[Emma H]

Hi Monique,

It really comes down to what you feel most comfortable with.

If your little one has soiled their diaper while sleeping and it’s going to be hours before they naturally wake for a feed, I’d recommend changing it. However, as they get older, you’ll likely notice they gradually stop pooping overnight (this typically happens anytime after 6 weeks of age). At that point, if you’re comfortable with it, you can leave them to sleep and just change their wet diaper in the morning.

If you’d prefer not to leave them in a wet diaper, you can wake them to change it – but just keep in mind that you may need to feed or settle them again afterwards.

Does that make sense?

Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Jillian,

Firstly, please don’t feel guilty about feeding to sleep or doing contact naps. Right now, you’re doing exactly what she needs to get rest, and that’s okay. These aren’t “bad habits” you’ve created – they’re tools you’ve used to get through a challenging phase, and we can definitely work on helping your little one learn how to fall asleep in the crib.

To do this, I just have a few questions – sorry in advance – but when you have time can you please answer the questions below as this will help me work out a plan that will work for your little one.

1. What time does she typically wake in the morning, and does this stay fairly consistent within a 30-minute window?
2. Could you share the timing and general duration of her naps throughout the day?
3. Do you have a specific nap routine that you follow? If so, could you describe it?
4. Does she use a pacifier?
5. How long is she generally awake between naps?
6. It sounds like you might be following the wake, play, feed, sleep routine during the day – is that right?
7. Does she wear a swaddle and if so are her arms up by her head or down by her side?
8. Can you describe her sleep environment – so is the room cool, dark (so dark that you wouldn’t be able to read a book) and quiet?
9. Can you describe what her bedtime routine looks like?
10. Can you describe how often she wakes overnight and at what times you are feeding her overnight?

In regards, to your question about following the wake, feed, play, sleep routine. What typically happens is as their wake windows expand, the spacing between the feeds also expands. So it might initially be short windows between feeds but this will increase as they get older. Something I did want to mention is as you are feeding her to sleep most time now, then the spacing is likely to be the same as it was when you were following the wake, feed, play, sleep routine. So it might be okay to just go back to following this routine, since you feel like the change might have started after you tried spacing the feeds.

Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Seyy,

It sounds like you’ve all done such an amazing job helping your little one get some sleep while also managing her reflux. It’s also wonderful that your parents have been able to support you through this.

I hope you’re all feeling much better now after your colds!

I completely understand how exhausting the current setup must be. To help your little one start napping in the bassinet, I have a few questions for you when you get a chance (sorry in advance for the long list!).

Since you’ve shifted her bedtime to 7 pm, have you noticed her wake-up time moving earlier too? Babies tend to only sleep for 10–12 hours overnight, so a bedtime at 7pm often leads to a wake up time somewhere between 6–7 am.

Her wake-up time is an hour window – would you be open to narrowing this to a 30-minute window?

It’s so impressive that you’ve already separated feeds from her naps. It sounds like you might be following a wake–play–feed–play–sleep routine during the day – is that right?

You also mentioned she’s now having 3 naps a day. Could you outline what her typical day looks like? For example:

• Her wake-up time

• Nap times and lengths

• Bedtime routine (when you start it and when she actually falls asleep)
  This will help me see if her daytime sleep could be affecting her nights.

About her nap routine – it sounds like it goes something like this:

• +/- diaper change

• Darken the room

• Swaddle

• Turn on white noise

• Hold her in your arms (upright or horizontal?) while singing a lullaby

• Rock her to sleep

• Continue holding her in the dark room for the length of her nap
  Is this correct? When she starts to stir mid-nap, do you rock her again to help her back to sleep?

Have you tried completing the routine up to the lullaby, then laying her in the bassinet and using the settling pyramid to help her drift off? If so, how did it go? If not, would you feel comfortable trying that?

Could you also share what her nights typically look like?

• What time does she wake overnight, and how do you settle her each time?

• After you feed her to sleep at bedtime and hold her upright for 30 minutes, does she stay asleep when laid down, or does she wake and need to be held for most of the night?

You mentioned she may have recently extended her wake windows to 2 hours. Has that continued? At nearly 4 months, a 2-hour wake window is very typical.

Lastly, for her swaddle, are her arms up near her face or down by her sides?

