I don’t even know where to begin to tell you about this day. It was….unpredictable. Last night’s sleep was poor again (the New Years night was some kind of fluke.) I have a feeling we’re heading into sleep training territory, and I so don’t want to go there. Perhaps M is still adjusting from our travels, but we were up at least every hour (sometimes more) from 3-7am, and his days of decent napping are no more (for now, at least).
On the plus side, we stayed in our PJs all morning and did a lot of snuggling. In that sense, it was a really nice day. Props to all of you working moms who can be up all night and go to an office in the morning. You are strong.
Let me tell you about the food!
Steamin’ hot and filling oats – whipped banana style – with cottage cheese stirred in at the end along with a handful of blueberries. Sunflower butter for the win.
Many hours later I had a great lunch featuring a few leftover pitas from our party.
Whitney stuffed them with artichoke, peppers, avocado and cheese and I added some of Rosie’s edamame ginger dip before toasting them in the oven.
On the side was spinach salad with a half cup of hot lentils, avocado and goat cheese.
I took Mazen out for a 3 mile stroller walk that went by a coffee shop late this afternoon and got a decaf cappuccino for a snack. It was refreshing to get outside and walk.
A short nap was on the menu tonight, and Matt and I were able to put together a really nice dinner
While dinner was in the oven, I was famished, so Matt made us little toasty appetizers with melted cheese (that’s a salad plate, FYI – they aren’t giant!)
The main course was Wild Alaskan Halibut sent by Alaska Seafood.
For tonight’s preparation, we dunked it in egg and sun-dried tomato flavored panko I found at Whole Foods, then pan-seared and oven finished it. The pan was a wee bit hot so we got a good char on top, but it sure tasted good. The seasoned panko were really flavorful – nice and tangy from the sun-dried tomatoes. I noticed WF also had Italian, mushroom and spinach-seasoned panko in the seafood department too.
Kale chips on the side. These aren’t burned – it was just the deep purple kind of kale!
And some of our sunflower sourdough with a drizzle of EVOO. I really enjoyed this bread, but I’m so excited for the Cville Crunch loaf Matt brought home today and the French toast I have planned for the morning!
It really feels like a Monday and it’s so exciting that the weekend is just around the corner!
Shel@PeachyPalate says
Here here, who doesn’t love a short week! 🙂 Sorry to hear sleeps haven’t been as good…here’s to hoping tonight is better! Favourite oat combo (aside from Pumpkin of course)…blueberry and banana heaven.
Elise @ Expeditions of Elise says
Nothing bad about a day spent in pajamas. I hope your sleep troubles are resolved soon!
Julie H. of Spinach and Sprinkles says
I keep getting told about the 4 month sleep regression…. I’m not a fan. However, I’m hoping we’re on our way out of it. I’m sending you lots of wishes for positive sleep during the day and night so you can all get in the flow of a great sleep pattern!
Laila says
This must be a thing. My 4 1/2 month old has been doing the same thing. Feel like a Zombie at work!
Allison k says
www.askmoxie.org sleep regressions are real! It gets better!
Megan says
Im going through the SAME thing with my 16 week old!! His sleeping is getting worse 🙁
Reghan says
I went through the same thing around 3.5 – 4 months! He started waking more often, not sleeping as long, skipping naps etc. Now at 4.5 months he’s back to his “normal” and is sleeping 9-10 hours, eating a sm. bottle and back to bed for another 2-3 hours. Those sleepless nights are terrible!!! I’ve been sleep training without the CIO, I will go in at 5-10 minutes depending on how he’s crying and shush and give soother and repeat as many times as needed. After doing this for so long now he’s very good at going to sleep on his own 99% of the time without the soother! I know it sucks during but it’s so much better in the end for all in the household. Good luck!
Ali @ Peaches and Football says
I have no idea how new moms (dad’s too) are able to survive sleepless nights and then get to work – or even to function. Some days I have a rough night’s sleep and am totally wiped out… and there’s no baby excuse for me. My hat off to you!! Fingers crossed you get a good night’s sleep tonight!
Anele @ Success Along the Weigh says
Aww, sorry you didn’t have a good night’s sleep. I say nap time when possible! No fair, even your appetizers look amazing while mine would be a sad piece of bread and wafer thin lacy cheddar.
Maggie says
Some babies hit a bad 4 month sleep regression that can start around anytime from where you guys are now. My 8 month old had a rough time. It does get better and if it doesn’t there are lots of ‘sleep training’ options so you guys can find one that you are comfortable with if it comes to that. I used to remind myself that kids don’t go to kindergarten getting up every hour and that eventuall this too shall pass.
Abby says
Kinda the same thing going on here Kath! Our 4 month old daughter is in a total funk before bed. Before the holidays she would nurse to sleep and stay down all night. Now she screams bloody murder before bed and nothing seems to comfort her. Yikes! I think it was the accumulation of the holidays. Hang in there, you are a strong mom too!
Christy says
from reading about your sleep struggles I really think it might be time to try getting him on a stricter consistent (same time, same place) nap schedule. Daytime sleep really connects with nights. Sleeping on the go does not provide much rest and then your baby can be overtired. Healthy sleep habits, healthy child REALLY changed our experience of sleep. Good luck!
KathEats says
I’ve been trying the crib naps, dark room, drowsy but awake, same time daily, the works but I think this is developmental
Ellie@Fit for the Soul says
Interesting bits of advice here! ahhh Kath i hope it all eases down soon, as I know from experience with my nephew that I used to live with~he was crazy and all over! Sometimes it’s just their temperament, but sometimes a few changes can def. help. Hang in there guys!
ps: I want fish so bad right now! Your food looks yummy.
Sarena (The Non-Dairy Queen) says
Dinner looks so good! I love when Tony and I actually get time in the kitchen together (which is rare these days). Sounds like it was a good day even with the lack of sleep. Hopefully things well settle down in that department soon. Have a great day Kath!
Katherine says
Could you do a recipe post on the kale chips sometime?
http://therealfoodrunner.blogspot.com/
KathEats says
I linked to it in the post!
Katherine says
Thanks 🙂 Sorry – must have missed that!
