new schedule

This week I decided that I would "observe" Emmett's natural schedule to see if there were any patterns. With Anna, after about 6-8 weeks we started following the methodology in the book "Babywise" to help establish healthly sleep habits. This method worked well with Anna and was quite painless. I have a suspicion that we will have to do things a little differently with Emmett - but I would like to start out doing some of the same things we did with Anna to see how they go.

After observing Emmett for a number of days, his eating and sleeping habits do form a pattern of sorts:

7:30 - 8pm: Bedtime
12am: Feeding - back to sleep by 1-1:30am)
3:30am: Feeding - back to sleep by 4:30am
5:15am: Fussiness begins, may rock him - or feed him if he seems hungry or can't fall back to sleep
6am: Anna's door opens and she gets up for the day, often finding me in Emmett's room feeding him
8:30am: Nap - typically between 2 & 3 hrs long
11am: Feeding
1pm: Nap - try to get him to sleep at the same time as Anna, this doesn't always happen
3pm: They both typically wake up and Emmett eats again
4-4:30pm: Nap - most days Emmett will fall asleep for a few hours again around this time
6:30pm: Feeding
7:30-8pm: Bedtime

All in all, it's a pretty good schedule. I am hoping that as Emmett continues to grow his sleep time during the nights will stretch out. While most babies have a fussy time in the late afternoon / evening around 4-6pm, Emmett seems to have his from 4-6am. This means most days I am essentially up for the day at 3:30 or 4am. I have adjusted to this, and as long as I am in bed by around 8pm I can still get about 6 hrs of sleep per night and get a shower in before Steve leaves for work and before Anna pads down the hall.

It's interesting that 4am is his fussy time, as this was the time I always woke up for the day during my 3rd trimester and was never able to fall back to sleep. He seems to suffer from stomach discomfort at this time - often very gassy and will gag and even spit up (even if he hasn't eaten for a few hrs). I am trying to determine if it is something I am eating - but the process of elimination hasn't brought about any change yet. If it continues I will discuss it with his pediatrician when we visit in a few weeks. I have a sneaking suspicion it might be dairy products.

In a few weeks I will start having Emmett nap in his crib or bassinet in his room vs. in his bouncy chair or the swing or in my arms. This is how we slowly acquainted Anna with naptime and soothing herself...we'll see how it goes this time around! While Anna was most comfortable sprawled out by herself, Emmett likes the warmth and closeness of cuddles. (Truth be told, I am enjoying them too!)

Look at how big he is getting! Just 2 weeks ago these pants were falling down, and now they fit snugly around his waist...we are now in size 3 month clothing, at just 5 weeks. I find this so funny because it is so different from how his big sis was.

Grow baby grow!