Thank you so much for sharing all of this – it will really help me tailor some ideas for you.

Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Daniela!

I can completely understand how exhausting and overwhelming this situation must feel for you and your husband.

From what you’ve described it sounds like your little one has learnt that he falls asleep with you present. This is perfectly understandable given the circumstances you’ve described, with all the travel and disrupted routines.

But there are definitely things that you can do to help him learn to fall asleep in the crib without you needing to be present, without using the cry it out method.

To help you achieve this I just have a few questions. So when you have time can you please answer the questions below?

1. What time does he typically wake in the morning, and does this stay fairly consistent within a 30-minute window?
2. Do you follow the wake, feed, play, sleep routine during the day?
3. Could you share the timing and general duration of his naps throughout the day?
4. Do you have a specific nap routine that you follow? If so, could you describe it?
5. Could you also describe your bedtime routine?
6. How do you settle him to sleep? You mentioned you have to stay in the room with him until he falls asleep. Does this mean you finish the nap routine, lay him down in the crib awake and then sit/stand beside the crib until he falls asleep?
7. Does he use a pacifier?
8. Is the room that he is sleeping in cool, dark (so you can’t read a book) and quiet?
9. At bedtime, does he start in the crib and then wake overnight, at which point you put him in bed with you? Or do you just go straight to co-sleeping?
10. Does he sleep on his tummy or back?
11. Does he have a consistent bedtime? If so what time is it?

Sorry for the questions! But they really will help me identify the best way to help your little one start sleeping in the crib.

Something you can do over the next few days (if you’re not already) is the make crib a less scary place, by letting him play in it with his favourite toys during the day – when it’s not nap time. Just keep these play sessions short – just a few minutes at first as we don’t want him to get upset. Something that might make it more exciting for him is having ‘crib only toys’ – so toys that he only gets to play with when he is in the crib. This novelty of ‘new’ toys will increase the chances that he will be happy to play in the crib. If though you find that letting him play while he is in the crib upsets him, then don’t worry about doing this just yet.

Again, sorry for all the questions.
Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Seyy,

Thank you so much for answering all of my questions – it really helps me get a clear picture of how things are going.

It does sound like transferring your little one into other people’s arms or the crib has become a little more challenging over the past few days. This could be part of the 4-month sleep regression, but usually in that case babies tend to wake at fairly predictable intervals overnight (like every 2 hours). From your description, it sounds like that might not be the pattern here? I’m also wondering if these difficulties began or worsened when you started transitioning her from both arms swaddled to one arm out. Do you think that could be it? It’s very common for babies to take a few days to adjust during this transition.

Transitioning Out of the Swaddle

You asked how long to wait before letting the other arm out. There’s no set rule, but many families make the transition about 3–4 days after starting with one arm out. If she’s adjusted well already, you could do it sooner. Once she’s fully out of the swaddle, I’d recommend dressing her in a sleeping bag (also known as a sleep sack). These are safer than blankets and help keep her warm throughout the night.

Making One Change at a Time

Since transitioning out of the swaddle can make sleep trickier for a little while, I’d hold off on introducing the settling pyramid until she’s used to having both arms out. Once she’s adjusted, you can start making the other changes below when you feel ready.

Narrowing Wake-Up Time

Keeping her wake-up time within a 30-minute window will really help her circadian rhythm mature. This, in turn, encourages longer stretches of sleep overnight. Given that you’re trying to shift her bedtime earlier, I recommend her wake up time be 8 – 8:30am.

Something to keep in mind though is babies can only sleep about 10–12 hours overnight. So if you’re aiming for a 7pm bedtime, then you may need to shift her wake up time to 7am at the latest.

Settling for Naps

You mentioned wanting to move away from contact naps. Once she’s fully transitioned out of the swaddle, you could:

1. Try the settling pyramid for all naps (best for faster progress)
2. Or start with just the first nap of the day (often the easiest for babies)

Here’s what that could look like:

• +/- Diaper change

• Darken the room

• Put her in her sleeping bag

• Turn on white noise

• Hold her horizontally while singing a lullaby

• When the lullaby ends and she’s calm, lay her in the crib awake and apply the settling pyramid -moving up or down as needed to provide just enough support for her to settle

If she’s protesting but pausing between cries, stay at the same level of support. If she’s crying without breaks, gradually move up the pyramid to help her calm down, then work your way back down so she falls asleep on her own.