SB says
In my experience (have a 2 year old) overnight trips away can very easily disrupt the routine and it can take a few days for things to settle down again – but it is rough when you are getting even less sleep than you were used to with a baby. Also, Mazen might be heading into the 4 month sleep regression – if you google it, you will find out all about it. A well known developmental leap which messes up sleeping – you just have to ride it out.
Also, I think most professionals don’t recommend sleep training (depending I guess on how extreme you are planning?) till after 6 months…
KathEats says
I should have clarified… We’re not thinking about training soon, but it looks like he’s not a naturally stellar sleeper so we might have to go there eventually
Jen says
My daughter was an awful sleeper until she got through the 4-month regression. At 5 months + 1 week she started sleeping through the night, all on her own (and has since, minus a few nights due to illness, and is almost 2!) So maybe all you need is time. I wasn’t comfortable doing any sleep training until after 6 months either, per the advice of our pediatrician.
Amy says
Dinner looks spectacular; I need to get those breadcrumbs on my shopping list!
In regards to sleep, my daughter is about 2 weeks older than Mazen and her sleep habits have also been a roller coaster. Just when you think you’re getting somewhere, things (like changes in schedule, learning a new skill, illness, growth spurts) come along and put you right back to square one.
Before a nasty cold came along and wrecked things I feel like we were getting somewhere with an earlier bedtime and “mild” sleep training for night wakings. (My girl is a comfort nurser so if it hasn’t been 3 hours we’re working to get her back to sleep without feeding). We are lucky in that she rarely fusses for longer than a minute before soothing herself (and if she does, we just paci up, which works pretty quickly). If you start sleep training, hopefully your son will surprise you and put himself right back to sleep as well.
Hang in there!
Claire says
I’m sorry to hear about Mazen’s sleep! I’m sure you’ve already read this: http://moxie.blogs.com/askmoxie/2006/02/qa_what_are_sle.html about the 4 month sleep regression.
You say that you really don’t want to go into sleep training territory, and I’m here to say that you can TOTALLY make it through without sleep training (if that’s the route you want to choose!). My little girl’s sleep was great until she hit 4 months, and it’s been “poor” (aka normal) ever since (she’s now a year). She still nurses 1-3 times a night, and I’ve worked 40+ hours a week out of the house since she was 12 weeks old. It is totally do-able, I’m not exhausted all the time, in fact I feel just fine most days. If you don’t want to do sleep training (and 4 months is considered too young by the sleep experts anyhow, virtually all of them recommend waiting until 6 months), two things really helped me: adjusting my attitude and co-sleeping/side-lying nursing.
With my attitude, one day I just decided to stop worrying about my girl’s sleep. I stopped looking at the clock in the middle of the night, I stopped tracking all of her naps/feedings/wake-ups, and instead I just told myself this – she’s only this young once. It’s only a short period of time, relatively speaking, when she’ll be getting up every night. And most importantly, she just wants to eat and to be close to me – two things that I really want to honor and respect. I just decided to be present in the moment and stop worrying about a problem that wasn’t really there.
And co-sleeping/side-lying nursing are just wonderful when they’re going through a “wonder week” and need to eat all night long. When my girl’s hungry I just roll on my side and she can nurse, and I can doze back off while she nurses. There are many great resources on the Internet on how to co-sleep safely, and you can do a mix of starting out in the crib then moving to co-sleeping after the first wake-up, which is what we do and it works wonderfully for us. Also, every few nights I go to sleep when she does (at 7 pm) to catch some extra sleep. And the occasional nap on the weekend works wonders (and of course you have the luxury of being home, so you could nap every day if you like!).
Of course there’s nothing wrong with sleep training, but I just wanted to put it out there that it’s not the only option!
KathEats says
I guess I should gave said that we’re definitely not considering doing any kind of training in the near future. I’m just recognizing that we don’t have a sleeper like many of my friends do.
Also, I was fine with wake ups to nurse and if something is bothering him, but this last week it has been every hour… Sometimes every 20 minutes and that’s not good for either of us.
I’m suspecting it is the 4 month sleep regression..
Anna says
i had every hour wake ups when my 18 mo. old was 4 months – it went on almost 6 weeks. she was so easy otherwise. our ped said to ride the wave and then she was great. we did everything during that time – focused on quality baby naps, i built in a nap/rest period, extra nursing, and we bed shared which was moderately helpful.
it ends quickly and by a year, my girl sttn and is awesome about going to bed/nap. you really just have to worry about self preservation during this time. good luck.
Nicole says
Well the good thing about him waking up EVERY hour is that you just have to know that SOMETHING is going on that it’s not going to be like this forever. Since it’s such a huge departure from what he was doing that should tell you that it’s just that somethings “off”.
Now that my 3 boys are older, I can confidently say that they each have their own personal sleep requirements and those have held true even to now (they’re 10, 13 and 15). The reason I say this is because “sleep training” won’t change their sleep requirements if that’s just their personality. I know without a doubt that if I had tried to sleep train my third son (who was my “worst sleeper” but also my most outgoing and demanding), it would not have ended well for either of us. While I may have been able to ignore his cries to the point that he would have eventually given up, I know I would have also broken his spirit in doing so. My first would have probably been ok with some level of sleep training since he was and has always been easy-going and a sleeper. So a lot of it just has to do with their temperaments and some babies/children are never going to be one of those “amazing sleepers” just as some of us adults aren’t big sleepers or are night owls or early risers (I’ve read that Martha Stewart only sleeps 5 1/2 hours every night!)
And just like Claire said above…I finally found peace when I stopped obsessing over every waking and looking at the clock and figuring out to the minute how much sleep I got in between feedings! I also had to STOP comparing my baby to my friends’ and families babies–it was truly driving me crazy! They are not the same baby and never will be and we just have to make peace with that. There are lots of other incredible qualities that my non-sleeper has that those same friends’ babies don’t have…like the fact that he’s SO cuddly and loveable with me at the age of 10 and NEVER ONCE has talked back to me. So I focus on the positive differences instead of the negative. So much of it is how you choose to look at it and what you choose to focus on 🙂
Another thing that really helped me with my “high maintenance non-sleeper” was when I read a quote by a pediatrician that talked about how many of the qualities of high-maintenance babies that drive us crazy (knowing what they want and NEVER settling for less and being super-focused and very hard to distract) are all qualities that we usually associate with very successful adults! And he’s right–my youngest IS a go-getter and very self-motivated…even at 10…way more so than my oldest 16 year old “easy” son is.
