Norah, Andy, and I are kind of sorting out our routine. Here are some things we have been doing lately:
The last two nights, she has had her night feeding between 8:30 and 9:30. That puts her in bed between 10 and 10:30. All week, she has woken up about 3:15 am for her middle-of-the-night feed. The night before last she went 6 1/2 hours (from 8:30 to 3:15)! So we are going to try having her last feed consistently at 9, and then bedtime, to help her even out. Our bedtime rituals are pretty simple - we change her, put her in her nightgown and swaddler, feed her, and then pat and rock her a little bit to help her sleep. We all go in her room, turn on her Pachelbels Canon CD, lay her in the crib, and then Andy or I pray for her night. Sometimes we have to give her a dummy (pacifier) to help her go to sleep, but we only give that to her if she needs it, because that also means we will end up putting it back in a couple times before she falls asleep.
After the 3:15 feed, she goes back to bed pretty well after about an hour. Then she typically sleeps till 7 or 8. Then I feed her and she sleeps in bed with me until her next feed. This gives us some cuddle time and me some more rest! She will wake up between 9 and 11 to be changed and eat again.
During the day, some activities we have started doing are taking walks in the stroller, bath time, play time on her play mat, and sling time. When Dad gets home, we all just spend time together, whether sitting together, going out, or having friends over. We try to have her awake for a while in the evenings. I have noticed she sleeps a lot in the afternoon and has longer awake periods in the late morning and evening. Last night she was awake from 6:30 to 9, and then woke again and ate around 9:30! But that seems to help her sleep well at night.
Sling time is our new discovery. In the late afternoon/early evening she is sleepy but really wants to be held. (Norah is not a fussy baby at all, but I had heard some babies have a fussy time this time of day. This, I am wondering, may be her expression of that). So I have been putting her in the sling for a couple hours while I get dinner ready, do some housework, or even take a nap myself. She LOVES it! She coos and sleeps the entire time. Andy wore the sling last night too and she liked that as well. I like having her with us while we do things around the house, and she likes being close. Furthermore, it lets us get stuff done but still have her near.
She basically eats every 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours throughout the day (I try to keep it under 3 but I dont wake her if she sleeps past). I am trying to stick to the Eat/Awake/Sleep order, keeping her awake for a bit after eating, and then giving her a nap before the next feed. But like I said, some times of the day she is more awake or asleep then others. So sometimes she can only be awake long enough for a feed and change, or sometimes she doesnt take much of a nap at all. I am fine with this because it doesnt seem to throw off her day or night. However, I am noticing if a day is really off - if we are out a lot and she goes too long between several feeds - her night seems to be messed up. She may wake up more and eat less at her feedings.
I am having fun sorting all these things out, learning how to take care of her, learning what works best for Norah and for our family. Sometimes I definitely get too caught up in worrying if I am doing enough or too much. I worry about over or under scheduling, if I am giving her enough stimulation and attention, cuddling her enough, or if I need to give her more time just in her bed to rest...If she is getting enough food, if I am feeding her too much...you know the routine. I am learning that I need to just depend on the Holy Spirit to love Norah through me and guide me and Andy in being her parents. And relax and enjoy her!
2 comments:
Leigh, I have no doubt you are a GREAT mom... and it's obvious that you know what you're doing! :) Love you guys... and can't wait to see you in action in just a few short weeks!!!
I was just thinking today about how taking care of my six-month-old son has become so second nature for me now...and how different that is from when he was first born and I felt exactly like you described!! I was always wondering whether I was doing the right thing, but as I've gotten to really know him and the way he communicates with me, we've gotten on the same wavelength and he lets me know what and when he needs. It's kinda nice. You'll be there in a month or two.
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