Too early for a bedtime routine?
@starmashgate40sg177 (252)
United States
July 13, 2010 1:26pm CST
My daughter has had a bedtime routine since the day she came home from the hospital. She has her bath around 7pm, then I read her a story, she hears her prayers with her bedtime bear, then gets a bottle and goes to bed. She seems to sleep better when we go through the whole routine. When we moved, she didn't have that routine for a couple days and she was cranky the whole night. She is only four months old, is it too early for her to learn a bedtime routine? Or should I keep her on it?
3 responses
@rosie230 (1704)
•
13 Jul 10
No it's not too early to learn a bed time routine. I like to think that as a parent of two children, I can advise you on this. With my first child I never gave him a routine at all, and I got very relaxed in letting him nap in my arms... I think I was so overwhelmed with being a Mum, that I just did not seem to think about routine, I just wanted to hold him and take care of him. For my own fault in doing this, he ended up not wanting to sleep until I went to bed, and then he would not sleep in his bed, he would always sleep with me until the time that he started school, and then he finally started sleeping in his own bed in his own room.
With my second child, I have kept a routine with him since day one. Everytime he has a nap, I put him in his bed, I have done this since he was tiny, and now he associated his bed with sleep time. Not only that, but he has his dinner and an hour later, he will have a nice bath, and then we will read and have quiet time, before bedtime. I do this every night, and it does work, he sleeps for 11 - 12 hours without waking. He is almost 18 months now. It is a lot better for the baby and a lot better for you as the parent.
So, get your baby into a routine as quickly as you can, and your baby will get accustomed to sleeping through the night. There are times of course, where your baby will have the odd restless night, but all in all, you will find a baby will sleep through when into a routine.
@rosie230 (1704)
•
13 Jul 10
I know what you mean.... I was terrible when I first had him sleeping through the night, I was forever up and down listening... I moved his cot into my eldest's room and I was even worse... even with the baby monitor on, I hate it, and I think we all as mothers fear the same thing. It is only natural, and I think as you have friends that have lost their babies, I can understand why you worry a lot. As I said Justin is almost 18 months now, but I am still checking on him through the night. As for my eldest Jason, well he has not slept in a bed with me since he was 4, unless he has a bad night where he is unwell or something, then he will creep in, he also sleepwalks so occasionally I will wake up to find him laying on my bed, but it's not very often. I could not imagine him sleeping in my room at the age he is now, even if he had a bed in my room, it must have been really hard on your parents.
@starmashgate40sg177 (252)
• United States
15 Jul 10
My mom didnt mind. She always needed to be needed. I hope my daughter grows up knowing which bed is for mommy and daddy and which is for her. I, of course, wouldnt mind if she snuck in now and then. I do keep her in bed with me on certain nights, like when my fiance is out, or workin overnight or somethin. c:
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
3 Aug 10
You should definitely keep your daughter on the routine that you started with her from the time that you brought her home. I think that though it seems that babies at that age don't have a lot of comprehension, they are able to understand what is going on around them. And, much like with adults and such, babies find a lot of comfort from things in their lives being regular and predictable. For that reason, you should definitely get her back on her normal routine.
@starmashgate40sg177 (252)
• United States
7 Oct 10
Thank you very much for your comment. I agree she seems much more at ease when she is on her normal routine. We went to a friend's house recently and she really did not seem comfortable. It took me twice as long to get her to bed, and she would only do so it bed with me.
@redkathy (3374)
• United States
15 Jul 10
You should definitely keep her on this schedule. Children who are raised with structure and routines prove to be well balanced, organized adults. My children are grown and in their twenties. Both of them were on schedules similar to yours. They adjusted well to early rising for school and later in life, work. They did this without my assistance. I attribute this to them being kept on a daily routine and sleep schedule.
@starmashgate40sg177 (252)
• United States
15 Jul 10
Wow, I hope so much that she enjoys school and such. I would hate to have to fight her to go to school each day like my sisters.
