Help with setting a bedtime for newborn-3 month olds

So I am trying to do all the "right" things to get my LO to sleep through the night as early as possible and to have good sleeping habits in general, and can use some advice from BTDT moms.

My LO is 6 weeks old and she eats on demand during the day- usually every 3 hours. At night I wont wake her up for a feed and she will usually go 4-5 hours sometimes one longer stretch than that a night.

Do you have a set bedtime for your LO? or is it impossible to do this when you are feeding on demand?

If you have a bedtime, how do you decide the time,and how do you keep that time if your LO is feeding on demand during the day? So if she eats every three hours during the day and you have an official bedtime at like 8 pm and you last fed her at 6:30 that day, do you just put h er to bed at 8 and see what happens (whenever she wakes up she wakes up) or do you wake her up for her last feed for the night at 9:30 and then let her sleep?

Or do you just set your bedtime later to begin with , for example right before you go to bed i.e. 10pm

I am really struggling with how to work this out.

Thanks!.

Message edited 1/31/2012 1:31:38 PM.

Re: How do you set a bedtime for your LO if they are still eating on demand?

DS (10 weeks) started sleeping longer stretches at night. Maybe 4 to 5 hours. If I give him a bottle at 6, lets say (he still feeds on demand every 2.5 hours during the day) I usually put him in the crib after the bottle (between 630 and 7) When he falls asleep that late in the day, I usually have to wake him for one last feeding, usually around 10, the he goes right back in the crib.So, hes too little for an exact bedtime but it is usually between 630 and 730. If your LO is still waking every 2 to 3 hours at night for a bottle, then I don't really think you could have an actual bedtime/bedtime routine at this point. But maybe try any feeding after 630, she goes right back in the crib to go back to sleep.

Re: How do you set a bedtime for your LO if they are still eating on demand?

Thanks! She does usually go for 4-5 hr stretches at night so I am trying to time it right so that it works better for STTN

Message edited 1/31/2012 12:25:06 PM.

Re: Help with setting a bedtime for newborn-3 month olds

my DS feeds every 4 hrs during the day and at night it 4-5 hrs so we just keep on that schedule since he seems pretty consistent and I hope we can slowly stretch the night....he is 1 month old.

Re: Help with setting a bedtime for newborn-3 month olds

Our DD has just started STTN. She has a bottle every 3 hours - no matter how many oz I give her, she still needs feeding 3 or 3.5 hrs later. I started by calculating her feedings based on her first "morning" feeding and the time that I put her to bed (I nurse her to put her down at 9 p.m.). If she wakes at 5 a.m. I will say her next bottle is 8, then the next ones are at 11:15; 2:30; 5:45 and then 9 again for her last feeding.

This morning she woke at 4 so I think I need to increase her formula to 6 oz. Today's feedings will be at 7; 10:30; 2; 5:30 and 9. If she sleeps through a feeding and has it an hour late then I still nurse her at 9. She might have a bottle at 7 but she will still take the boob at 9. If she is crying for a bottle earlier than 3 hrs of course we give it to her and then I will nurse her that bit earlier but she still sleeps through the night. I know what you are going though - timing her feedings is one of my daily obsessions.

Re: Help with setting a bedtime for newborn-3 month olds

Posted by ODonnell

Our DD has just started STTN. She has a bottle every 3 hours - no matter how many oz I give her, she still needs feeding 3 or 3.5 hrs later. I started by calculating her feedings based on her first "morning" feeding and the time that I put her to bed (I nurse her to put her down at 9 p.m.). If she wakes at 5 a.m. I will say her next bottle is 8, then the next ones are at 11:15; 2:30; 5:45 and then 9 again for her last feeding.

This morning she woke at 4 so I think I need to increase her formula to 6 oz. Today's feedings will be at 7; 10:30; 2; 5:30 and 9. If she sleeps through a feeding and has it an hour late then I still nurse her at 9. She might have a bottle at 7 but she will still take the boob at 9. If she is crying for a bottle earlier than 3 hrs of course we give it to her and then I will nurse her that bit earlier but she still sleeps through the night. I know what you are going though - timing her feedings is one of my daily obsessions.

Re: Help with setting a bedtime for newborn-3 month olds

Posted by Budjeg11

Posted by ODonnell

Our DD has just started STTN. She has a bottle every 3 hours - no matter how many oz I give her, she still needs feeding 3 or 3.5 hrs later. I started by calculating her feedings based on her first "morning" feeding and the time that I put her to bed (I nurse her to put her down at 9 p.m.). If she wakes at 5 a.m. I will say her next bottle is 8, then the next ones are at 11:15; 2:30; 5:45 and then 9 again for her last feeding.

This morning she woke at 4 so I think I need to increase her formula to 6 oz. Today's feedings will be at 7; 10:30; 2; 5:30 and 9. If she sleeps through a feeding and has it an hour late then I still nurse her at 9. She might have a bottle at 7 but she will still take the boob at 9. If she is crying for a bottle earlier than 3 hrs of course we give it to her and then I will nurse her that bit earlier but she still sleeps through the night. I know what you are going though - timing her feedings is one of my daily obsessions.

Thanks Michelle! It is def driving me nuts! Do you put your LO in her crib (or wherever she sleeps at night) after the 9 feed and not before?