Parents Need Sleep, Too.

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I'm not sure what it is.

Maybe it's because I'm getting older. Or maybe it's that fourth child thrown into the mix of things.

Whatever the case, I've been noticing some things more about myself lately. I've noticed that exercising regularly keeps my spirits up and that if I don't have enough adventure in life I start to get restless.

And I've also noticed that I get pretty cranky when I don't get enough sleep.

This isn't exactly rocket science, you might be thinking. Everyone knows that when someone doesn't get enough sleep they get cranky. I mean, isn't that what I keep saying about babies all the time? Isn't this what your mom told you when you were a child?

Nora 2 months old

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Nora is 2 months old! This post goes over the last month of her life (from 1 month old up until she turns 2 months old).

OK. So she isn't actually 2 months old right now. But she used to be. I have this tendency to finish posts 98% of the way and then not post them. One day I will get to these mostly finished posts. With life as busy as it is, I'm proud of myself for getting this one up!

Eat/Wake/Sleep Routine
Nora pretty much always goes 3 hours between feeds in the day. Rarely she'll wake up sooner and I'll feed her. She wakes up right around the 3 hour mark some of the time, and the rest of the time I'll wake her (give or take a few minutes). She goes back and forth each week with waking more on her own for feeds during the day, and needing me to wake her for feeds.

Putting an End to Bedtime Battles

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Bedtime can be a very stressful time.

There's lots to do, everyone is tired, and did I mention that everyone is tired? Fatigue can put everyone at their worst. Add in a little baby fussiness, toddler tantrums, and of course whining and resisting, and you've got a scene right out of a horror film.

But it doesn't have to be like this. Really, it doesn't.

Nora 1 month old

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Eat/Wake/Sleep Routine
I didn't work much on teaching Nora to sleep on her own the first few weeks. This is the norm for me and my new babies. I am mainly just getting the e/w/s pattern down, enjoying snuggling with my baby, and trying to rest. I also can't emotionally handle any possible crying from baby at this point. I have found that helping babies take long naps is really beneficial, even if they are taking them in your arms (the same goes for night sleep). It helps get them into a pattern of spread out eating and sleeping.

Sleepiness
Nora was pretty sleepy the first 2-3 weeks. She fell asleep pretty easily in my arms, with or without a pacifier. If I set her down, she almost always stayed asleep for a couple hours. This was amazing! None of my children have done this. I know to very thankful for this, and the fact that she fell asleep easily. Jacob, my 6 year old, literally didn't have a single sleepy day in his life and he never ever fell asleep easily, no matter how may sleep props you used.

After about 2-3 weeks Nora started to have a harder time falling asleep in my arms. She usually had 1-2 sleepy periods a day where she'd fall asleep somewhat easily, and the rest of the time it started to take her up to 45 minutes. She'd be restful and start to fall asleep, but then keep waking up. I decided that it was time to work on having her sleep in her own room since she was obviously starting to get too stimulated by her surroundings to fall asleep in them. Books usually say that babies have to be older to not sleep well wherever, but that has never been the case for my children.

Baby Nora is Here!

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She's cute. I'm tired. Boys are carrying on like nothing much happened. Two year old Stella is carrying on like her world is over most of the time (and blowing kisses to the baby the rest of the time). Life is crazy but awesome at the same time!

Newborn Sample Schedules

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**see example schedules below

Newborns can be very sleepy eaters, so it can often be hard to get a full feed in the first few weeks before baby falls into a coma like sleep (tips on keeping sleepy newborns awake here).  If baby isn't able to get a full feed, then she'll likely feel hungry much sooner than if she had a full feed. Just do your best and feed baby when she is hungry. She will get less sleepy soon and full feeds will be easier to get. Read more about full feeds on this post.

A well rested baby will eat much better than a tired one. You'll struggle to get full feeds when baby is overtired because she'll be too sleepy or fussy. This means that while you may be trying to work on having baby learn to fall asleep on her own, you will also want to make sure this doesn't results in her being too overtired. This is a tricky balancing act, I know!

3-6 Month Sleep Guide

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By this time, you are probably starting to get pretty worn out if your baby is sleeping crummy. Holding you baby for naps all day, going through a 1 hour ritual just to get your baby to sleep for 15 minutes and waking up 10 million times at night to your baby's calls can get old, really old. 

It's not that you don't love your baby as much as ever, you simply want, no, need some sleep! Wanting your baby to sleep better so you can get a break and sleep yourself isn't a bad thing.  Sleep is a biological need for you and your baby, and getting a little break here and there is good for everyone. 

If you're baby isn't sleeping totally awesome at this point, you are not alone! Many babies are still trying to figure this sleep thing out. And as you probably noticed, good sleep often isn't as easy as it sounds! "Put your baby to sleep drowsy but still awake" HA!! There are also quite a few babies at this stage who were sleeping really well but have recently started having a hard time going to sleep or staying asleep. And you thought you had this sleep thing down!