I know everyone says it but it’s true–this too shall pass. When you’re in it’s easy to feel like this new “stage” is going to be your life from here on out but I promise it won’t be! Just ride out this phase and wait for the next one…it’ll come…it has to since having a baby is ALL about change 🙂
Meredith says
I LOVED what you said Claire and couldn’t agree more. We have a similar set up at our house. It might not work for everyone, but does well for us (with a 3 yr old and 14 month old). I really think kids are just wired differently. My husband was a “challenging sleeper” as a baby and my kids seems to take after him. I’ve been told my whole life that I “slept through the night at 1 week old” and couldn’t believe when mine didn’t 😉
Hang tight Kath. It will get better! Such a short (albeit annoying at times) season 🙂
Jenn says
This is great advice and what we do, and I work 40 hour weeks. My little one is 6months old. Just remember how nice it feels to snuggle up with Matt, don’t you think Maze might feel the same? To be honest, IMHO, training is something you do with pets, not babies.
joelle (on a pink typewriter) says
That spinach salad looks fantastic! Love the avocado chunks in there!
PS. Where did you get your placemat? It’s so pretty!
KathEats says
It’s an Ikea tea towel
Hayley @ Running on Pumpkin says
The fish sounds really good. I love panko crusts on any sort of protein!
Lindsay @ Healthforagers.com says
I don’t know about other people but I have really found that any kind of traveling or even having company at our place messes with my daughters sleep schedule for at least a week. She is 7 months and after traveling we normally have to go in to comfort her at least 3 or 4 times a night. Then all of the sudden it stops. I bet Mazen’s sleeping problems has to do with all of the holiday fun.
Also, those kale chips look amazing. It has been a long time since we had them.
Jen says
Sorry you’ve been having such a rough time! Is it possible he may be teething?
molly says
Burin’ ? Not sure what that means but maybe you meant Burnin’ ?
Sleep training is unnecessary, in my experience. Try to avoid the late day nap, nurse him and he will sleep. Often times the sleep is interrupted due to being wet, or cold or hungry. I dont think a baby of his age should be “trained” to ignore any of these things.
When he is able to talk to you, in a year or two, depending on his developmental curve, thats a good time to find out why he’s waking. Right now, he can only cry, eat, and hope that YOU will figure out why it is that he cant sleep.
Melanie says
Oh that sleeping thing is tough with babies! I found with ours that whenever things got rocky, they gradually smoothed out-it was like there was developmental stuff she had to work through, and the sleep got better once that phase past. It’s so hard to know though! Good luck!
Marie says
Thanks for the shout out to working mamas, it is tough to be showered, dressed, made-up, packed and ready to go! Why don’t you want to sleep train?
Ashley says
He’s around 4 months, right? He’s going through what is called the “4 Month Wakeful”. Which is a fancy way of saying that their sleep goes to crap around this time. Naps become few and far between and night time sleep becomes very interrupted. I had heard about it when I was pregnant from some of my mom friends but just thought it was an urban legend. It’s not, trust me. My only advice is to just survive through it. I would advise to not sleep train just yet. Most baby sleep experts do not recommend sleep training until at LEAST 6 months. Because babies really do not have the coping mechanisms to soothe themselves until 6 months. Before that, they are just crying themselves to sleep out of exhaustion.
Sleep and babies can be so tricky and frustrating sometimes but I’m sure he’ll go back to his old sleep ways soon. Hang in there!
K says
This is what I was going to say. Sounds like the 4 Month Wakeful. Sadly it is developmentally appropriate. I feel like my son did not take any good naps from 4-6 months, just part of the wonders of motherhood!
As far as sleep training goes, I agree with waiting until 6 months (or later). But to be honest, we have done various methods of sleep training a multitude of times and at 14 months we still have bad nights. Some babies take to it and some don’t and there are always things like illness and teething to mess it all up. My son knows 100% how to fall asleep on his own but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t wake up and want me for whatever reason (lately to have me there so he can point out random things in his room).
Reghan says
I disagree with this. My baby never falls asleep out of crying out of exhaustion! I never ever let him cry that long. Not all sleep training is CIO. He’s 4.5 months and has been able to self soothe for awhile now. Every baby is different and there shouldn’t be a set age where you can start setting your baby up for good sleeping habits IMO.
Lisa says
Everyone has an opinion and this is just mine, but I am a big fan of cosleeping. We currently cosleep with our 4th baby (he’s almost 15 months now). By cosleeping, we all sleep well. Babies just sleep so much better all cozied up to mom and dad, IME.
I do not believe it causes any sleep problems either; quite the opposite. All our older boys have no sleep issues or fears and sleep through the night effortlessly.
I know many disagree but I feel that in most cases sleep training does much more harm than good.
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/moral-landscapes/201112/dangers-crying-it-out
susan says
You don’t have to do any CIO with sleep training if you don’t want to. I sleep train, but for us that simply means using the Eat, Awake, Sleep routine from The Baby Whisperer. There’s really no crying. We just do the same thing at the same time everyday and I make sure he eats a full meal each time (no snacking, snacking can lead to constant nighttime waking and little hind milk). I also co-sleep on those nights when I feel it will help my baby sleep better .. and oh, those are the best snuggle times!
There is nothing wrong with NOT sleep training either. I think every mom/family needs to do what works best for them! And the best thing we can do for each other is to not pass judgement (I know you weren’t.) I just wanted to clarify that sleep training doesn’t always mean CIO. 🙂
Grace says
I’ll throw in my two cents on this hot-button topic. It’s totally true that there are many sleep training options, some of which don’t include crying and for sure every family needs to do what works best for them. We used a method developed by Kim West, from her book Good Night, Sleep Tight, at around 8 months for both our babies. In that method, though the child is not left alone to cry, depending on the temperment of your child there are tears. With some (perhaps many) kids it is impossible to avoid crying during sleep training. I will say, because I feel I have to, that I’ve seen the article posted above from Psychology Today before and it seems to cite to studies that looked at prolonged, systemic neglect by a caregiver. It’s certainly not for everyone, and everyone has to make their own parenting choices, but responsible sleep training that involves crying is not neglect, indifference, emotional withholding, or any of the other things that cause attachement disorders in children. With both my kids, training was 2 weeks at most (and with our second 3 nights) of nighttime crying (and not the whole night in either case). I guess only time will tell, but for now both my boys (17 mos and 3.5 yrs) seem happy and well-adjusted with no attachment issues, and none the worse for crying for what amounted to a tiny fraction of their lives. Plus, they are both great sleepers, which is so important for their development and the health of our family.
