When I was still VERY pregnant, my friend Melissa sent me a recommendation to read THIS book. I ordered it, but didn't read it until I was in the hospital...oops! It wasn't a big deal, because really, from 0-8 weeks, we are all just in survival mode (no time for sleep schedules, plus that baby is having to eat so frequently, it's really not possible.) You should definitely read it around the 6-8 week time frame.
Piper is an easy baby. God love her, I was blessed with an incredible baby. HOWEVER, the first 6 weeks were TOUGH. She was so fussy and feisty! I was panicked about starting a sleep schedule with her, because I thought it would be impossible! When I read the book, my first reaction was, "This lady is crazy and cold-hearted! I can't do this to my baby!" But I soon realized that you tweak it and modify it to meet your needs, and you're good to go!
Step 1: Baby should be eating every 4 hours.
For those of you in the newborn phase, you're probably thinking...,"yeah, right, lady. You must be more sleep-deprived than I am!" Au contraire! I'm quite rested thank you very much! And after reading this (and the book!), you will be headed in that direction as well! In the beginning, I demand-fed Piper. We had to get her weight up, and that was top priority. She was eating every 2-2.5 hours for a while there. Then, as the 6 week mark started approaching, I would try to push her to only every 2.5 hours. If you do this (and realize that this may take a day or the full 2 weeks!) you should be able to have them close to every 4 hours in a few weeks. I think Piper was eating at every 4 solid hours around week 8, however it may take another week or a week less for your baby- they're allllll different.
Pick a 12 hour period that will work best for your family's lifestyle. Neal and I like to do a lot of social things with our little group of friends. Wednesday night trivia, for example, starts at 8, and usually lasts an hour or so. We chose to put Piper on a "sleep 10pm-10am" schedule. This works out great for us, because we can almost guarantee that we will be home by 9:30 or so every night. Now, if you are both employed, you will probably need an earlier schedule. For example, if you have to leave for work every morning at 7am, you need your baby to be fed and ready to go before then, so a 6pm-6am schedule may be more appropriate. Whatever the case may be, choose wisely, grasshopper, for this will shape not only your child's day, but your day as well.
Here is an example of Piper's Schedule:
10pm-10am: Sleep
10-10:30am(ish): Wake, change, feed, change
10:30-12pm: Activity time (tummy time, bouncer, reading, etc)
12-2pm: Nap time (try to get at least an hour nap)
2-2:30pm: Feed,burp,change
2:30-4pm: Activity time (go for a walk, swing outside, bouncer, etc)
4-6pm: Nap time (def go for the full 2 hours here)
6-6:30pm: Feed, change into gown or sleeper
6:30-9:30pm: Do anything to keep that baby happy and awake!
9:30pm: Bathtime
9:45-10pm: Feed, go to sleep
It's very important that you stay within a 20 min window of your feeding times. As you can see, Piper eats at 10am, 2pm, 6pm, and 9:30pm. You have to plan your day around these times, to make sure you are either at home, or in a feeding-friendly location. I DO wake her for her feedings. Every once in a while, if she needs the sleep, I'll let her sleep for a max of 20 additional minutes. You just really don't want to mess up those times because it will snowball and get icky towards the end of the day...
Step 2: Start cutting out those night feedings.
Once we got Piper back to her birth weight, I stopped waking her to feed. I would let her wake me, and then feed her then. My mom's kind words, "Why on earth would you wake a sleeping baby?! Let them sleep!" were ringing in my ears, as I got accustomed to Piper going 6 hours at a time before feeding. Awesome for you, except you WILL have to pump (if you're the milk maid that I am...) Piper eventually just stopped waking to feed. It was that easy. She went from 6 to 8 to 12 hours, just like that! I still pump every morning at 6, because I like having the 2 spare bottles to freeze, but you can also train your body to stop producing by not pumping at this time, or only pumping *just enough* to relieve discomfort.
Some of you may be concerned about breastfeeding and keeping that as your main form of birth control. If you are only using breastfeeding as birth control, power to you- I don't trust my body enough to rely on this method alone! I use the mini pill as my back-up form of birth control, because I am in no way ready for another child soon! According to my doctor, feeding only 4 times a day is the minimum requirement for breastfeeding-based birth control. I am personally not willing to take that chance...haha.
Part 3 and 4 are coming soon. You may be slightly overwhelmed, as was I, but read the book first, read my blog again, and then modify it to fit your needs. Seriously- don't freak out. Getting your baby to sleep 12 hours truly is possible. Just be good about making and FOLLOWING your schedule! If it's a relief to any of you scattered folks like me, I am so not a routine person. I have, however, rather enjoyed having some certainties in my new, "full of uncertainies" role of mama. Stay tuned!
This is what I get to look forward to every morning (well, usually!)
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