Summer Break 2014

I am taking my annual summer break this next week! We will be doing fun stuff like cramming as many children as you possibly can onto playground equipment.

Please remember to send in your success story! I love to have these stories for reference for other parents wanting to know about Babywise and if it works AND if it is as bad as they hear. Let’s shoot for having them in by July 9. If you send it later, I will do my best to work it in. 

Have a great week!

If you are looking for some new reading this week, see some of my most popular posts from 2008. This was my first full year blogging. The posts from this year cover a lot of the basics. These are in no particular order.

Early Morning Feedings Before Waketime

Easy Nap Fix

Getting a Consistent Schedule

Sleep Routine

Dropping the Dreamfeed

Waking Early From Naps/Won’t Fall Asleep for Naps

45 Minute Intruder

5-8 Month Sleep Disruptions

Sample Babywise Schedules

4 Month Sleep Problems

Waking After Only 20 Minutes

Optimal Waketime Lengths

Overstimulation

10 thoughts on “Summer Break 2014”

  1. Valerie-First of all, thank you so much for your blog. Your insight and advice is wonderful and encouraging!I have a quick question about independent playtime that I haven't seen a specific answer to (although I have seen it addressed in general). My daughter is nearly 17-months and handles the playtime pretty well albeit not consistently. (I am trying to get into more of a routine, but life has been pretty hectic between a family emergency and an upcoming overseas move.) My first question is about toys. I have read not to overwhelm her, but could you tell me about how many you would give at a time (what they were at this age) and how often you changed them out?Also, she handles the playtime much better if she can't see us. Is this normal? Should we try to train her to play while we are within eyesight?As an aside, I've been using Northstates Super Play Yard for this type of play for about 6 months. I couldn't recommend it more highly as it's bigger than a playpen (we use two together) so our little one had room to crawl and walk but more restricted than a bedroom. Thanks for the advice and great work!

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    • Thanks for the playpen advice–that is a good idea!I like to use the same toys for several days so that they get the most learning from them. I don't have an exact number of days I do–probably every 1-2 weeks. I also don't have an exact number of toys. I probably get out about 3-4 categories of toys, plus she has a bit pile of books and some dolls at all times. Oh and her music table is out.

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    • I forgot about the playing–yes it is normal that she would play better with you not around. Children are more likely to work at solving their own problems with parents not around to do it for them. Think about yourself and a jar that is hard to open–you will try harder to open it yourself if your husband isn't home (at least I will)–the same is true for children.

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  2. Good Evening Val! I hope you week off has been amazing and your enjoying summer! I am in need of some help and am getting kind of desperate. My daughter turns 4 months this saturday and figuring out her schedule has been something quite stressful as of late. she is 17 weeks today and I know she is in the middle of the "wonder week 19" period, plus we just traveled up to Alaska nine days ago and she had her fourth month growth spurt this whole last week, and I know 4 months is a hard time in general for sleep and eating. So as you can imagine, her schedule has been quite exhausting and I feel at my wits end. I have two Issues, first when I feed her in the morning, she doesn't seem interested and only takes like 3 oz, is this normal? Except for her growth spurt she hasn't been getting a MON feed since 7 weeks old. So then I try to feed her right before she goes down for her 1st nap and she might take another oz but I don't like to feed her right before she sleeps. Then when I try to feed her at her 3 hour mark, she still isn't interested at all and won't even take any. Ill usually wait another 30-45 minutes and she will take 4-5 oz but then its close to her nap time agin. Does this mean she is ready for a 4 hour schedule? She seems only hungry after 4 hours between feeds now. My next question is regarding her naps. She is having HORRIBLE naps. Before we left for Alaska she was sleeping perfectly for her naps and I had her wake times down. Now whenever I try to put her down for her naps she will cry/talk/babble/scream for up to 20 minutes before sleeping. It used to be 10 minutes at the worst. I have tried to shorten her wake times, lengthen them, feed her, keep her swaddled, unswaddle, white noise, lullabies, ext. Ive read through your blog and searched for an answer to these questions and all the posts but I am still so confused as to what I am doing wrong? We have been doing baby wise since she was born and I've been letting her CIO since 5 days old.. and she is still crying before every nap. I could really use some guidance as to what I need to do to help her. Some of her naps now she is also waking 45 minutes in and talking to herself for a bit, sometimes she will go back to sleep and sometimes she won't. I have tried to feed her when she wakes at 45 minutes like the book says but isn't interested. I have been giving her rice cereal for 3 of her feeds in her bottle with breastmilk (I exclusively pump) and am trying to get her started on eating rice cereal from a spoon. On a good day here is our typical schedule I try to stick to6:30 – Wake and feed. (although I would like it to be 7:30) 7:30 – Nap10:00 – Wake and feed 11:15 – Nap 1:30 – Wake and Feed 3:00 – Nap 4:30 – Wake and feed 6:00 – Catnap 6:45 – Wake and bedtime routine 7:30 – Eat and go to bed. Please Help!

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  3. Also just so you know, I have read the baby whisperer books, happy sleep habits happy child, baby wise, and the wonder weeks, plus hour and hours on your blog and I can't seem to get an answer. So Im trying my best! Thanks!

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  4. Kayla,A lot of it really sounds like normal and typical four month behavior. That is why it is so hard. The one thing that makes me wonder is that she won't eat in the morning. If she is going all night without eating, she should be hungry in the morning. I would wonder if there is some reflux or some other pain/sickness going on.

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  5. She does has reflux, she's on zantac and has been on it since 5 weeks old, but she doesn't seem to be in pain when I feed her during or after, She was taking in 5oz no problem, no pain.. She honestly seems like she's way to interested in the world around her instead of eating cause whenever I try to feed her (even in a quite, dark room) she wants to just look around, coo, and talk to me. Ive been telling her its time to eat not play and keep offering the bottle, but she just arches her back, might take 2 oz then refuses after that. This has been going on for every feeding the last three days and she's only taking in 22 oz a day maximum, yesterday she went 6 hours between feedings no matter what I did and still didn't want to eat. That can't be enough for her at 4 months and 17 pounds. Although she is a happy camper when she is up, as long as I'm not trying to get her to eat or put her down for a nap she's happy. I started her on solids, doesn't seem to be helping much, and she has been putting herself on a 4 hour routine, these last few days. Im wondering if this is just the typical wonder week rubbish.. hopefully she will snap out of it but I have to say this really has been the worst wonder "weeks" of them all 🙂 This morning she did ok. I had to offer her the bottle twice and it took me 45 minutes just to get her to eat 3 oz. She has always never eaten much in the morning, its always a fight to get her to eat before 10am. She then stayed up for another hour and has been sleeping for two. So she might have just needed a 4 hour routine, but it seems odd to me that she would go from staying up for max of 90 minutes to 120 within just a few weeks. Is that normal? Or should I still be trying to get her down after only a short amount of wake time, i.e. 60-70 minutes? Ah! so many questions. But thank you for ,listening. Just to know someone else has been there and understand helps 🙂

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  6. The four month wonder week really is the worst one for most babies. So at least you know it is short ish and will only get better. Zantac loses effectiveness over time, so be aware of that. Her behavior sounds more like the 12 weeks wonder week with the no interest in food. She could need a four hour schedule and could be up for up to two hours. That is a lot for her age, but it isn't out of range of what babies will do. If you do move time length, just watch for a couple of weeks because sleep deficit builds up over time (I have a post on that if you want more info about it). Good luck! It is a tricky age.

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