ES says
Sigh. Gotta love that psychology today article that gets thrown out whenever this topic came up.
The only conclusive proof of any dangers from crying come in cases of extreme neglect.
I just want to offer a scenario. My friend and I have babies the same age. I “sleep trained” at 6 months. It took TWO nights and maybe a total of 45 minutes of crying. And he has slept through the night every night since. My friend’s baby, now 18 months, still wakes up every few hours. Cannot sleep for more than 3 hours at a time, wakes up crying. She won’t “let the baby cry.” Thinks sleep training is cruel. You know what I think is cruel? Not teaching your baby the value of a full night sleep. Sleep is so crucial for their little brains. More crying now, less crying later.
If you are still having these issues at 6 months, I definitely recommend it. Ferber disciple here.
Some other ideas… I agree with whomever said that the “on the go” naps probably aren’t helping. This was a mistake I learned too late. I was rocking my kid to sleep in the carseat on the floor until he was six months.
I also think you mentioned in the cloth diaper post that you don’t change wet diapers at night. I would try that.
Are you still swaddling? What about a sleep sack? Temperatures have dipped, could he be cold?
Also he could be preparing for some solid food. I know that’s another bag of worms, but I’ll tell you what, for my son, it helped sleep. He had no ill effects from it and I don’t regret it at all!
Jen in MN says
Totally agree with ES. Restful, solid sleep is extremely important for a baby/child’s development – and it’s also a lifelong gift, to be able to sleep well – and I think those points often get overlooked in this usually-tired debate (-;
To each their own; ones who don’t want to sleep train, shouldn’t. But yeah, throwing around that debunked article is just not helping anyone.
Personally, I enjoy a full nights’ sleep, every night – with 2 healthy, happy, well-attached little girls (currently ages 3.5 years, and 8 months). Thanks in large part to a bit of sleep training – yes, with a bit of crying – when they were infants. It’s what works for our family. We’re all happier and healthier when we are well-rested.
Good luck deciding your course of action, Kath! I know it’s a lot to sort out.
Eileen says
Anyone taking the time to read this blog or the article in Psychology Today because they have a vested interest in the well-being of his/her child is (probably) not neglecting that child to the point of causing psychological damage! I am a licensed therapist and a mother to a 4.5 month old and I can say that with confidence. I have begun a somewhat modified version of sleep training only because my little guy will wake up once he is placed in the crib, even if he was dead asleep in my arms rocking in the chair. So, I no longer go through all that and once he is done eating and drowsy I place him in the crib. It took about 3 nights of crying (for maybe 10 minutes at a time) and now he doesn’t cry when he is put in the crib for the night or after his mid-night wake up/feeding. He never even came close to a full-fledged hysterical cry when we did our “training”. Even though it was extrememly difficult to hear him cry even a little bit in the end he is learning how to fall asleep without needing mom to rock him and soothe him. He sleeps from 8pm-8am with one wake up. I feed him and he goes right back to sleep. They learn really quickly- both good habbits and not so good habbits.You are not damaging your child by teaching them how to fall asleep!
Lisa says
I wasn’t trying to be controversial. I was just giving my opinion, like others have.
I personally do not believe that children need to be “taught” to sleep. That’s my opinion. I think our culture puts too much emphasis on it.
In my experience, cosleeping eliminates the need for any of it. We use a bedside cosleeper to start off the night and when babies wake, they get nursed back to sleep.
It’s a win-win, IMO. I get lots of sleep. Babies get lots of sleep! 🙂
Haley @ The Saucy Apple says
Your food always looks so good. 🙂
And now I have a Garth Brooks’ song stuck in my head.
Melissa says
I was trying to find the Garth reference, but it’s the title. Duh.
(I feel stupid haha).
Jessie says
I was going to comment that its the 4 month sleep regression but it looks like a lot of ladies already beat me to it! It’s normal and totally related to his development. I know it sucks but it will subside, promise! 🙂 Plus, now he’s starting to become more social and mobile which is always a proud mommy time. It’s just that darn sleep that gets messed with!
Wendy says
I love reading your blog, and just how “real” it all is 🙂 I have a 26 month old boy, and a 3 month old girl, and so I have to chime in, and say sleep training can be grueling at the start, but it is sooooo worth it in the end. Don’t be scared! 🙂 Remember, a well rested Momma, is usually a more present Momma-and the kiddos end up actually being more rested as well. (Plus, it even makes travel easier when you know your kids can be laid down, and still sleep through the night). My 3 month old is already sleeping through the night (11 PM to 7 AM), and I am sooooo much of a happier Momma. Good luck-I know it can be hard, especially with the first one-you’ll know when you are ready though!
Sam says
As the other girls have said, it sounds like Mazen may be going through the 4 month wakeful. My son, 20 months, went through it. It sucks. But you power through.
I’ll tell you this – none of the sleep books quite synced up with us and we didn’t have a great sleeper like our friends did, either. However, we sort of just used our intuition based on what he responded best to and he eventually settled into GREAT night-time sleeping, but still crappy naps because that was just his personality. He has always been intense and always preferred to be active and awake. Btw, while we did “train” him eventually around 8 months, we were gentle about it and never let him cry longer than about 5 minutes, maybe 10 at the very max. Again, we just played around with what felt most comfortable to us and we tend to err on being too attentive.
He was a crappy napper (we would get a few 20-40 minute naps out of him/day if we were lucky) until he was about a year old and then when he naturally dropped down to one nap a day, it consolidated into a 2-3 hour stretch and that has been wonderful. Now I would say he is an excellent sleeper in all regards (when he’s feeling well, of course….when he’s sick, all bets are off).
