Keep us posted on how you get on.

Paula x

[shimzy]

Hi Guys! Thanks for all the great tips 

It really depends on the day and whether she refuses feeds. Sometimes it is her actual feeding time (meaning 3-3.5 hours from the last feed) but she still refuses sometimes (always makes up for it in the next feed) and other times she refuses because like this morning (she woke at 5am, i fed her and usual wake up time is 7am wherein she refused to eat but then ate some at 8am and fed again at 11am)

Ive tried it all with my daughter. TomTomsMum - You were the one who helped me get her onto the medium flow which she took to great. I have tried the fast flow - flat out refused it (she loooooves to suck). I tried the extra hole from your other posts about her feeding problems, and she hated that even worse.

I think she is going to be popping teeth soon. Her cheeks are super rosy and she chews her hands like they are bonbons. No red or swollen gums though, but drooling puddles all over the house. I cant keep her shirts dry.

My son popped his first 2 teeth at two months. So this wouldnt be unusual for her.

I definitely believe she just went through a growth spurt. She at times had eaten at 2.5 hours and ate more than she usually did, but that settled down after a couple of days.

I think after the 4 mth mark the growth spurt doesnt happen again until around 6 months, is that correct? I think I can really concentrate on getting her to the 4 hour EASY before we start solids at 6 months.

Thanks 

[* Paula *]

It definitely sounds like it could be teething then - even if you cannot see any teeth, it does not mean that they are not teething.  It can be really painful when the teeth start moving in the gums - would definitely try the teething gel to see if that is any better.