Is he not ready for 4/4 or am I just not giving it time to work?

[alligirl]

My little Marc-Adam is 4 months old today.  I've been trying to lengthen his routine cycles to 3.5 hours for a few weeks now, but he just doesn't seem to be doing well with it.  And I can't tell if it's because he's not ready or if I'm just not giving it enough time to work.  Most of the time, his cycles are about 3 hours with one 2.5 hour cycle a day.  Sometimes he can go 3.25 to 3.5 hours, but if he does that more than one time a day, he's up more at night. 

He used to sleep really well at night only waking once to eat sometime between 2 and 6am.  Then he hit a growth spurt and started waking a couple times a night.  Once that was over he was only doing well every other night.  Then I started trying to lengthen his cycles and now he's waking 2-3 times a night (sometimes more, up to 6 times).  On the nights that I've tried lengthening his cycle, he's up more and earlier.

So is this a sign he's not ready or am I being too impatient with the process?  My older boys went to a 4 hour routine almost overnight with no problems, so I have no experience with this.  Any thoughts would be appreciated!

[rebecaq]

Hi Alli,

Have you read in our FAQ's? There's a topic there named "Time to Transition" that wil be sure to help you see if he's ready for 4 hour EASY.

Some babies take longer to go to a 4 hour routine, so don't worry if he doesn't do it exactly at 4 months 

- Beca

[tylersmommy]

Hmmm, interesting...I've been trying to transition Mackenzie too and I've noticed some of the same things. She's been waking more at night but I just assumed we were heading toward paci addiction even though she only uses it during the day. I know she's done with her growth spurt so that's not it. Since our kiddos are the same age/size, I wonder if it's related to the 4/4 transition, or if it's developmental, or what. Tyler transitioned easily too, so I'm clueless on this!

[kim&savannah]

I was just thinking I have the opposite problem--wondering if I really pushed for a solid 3.5-4 hour EASY, Abe might stop waking so much at night!   LOL--why is it that everything can be the answer to every problem?  (not sure if that made any sense--tired mommy brain).

I might hold off a little longer since he's on the small side--I know I waited longer with Savannah and she was pretty skinny (of course, her sleep was also a nightmare, so maybe once again I should have pushed for a longer routine).

~Kim

[alligirl]

See, Kim, Marc-Adam is small, too...just a bit under 11.5 pounds.  Not taking into account our nights, he's doing great.  He generally eats well and takes good naps.  It's just the nights that we're having issue with.

Where's my magic wand when I need it....

[kim&savannah]

Alli--yeah, I was actually refering to Marc-Adam--as if I were you, I would hold off maybe.  Abe is actually pretty average sized, I think--about 14 pounds.  Which is why I thought maybe I should be pushing him to wait longer--he really shouldn't need to eat every 3 hours all day and night

~Kim

[rebecaq]

I'm glad that Melissa brought up the developmental aspect of it.

Many moms and dads tend to forget that the "rules" in books are for most babies.  Also lots of parents tend to expect almost robot behavior from their babies

If I give my lo a dreamfeed =  a good night sleep

and if that formula fails them, ooooooh lord. Their whole world gets sent out of whack! 

Remember, apart from the typical milestone times, babies will also do thing when they are developmentally ready.  And that differs baby to baby.  That's why Tracy also gives us clues to know what's going on, so even if they don't change from one EASY to another like the 4/4 rule, you can read your lo's signs for readiness.

 

- Beca

[alligirl]

Remember, apart from the typical milestone times, babies will also do thing when they are developmentally ready.  And that differs baby to baby.  That's why Tracy also gives us clues to know what's going on, so even if they don't change from one EASY to another like the 4/4 rule, you can read your lo's signs for readiness.

I guess this is my problem.  I just can't figure out if he's ready.  I know that babies do things on their own timelines...believe me, I learned that with Zachary.  I just don't know what to do at this point.  When he started having erratic nightwakings, I took that as a cue that he was ready for an extended cycle.  But it made things worse.  So that's where I'm at....reading his cues and still getting it wrong. 

[rebecaq]

Alli,

Here are the 4 major signs of readiness for the next EASY

Here are some signs of needing to transition:
1. Not taking as much at a feed (baby not as hungry at 3 hours)
2. Erratic Night Wakings
3. They are extending their awake times
4. Starts taking 45 minute naps

How many of these is Marc-adam having? Just erratic wakings?  Because that could mean something else. If you go back to 3.5 hour EASY how does he handle things?  Has he hit any milestones? Had any illnesses? Teething?

- Beca