Despite being advanced in just about every facet of his young life, Ami' still does not sleep through the night. On average he's up two to three times each night. Usually around 0100, 0300, and somewhere between 0500-0600. For the most part a four ounce bottle followed by some "butt patting" will send him back to sleep, but obviously waking up two, three, sometimes four times a night and walking over to his room is, as we say in Jamaica, not the lick! His final meal for the night is usually solid food (like veggies from a jar), with perhaps a bottle chaser, so by all accounts he should be full and set for the night. It's possible he's not eating enough during the day (the folks at his daycare have commented that while other kids his age are knocking down 8-ounce bottles, Ami' averages 4-6 ounces a serving) and makes up for any shortages overnight. We've been doing this for so long that I don't believe we every truly looked into doing something about it until we received the following email from the good folks at Pregnancy Weekly.com:
Weaning Nighttime Feedings
Hi NapiSoul,
If you're having a hard time weaning your baby from nighttime feedings, and your baby is eating solid foods, try giving him only water during these nocturnal feedings. He may decide that the water is not worth waking up and crying for you. However, you should not give your baby water until he or she is eating solid foods. Babies who are still only taking milk may fill up on water and then not be hungry for nursing, causing them to not meet their nutritional needs.
So last night I loaded up four ounces of water in his bottle and sure enough at 0100 he popped up crying. I immediately went for the bottle and he lost interest after about 2 ounces. That didn't stop him from awakening at 0300 and 0430, but sticking his pacifier in his mouth both times seemed to do the trick. Of course what I should have done was hit him with the water treatment again both times. With any luck a week or two of this water business will ultimately stop these nighttime feedings.