Carly @ Snack Therapy says
I need to keep my eyes out for sun dried tomato panko! Genius idea!
Jessica says
The 4 month sleep regression was rough! My husband works nights and my son was waking up constantly! Now he is 5 months and cutting a tooth and so naps have gone out the window.
With my son it seemed whenever he was going through something developmental, or learning something, his naps went to heck for a week or so. Instead of begin able to put him down awake I’d have to rock him in the dark bathroom with both fans on… or sometimes just hold him. I did whatever it took to get him to nap well during those times because if I didn’t, the nights were even worse! Its hard for me to let the housework go sometimes but I try to focus on how glad I am that my son is around to need to be held. 🙂 Good luck… for me months 4-5 have been almost harder than the newborn phase. But its so worth it to see my son start it sit up, army crawl and learn all these new things.
Kerry @ Totes My Oats says
I hope the sleeping pattern takes a turn for the better!
Tracie says
Hi Kath, Not sure how old your little guy is but I had similar problems with my two boys each around the 4 month mark. My first son had just had surgery and had to have steroids injected into a growth on his body. He had been a good sleeper up to that – 100% breastfed. I was advised to start giving him small amounts of baby food – like two teaspoons three times a day to begin with as his appetite had changed. This solved the sleeping problem for us. He could not sleep hungry – either could I!
When I had my second son two years later I did the same thing at 4 months and while he can still wake during the night (3 and a half now!) it did resolve that waking on the hour for a feed when he was little.
I think boys especially need to ‘feel full’ to get off to sleep and stay there for a few hours. Hope this helps.
Tracie.
Diane says
Everyone has already said this, but the sleep problems sound like the 4 month sleep regression. I had it with both of my kids. One of them ended up sleeping 12 hours a night (as still does at 5) after the sleep regression was over, and the other kid was not a consistent through the night sleeper until he was almost 2. So having a really bad sleep regression doesn’t mean he is not a “sleeper” like some other babies. If he slept pretty well before, he will probably do the same after. My son, who was not a “sleeper,” had a hard time sleeping from day one.
Sara @ fitcupcaker says
It is almost the weekend, had a short week and Im loving it! I am feeling some french toast!
Jeanette says
Oooh, Kath, you may not like me after this… 🙂
In all honesty, my son (remember, he’s 8) didn’t start sleeping thru the night until maybe about a year or so ago. For whatever reason he’s just not been a real good sleeper. I’m not either so I never really thought about it, but I just remember that he’d always get up several times a night and wake us; as an infant to feed/get changed, as a toddler he’d climb out of bed and want to come in ours. As he got older he’d still come in and want/need something and I would groggily get up and fix what he needed and put him back to bed. However, my husband would get FURIOUS, yelling, big sighs, thrashing about the bed because he’d been woken up. Finally I had to tell him to get over himself, he’s a DAD and his KID can’t sleep, he’s not being bad, he just can’t sleep and if hubby’s not getting his 10 hours+ of sleep at home he could go get a room. I would get so pissed at HIM! 🙂 He has finally calmed down.
I guess what I”m long windedly trying to say is that each baby/child will be different. You can’t compare him to books or other babies, that will make you crazy. I only read one baby book and took it with a grain of salt, maybe just as a loose guideline. And being born 3 months early I guess I was just feeling so LUCKY he was soo healthy and without disabilities. I had a mixed bag of babies and children I could compare him to and they all swung from one side (my best friends HUGE baby slept thru the night from day one) to the other (a child in D’s therapy group still needed to be tube fed and diaper changed at 4-5 years old every night) so I just figured D was going to meet his mile stone whenever he met them, and I would just appreciate that he was meeting them. It made me such a better mom, more easy going and patient even though I’m not!
Kath, you aren’t going to look back in 10 or 20 years and say “wow, I never got any sleep”, hopefully you’ll remember the long nights in fragments of sweet memories. I’ll leave you with my fave: One early morning feeding a rooster started cawing (?) and D stopped sucking his bottle and his little surprised eyes met mine, like he was trying to figure what the heck that sound was. It was so cute I had to literally laugh out loud. It was the best!
j says
Ok, as the mother of 2 older teens (19 & 17) can someone enlighten me as to what “sleep training” is? I have never heard this term. Or is it the old fashioned letting them cry with a fancy name attached? It doesn’t.t matter how old they get, you never sleep the same again once you’re a mom, you’ve always got an eye and an ear open!
Roger says
What’s the red sauce on the side? It looks like ketchup, but I can’t imagine what you’d use that for with that meal. Some kind of cocktail sauce perhaps?
KathEats says
Ketchup for the Kale chips!
Molly says
From what I’ve gleaned from other moms, it’s not uncommon for babies to not sleep well up to one year of age. Some do sleep well from the start, which is lucky for those families, but not necessarily the norm. My son is 10 months and still has an unpredictable nap schedule and wakes during the night. Co-sleeping has worked for us and just giving into his schedule during the day even if I can’t get anything done. There are so many huge developmental milestones that happen in the first year that I want to do whatever I can to provide as much comfort as I can through these transitions (even if it means being a zombie most days). Time really does fly and before you know it, he will be a toddler and will be sleeping in! You are doing such a great job and please know that there are other mothers like me who understand what you are going through!
Barca Mama says
Hi Kath,
I really love your blog. All your meals look restaurant quality. You have definitely inspired a few french toast breakfasts;) I was just wondering what you use to track how many miles you walk in a day? Hang in there wih the sleeping- I didn’t have one of those babies that embraced sleep either. I broke at 6mos and did a modified sleep training plan.
Cheers,
M.
KathEats says
I have my garmin hooked onto my stroller. Or the Endomundo app on my phone
Caroline says
4 mo sleep regression! Hang in there 🙂 just on the tail end now… Phew!
Lissy says
Are you guys still swaddling?
KathEats says
Yes, but I’ve gone without a few times to see how he does. Most of those times he wouldn’t settle because his hands are so exciting.
