7mo old now waking at df time, is this a sign to stop?

[ashleamc1]

Hey gals,
My 7 mo old has been waking between 10 and 11pm every night now for about two weeks.  This is when we usually do df, so I'm asuming she has gotten used to this and has started waking up for it.  The problem is that when she wakes up now, I have to get her out of the crib and feed her because if i don't, she spits up from not burping.  This obviously doesn't happen when she's asleep and i do df.  Is this a sign to stop the df?  Now, since I've been picking her up to do df, she doesn't want to settle throughout the night without me picking her up.  So not only do I have this problem, but I think I'm starting some accidental parenting too.  She just started cutting a new tooth a couple days ago, so I can't cut out df until this tooth comes through.  She has been taking 6 oz at df, but almost every bottle through the day is 8oz, so how am I suppose to add this back in during the day?  She would eat alot more solids if I gave them to her, but I was scared she was too young to be eating more solids than she already is.  Any advice would be great!
Her schedule is

700    wake and bottle   8oz
800    cereal                 3oz
930    nap                    1 to 1.5 hour
1130   bottle                 7oz
1230   veggies and fruit   4oz
130    nap                     1 to 1.5 hr
330    bottle                  8oz
500   veggies and fruit    4oz
645   bath
715   bottle                   8oz
730   bed
1030 df                         6oz

   

[VeroniqueD]

Hello

Hey good taste in baby towels, my daughter has the same one!!  I would say it's time to make a change, i believe you " have to add the same number of ounces to the day feed so baby won't wake up at night" BW. I believe there is a gradual approach and you should start a half hour earlier then your usual dreamfeed time. This change could possible disrupt your lo pattern of hibitual waking (wake to sleep) if she is aroused a bit when you try and feed her. Let me see if i can find a link on how to gradually wean from dream feed.

[VeroniqueD]

How to stop the dream feed…from Tracy’s Book “The Baby Whisperer Solves All of Your Problems”.

The process of cutting out the dream feed – usually around 7 months – is to be done in 3-day increments, to insure that your baby makes up during the day what you’re taking away at night.

Day 1: Add one ounce to the first feed of the day, and take away 1 ounce from the dream feed that night.  If you’re breastfeeding, go back to clustering so that you get more calories in.  Give the dream feed (now 1 ounce less) half an hour earlier, at 10:30 instead of 11.

Day 4:  Add one ounce to the first feed, one to the second, and take away two ounces from the dream feed.  Give the dream feed (two ounces less) at 10.

Day 7:  Add once ounce to the first feed, once to the second, one to the third, take away three ounces from the dream feed, and give it at 9:30.

Days 10 (dream feed at 9pm), 14 ( 8 :30) 17 (8:00 ) and 20 (7:30):  By continuing every 3 days to add ounces during the day and take away the same amount from the dream feed, you will end up doing a feed at 7:30 with only a few ounces.

Note:  If your little one doesn’t take that extra ounce(s) that is offered during the day, that is ok….they might not take to drinking more right away during the day, but it is there if they want it.

I suggest cutting out the dream feed at around seven months, as your baby starts to get solid food in him. If you continue to give it, you’re working against the introduction of solid food, because for every 25 5Th/Ounce of extra liquid your baby takes, he won’t be hungry for 25 gram/an ounce of solid food. However, as the box indicates, when you cut out the dream feed, you have to add the same number of ml or grams or ounces to the day feed. If you don’t, your baby will wake up at night.

Also...the above is taken from Tracy's book "SAYP - p123".  Every baby is different though so there may be variations of the above "how to" that work - including dropping it cold turkey.

Thanks too calebs mommy for finding this!!!

[Grace's Mom]

We never did a df but my lo had one night feed until around 6 months old.  It is best to try and add those ounces during the day if you can but don't fret too much about it if you can't.  We weren't able to add ounces during the day as my daughter is a fairly small eater in comparison to other lo's her age and she did just fine.

Random question...do/did you feed her while she is in the crib for the DF? 

In regards to having to pick her up now, you are right as it may be starting a whole other habit which for your sake and hers you want to try to avoid that if at all possible.  Sometimes things like that are absolutely necessary but when they are done over and over again our los get use to it and freak out a bit when all of a sudden mommy isn't there one night to pick me up, kwim?  I personally would highly reccommend making sure it doesn't become a habit so that you don't have to break it later on down the road.  If you can settle her while she is in her crib that is best. Patt her back or chest, etc. and slowly do less and less.  You don't want her to rely on you to settle and go back to sleep as we want good independent sleepers so mommy and daddy can get lots of sleep too  .

I hope things work out for you and your lo continues to do wonderfully.

Melissa

[ashleamc1]

Thanks for the advice!  My problem with adding extra ounces during the day is that she is already taking a full 8 ounce bottle at almost every feed.  I don't really have any room to add in the extra oz unless I do it with solids, but she already eats more solids than most babies her age. 

I used to feed her the df in her crib, but since she has started waking up for it, i have been taking her out of the crib so I can burp her when she finishes.  If I leave her in the crib and don't burp her and she is awake, then she spits up.  She doesn't spit up when I do df and she is asleep.  Make sense?

As for settling her while in the crib, she has started this new thing of picking her heals up and slamming them on the mattress until I pick her up.  The crying only escalates.  I guess I'm going to have to do PU/PD to fix this.