Lissy says
Hmm…I was hoping that you could retry that if you weren’t. It’s been a couple of years since I was there, but this too will pass! Hoping for better sleep for you all 🙂
Melissa says
Sorry but the ‘hands are exciting’ made me laugh 🙂 I remember that phase and sadly, my four year old STILL puts her hands in her mouth! LOL
Jessica says
Our son loved the swaddle too…but then he started fighting it and rolling over in it… scary! I started by unswaddling one arm for naps.. less exciting than two hands and also eventually helped him find his thumb. When we weaned altogether I did naps only at first… I would do the nap routine like normal, just unswaddled. If he couldn’t settle after about 15 minutes I would re swaddle his arm and boom, out like a light 🙂 I didn’t want him to get over tired. Eventually, he got used to being laid down for a nap unswaddled and nights followed shortly after (After a few extra wakings of course) Once he wasn’t swaddled at night he started choosing to sleep on his tummy and that was amazing for sleep.
KathEats says
Thanks for the tips – I should try one arm next
Reghan says
I swaddle from the waste down because I was finding my baby was mad he couldn’t get his hands out and he would fight it. Now sometimes to soothe he sucks on his hands so maybe it’s time to let his arms free? He will get used to it!
Holly says
Hang in there! It is so tough when they don’t sleep well but it gets better, I promise! We had a troubled sleeper, I spent many nights nursing what seemed like a thousand times to get him back to sleep and spent many hours sleeping with him in his nursing chair, I say whatever works is fine for the sake of sleep, because they do grow out of it, they just want their Mommy’s touch and just let them have it! My “baby” is now 2 and I can say I honestly miss those late night cuddling sessions! I was one of those Mom’s that had to go to the office the next day and I was a zombie!! You’re doing a great job, I enjoy your blog very much!
Lara Gastinger says
Hang in there! You are doing great. It will pass. My friends and I now laugh about how hard 4 months was- there was a huge gap in baby photos for that one month, we were all so tired! Enjoy some coffee…and some more!
L
Kristen @ Change of Pace says
Whenever it gets difficult with Maze just remember that it won’t last long. I know that’s hard to do in the moment but the hard situations don’t last forever. By the time you get it figured out he’ll be on to something else just as tricky 😉 Dinner looks amazing!
a farmer in the dell says
I hope you get to get more sleep soon! Thanks for making kale chips last night, you just inspired me to do the same! yum!
Erika says
Ah yes, the 4 month sleep regression. All you can do is enjoy the snuggle time and realize that it will pass, but be aware that there are more regressions to come! We are going through one right now at 16 months and I hear there’s a doozy of one at 24 months. Our son was not a very good napper at all in the beginning – not until he was about 6 or so months and even now he has his days.
I wish I were having your breakfast tomorrow!
Melissa says
As with ALL aspects of parenthood, you just have to find what works for you.
We co-slept until my daughter self-weaned at 13 months. Before weaning, she was still nursing a few times at night, but I could tell that it was more out of habit/comfort instead of need, and would never last more than five minutes before she fell back asleep. A few nights after she weaned, we were ready to have our bed back (she kicked horribly in her sleep and still does!!). We tried to put her in her crib and let her cry for MAYBE 10 minutes until going to get her. After a few nights, we tried again and something just clicked – she was ready for the crib and has (mostly) slept through the night since then. I didn’t read ANYTHING on ‘sleep training,’ and just followed my instinct. She’s four and sometimes crawls in our bed, but I’d say that happens once every two to three weeks at the very most, and it’s because of bad dreams or just wanting to be near us. Hang in there – it gets better, and despite the sleepless nights, you’re going to look back and wish he was this little once more down the road (or maybe that’s just me…)
Oh and I have FINALLY convinced my husband to let me try to make oats in the crock pot (with the promise of using a liner) after showing your blog pictures to him!!! 🙂
Ashlee says
It DOES feel like Monday! I said the same thing in my post this morning 🙂
Hope your sleep schedule gets better soon!
Danielle says
Cannot say enough good things about healthy sleep
Habits happy child. It got my not naturally Great sleeping twins to be Awesome sleepers by 4-6 months and they have contined to be excellent sleepers since then (3 now)!
Kristy says
I have two little girls (2 years old, and six months old), and both went through the four month sleep regression. Not sure if you’re familiar with the 90 Minute Baby Sleep Program by Polly Moore, but it seemed to help some with both my girls, more so around five months old. Basically, you just try to put your baby down for a nap within 90 minutes from when he/she wakes up. If anything, it helped me develop a loose schedule for nap times during the day (I didn’t follow the 90 minute window exactly). Not sure if this will be useful now because the four month sleep regression is a tough nut to crack! Your little one will get over it before you know it. Good luck!
KathEats says
We’ve been on a pretty close 90 minute schedule thus far, but I think he’s going more like 1:45 to 2 hours these days. Was the 90 minute recommendation for a certain age? THanks for the tip!
Kristy says
The author recommends following the 90 minutes from birth and as the baby gets older, he/she will double that 90 minute alert cycle, and eventually triple it. For example, a six month old may have one 90 minute alert cycle in the morning and in the afternoon, but in the evening the baby will stay awake for 180 minutes before being put down for the night. In her book it seems like six months is the turning point for longer alert cycles throughout the day and deeper, uninterrupted sleep for babies at night.
KathEats says
Cool, thanks!
Reghan says
At 4.5 months I still put him down at 90 minutes for a nap. If he stays wake longer he’s over tired and way harder to get down! I also thought he should be starting to stay awake closer to 2 hours now but it didn’t work for us.
Marci says
i am a big proponent of cry it out after attempting everything else. it sucks big time but the other side is amazing and restful for everyone. we did it at 4.5 months. i also believe babies need to be taught, they just don’t figure it out.
robin says
yep
Annette @FitnessPerks says
Awww I hate not getting sleep. Hope you get some tonight!
Nina says
Well, despite the lack of sleep you’ve managed to nosh on some yummy food. You are definitely a better woman than I am because when we have those nights I’m left sitting frazzled on the couch with nothing but an overful glass of red wine. Cheers to nap time!
JoJo says
I love the baby monitor with the video!!
I mean, how do you REALLY know the baby is still alive and fine without the visual?
Sleep is important, just a little longer and Maze will start sleeping through the night!
robin says
I wont have a fan with any of you new moms out there but there comes a time when have to let em cry it out alittle.
Tami @Nutmeg Notebook says
Lack of sleep is one of the most difficult parts of having a new born. Get your naps when you can! Your healthy food really helps to keep you going and hats off to you and Matt for making time to create healthy meals.
Hang in there as this too shall pass. That is what my mom always told me when my children were growing up. 🙂
Olivia @ Life As Liv says
l looove that bowl you put your oatmeal in! I swear, you have the most beautiful dishes I’ve ever seen. 🙂
Laura says
Can you tell me where you got that adorable mug/bowl that your oatmeal is in? It’s so cute! 🙂
KathEats says
It’s called a Buddha bowl. From opensky!
Amanda @flecksofgreen says
I still haven’t tried ketchup with kale…every time I see a picture of you eating thay, I’m reminded!
lynn @ the actor's diet says
i’m excited that it’s not monday but thursday too!
Megan says
Kath, my husband and I are going through the EXACT SAME THING with our little 16 week old. Definitely some sleep regression going on here and it sucks. My kiddo is definitely not on a good schedule but I heard that starting “sleep training” would be too premature.
I also heard that sleep brings sleep. So the more they nap, they better off they are at night. Well, I’m a working mom. I work full time. I have to get up at 5am to pump and to get ready for work, I leave the house at 6 to get to work by 7:30 (yes, I have a rather horrible commute to work), work from 7:30-4:00, then I make it home by 5:30. So I pretty much work 12 hour days 5 times a week. It makes for long days. And with him not sleeping well at night (up every few hours and sometimes it takes FOREVER to get him to go back to sleep after his feeding), I’m dragging butt nowadays.
I hope we can figure this out or he grows out of this phase 🙁
KathEats says
Awww bless you for having to be “on” 24 hours a day 🙁 Hope things get better soon!
Irene says
Megan, I have to say we are twins!! I have a 16 week old girl and get up at 4:30-5AM to pump, work 7AM-4PM (pump 3 times at work), pick up my daughter and make it home by 5:30PM. My only saving grace is that she’s been going to sleep at 7:30 PM so I get about 1 hour of time to clean, eat, shower, change out of my work clothes ect.
jen says
Sorry, but I can’t help but comment when it comes to sleep just because my girl has struggled so much with sleep and its been such a rough emotional journey at times trying to do “the right thing” to make sure we could all get some sleep.
From birth she would only sleep upright on our chests. Around 4 months with much effort she finally started sleeping stretches in her own bed, we were getting 3-4 hrs at a stretch and feeling good. At 5 months we entered the seventh ring of hell… She suddenly wanted to nurse every hour or more after an initial 3hour stretch in her own bed. I started cosleeping again and nursing side lying just to get some sleep. She responded by wanting to “sleep” basically attached to me and semi-nursing all night long. She wouldn’t take a paci. By 6 months I was wearing out, so we started trying to encourage her to nuse less. We used other soothing methods to try to gt her back to sleep, he dad would cosleep with her alone (since my proximity seemed to bring on more nursing), and we started having him give her a bottle for or of her night feelings if she woke up within certain hours of the night (to get me a little stretch of sleep). This all helped, but we were both still zombies and not at all delighted with our sleep routine. For most of this time naps were hit or miss too and would often take us an hour of working to get her to sleep for only an hour of less of nap time. Around 8ish months she finally started nursing less at night, only 2-3 times and we were elated. We continued encouraging her to try putting herself to sleep and sleeping in her own bed. Miraculously, she started doing boh solidly around 10 months and started STTN at 13 months. She did I that a solid month until she suddenly started waking screaming in the middle of the night around 14 months. She’s now 18 months and goes to bed on her own at 7, then usually wakes around 11 and will only go back to sleep in our bed.
We’re not happy with it, and we are tired, but we both feel that she has primarily struggled with sleep because she’s a sensitive kid and can’t sleep when she is in pain. Early on she had awful reflux, and starting around 5 months she started teething in earnest. She teethes intensely and for months. It’s just luck of the draw. We believe that when she feels good again and these last few teeth are finally in she will start sleeping again, perhaps with some encouragement.
We tried so many tips early on… make sure she’s full, put her on a schedule, dark room, paci, swaddle, no paci, no swaddle, put her down awake, on and on and on. For us, fact is… She’s just a kid who struggles with sleep. But we’ve never believed in left alone CIO. I read a bit of dr. Sears book about challenging babies and he talks about how it’s our job as parents to teach them to sleep. For us this sometimes meant trying to rock her and soothe her and set her down to sleep only to have to wake and cry 20 times before she laid down and stayed asleep, but it never meant putting her in bed alone, closing the door and leaving until she stopped crying.
The good news is, a sensitive kid can also be an awesome kid! She may not sleep, but much like your little M seems to be, she’s inquisitive, intelligent, sweet-tempered and otherwise in all ways amazing. Sorry so long winded, and best of luck to you in getting some zzzzzs.
KathEats says
What a roller coaster! Glad things are better for you little girl now.
jen says
Oh and ditto to the person who said comparing only got us down. Lots of people with babies who slept great from the get go thought we were just doing something wrong and offered lots of ideas we’d already tried. It got so that we wanted somebody to drop dead when they suggested we make sure her tummy was full before bed… We were just sooooo beyond that point. Only people who’ve lived with a true nonsleeper really “get it”.
Cc says
I don’t understand why you use the term ‘sleep training’ like it’s a bad thing. Don’t you like to have a routine to your day? Babies and children thrive on structure. Sleep problems don’t just go away by themselves and you should consider working on this now when mazen is still young enough to be contained in a crib and when you don’t have baby #2 to worry about waking up, etc.
And keep in mind: sleep begets sleep. So it’s not unusual for bad naps to lead to bad nights and vice versa.
Elaine says
Of course I would never wish on anyone sleepless nights, but it is nice to know there are people in my boat. My exhausted boat. Hang in there!
Anna @ On Anna's Plate says
We went through the SAME thing around four months. We happened to be on a trip at the time, so we chalked some of the poor sleep up to the travel/new environment. BUT, the minute we got home, we started sleep training, and things got SO. MUCH. BETTER. Like, almost instantly. It’s not a magic pill, but man did it work for us. We used a modified cry it out method, only letting her cry for 2-3 minutes at a time before going into the room and comforting her, and then lengthening it out to 5 minutes, and then 10 minutes at the most. With a few exceptions, she never even got to 10 minutes most nights, and after about two weeks, she was going down without a fight at all, and staying down for LONG periods of time. Sweet relief!!!
I hope you have good luck tonight, and again– don’t be afraid of sleep training. I think some books make it out to be some Nazi-esque sleep regime that you put your baby on without care or thought, and it’s not!
Katie @ Talk Less, Say More says
Oh no! I hope Maze starts sleeping soon so you can too!
Steph @ Steph Stays Slim says
OK, I’m finally having oats for breakfast tomorrow. Every time I see you post them they look so good…and then the following morning I revert back to my good ‘ol yogurt or cottage cheese parfait. I guess I’m a create of habit!
kathryn says
Hi Kath, I have a 6 month old and also experienced similar sleep changes. This book called
Wonder Weeks really helped me put my baby’s changes into perspective.
The book talks about all the developmental stuff that is going on with babies and how these developmental leaps can disrupt routines and schedules.
Hope that helps! Hang in there! This too shall pass!
Jayme says
I looked and looked and probably still missed it but I would love to have the recipe for the oatmeal you posted. I looked under recipes and didn’t see what I thought would be it but again I may have missed it. Can you direct me or provide?
Thanks!
KathEats says
Jayne, it’s on the Tribute to Oatmeal page in my navigation bar. Whipped banana oatmeal (the base for nearly all of my oatmeal recipes)
Marcia says
Definitely don’t compare him to other babies. I think you should try to get him on a better schedule. The occasional nap in a car or stroller is fine. But mostly they don’t rest normally, get overtired, and won’t sleep well.
My first son was not a sleeper. He only slept 4 hrs a stretch at 4 month, 8 at 8 months…he was a decent napper though. We had to sleep train him, but we all slept better after that.
My new one is six months and he’s slept 9-12 hrs since 12 weeks. He’s just different. His naps are only 30-45 min long, but they are at fairly regular times. We did not change anything. They are just different. Neither one liked swaddling after three months. Never saw a 4 month sleep regression, just a few days of interrupted sleep when he learned to roll over. He woke up and would practice…
Cosleeping does not work for me at all…
Katie @ Real Food Katie's Way says
Kath YOU are strong…As far as I am concerned anybody who has kids is…I just don’t know how you do it!
I value my sleep, my alone time, my quiet, so much that the thought of having to wake up multiple times IN A NIGHT makes me wonder how you all do it…As far as I am concerned, to be as good of a mother as you are AND to maintain a healthy lifestyle AND to blog about it all, well plain and simply put you must be superwoman.
Molly @ RDexposed says
I’m getting cranky just thinking about lack of sleep. Wishing you both the best!
Lindsey says
The one thing that I promised myself when I was pregnant was that I would never try to follow any kind of plan, book, advice, etc. Not that I don’t seek help when I need it, but trying to stick with “a plan” seems like a total waste of time.
One of the things I look forward to every single day is nursing my son to sleep. Yes, you read that correctly. I nurse him to sleep – a BIG no-no according to, well, every piece of literature. But guess what? It works for us! My son sleeps better (all night!) when I just let it happen as opposed to when I’ve tried keeping him awake while he eats before bed (like I’m “supposed” to do).
I’m not saying that nursing M to sleep will work for you. My point is to just – go with it. When my son wakes up in the middle of the night every now and then, I just get up. I don’t worry about how I can solve the problem because I don’t look at is as a problem. I believe that doing so puts a lot of unnecessary stress on myself, and as a result, my son = less sleep.
Lastly, once M is older and can eat oatmeal or cereal, he may sleep more soundly (just a little tip – cereal gets really sticky and disgusting when you mix it with breast milk…oatmeal is better in that sense and I think they’re pretty much the same nutritionally). Our routine is: 5:30 pm oatmeal, followed by a little play time, bath, PJs, brush teeth (all two of them), then 6:30 pm nurse to sleep. A full belly (food coma) will definitely help him feel more content in the night.
You’re doing great! M will go through phases. Just remember that he’s only a few months old and still figuring out this sleep/eat/awake business! Also, I love that blue bowl!
Kris says
I have to say that I appreciate how sleep deprived people in general can be, since I have had massive sleep deprivation with one elderly dog, then a puppy (middle of the night outings for both dogs); plus menopause (which your mother can understand). I say props to ALL folks out there who miss their sleep for one reason or another, and still make it through their days! I would love to be younger when my body would let me sleep when I was tired.
Kris says
I have to add that I’m not that old, and when I just said to a friend how I didn’t know how moms did it with babies, she said “it’s not for that long, you forget”. Apparently it will get better, so look to the light 🙂
Jodi says
I am SO never having kids. So much analysis and wondering and stressing and planning and opinions…just for getting a baby to sleep! You parents are much tougher than I would ever be.
Jenn says
I have non-sleepers (first one fed about every 1.5-3hrs thru the night until about 12mths and 2nd would do patterns similar to your Mazen). Personally for our family it feels wrong to sleep train or to ignore cries in the night. I want my kids to know I’m always there for them, even if its *just* for a little cuddle. Wanting to be close to mama (or papa) is an intense need in a most babies and they feel it just as strongly as they do hunger.
Our babies were well rested though, as its not like they were up for hours every time they woke. More like minutes. So going down at 7 and waking at 7 and having a sleepy 5min feed or cuddle 4 or 5 a night still meant they were getting close to 12hrs a night. The difference I guess is that we sleep nearby to them so its not a big deal for us to tend to their needs in the night. Its lovely not having to count wakings or worry about “shoulds” and still wake up fairly refreshed in the morning.
In my experience they naturally started doing bigger stretches at about 18mths, and our 3yr old sleeps just fine without having ever been sleep trained.
I think youve been doing a great job so far Kath, and I’m not writing this as advice, but more as another opinion for all the tired babymamas who are reading the comments!
Lisa says
Where is that blue mug/bowl from? I love it!
KathEats says
It’s a Buddha bowl that I sell on opensky!