In the course there are four videos where I demonstrate using the settling pyramid with my daughter. It may help to watch these to see how I gauge when to intervene and move up a level.

If after 20 minutes she’s still not asleep and you’re exhausted or short on time, pick her up and help her settle in your arms – but try to reduce how much movement/noise you use so she falls asleep with less assistance.

Modified Settling Approach (if the pyramid feels too big right now)

If you’d like to keep holding her for naps while preparing her for crib sleep later, you can:

1. Follow your usual nap routine.

2. After the lullaby, continue rocking while patting her bottom and shushing.

3. Gradually stop rocking but keep patting and shushing while standing still.

4. Then stop patting and only shush.

5. Finally, stop shushing so she falls asleep while you are standing still and in silence.

This helps her learn to fall asleep without movement or noise, making the crib transition easier later.

Note: Even with this approach, transfers to the crib may still be tricky because her sleep pressure decreases as she sleeps in your arms.

Wake Windows

At 4 months, wake windows of 2 – 2.5 hours are common. You mentioned she’s awake 1.5 – 2 hours. To gently stretch this:

• When she shows sleepy cues and starts fussing, try changing the activity (new room, new position, etc.) to see if she stops fussing – if she does, she may just be bored.

• If she continues fussing, she’s likely tired and ready for a nap.

This may help her naturally extend her wake windows, which can make settling in the crib easier.

Bedtime and Overnight

You mentioned bedtime and overnight routines, but I’m a little confused:

• Are you still aiming to start her bedtime routine at 7 pm, with her asleep by 8 pm?

• Or have you continued starting the routine at 8 pm, with her asleep by 9 pm?

Sorry, once I understand this I will have more suggestions on how to improve bedtime and overnight sleep.

Does this feel doable?

Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Kate,

I’m so sorry to hear you hurt your back. I really hope it’s starting to feel a little better now. Back injuries can make day to day life with a bub really challenging and painful! So do be gentle with yourself as you recover.

It’s really encouraging that you were seeing moderate success with the changes before your injury. That’s a great sign. But it’s absolutely fine to pause things for now while you focus on healing and see how your little one is going in the meantime.

Naps

If she’s having one long nap and two shorter ones – and she’s generally happy when awake – a 3-nap schedule at 3 months is perfectly fine.

It’s interesting that her morning nap is still shifting a bit even with a consistent wake-up time. I wonder if her overnight sleep is influencing this? Either way, the most important thing right now is to keep her wake-up time consistent. This helps anchor her body clock, encourages the release of melatonin at bedtime, and supports longer stretches of overnight sleep. With time, her morning nap is likely to settle into a more predictable rhythm too.

Helping Her Wake Up in the Morning

To help her wake up at her set time, opening the blinds and making some noise is a great start. The other thing you can do to encourage her to wake up gently is to make her slightly cooler. So you can try removing her sleeping bag (if she’s wearing one) or lifting or unzipping her clothing to make her a little cooler. I am not sure if this is possible with the heatwave – I heard it might still be happening?

If She Wakes Early

If she wakes earlier than usual, here’s how you can handle it:

• Before 6:00 am: Treat it like a night waking – offer a feed and encourage her to go back to sleep.
• Between 6:00–7:00 am: You can try the same approach, but many babies are less likely to resettle at this time. If she doesn’t go back to sleep, I’d recommend just starting the day. On those days, because of the earlier start, she may need 4 naps instead of 3 to make it through to bedtime.

Does this make sense?

Emma

• This reply was modified 1 month, 3 weeks ago by  Emma H.

[Emma H]

Hi Thu,

Thank you so much for answering all of my questions!

It’s great to hear that she’s mostly falling asleep on her own in the crib, and while she’s still waking 3 times overnight, it does sound like things have improved from when she was waking very frequently.

Given how suddenly the increase in night wakings began, and the fact that her wakes are now gradually reducing, it’s likely that the disruption was caused by some temporary discomfort. I do think she will continue to lengthen that first stretch of sleep at the start of the night, and her night wakes should gradually drop off.

You mentioned her first wake is usually around 10–11 pm and you tend to go to bed around 10:30pm. It might be worth experimenting with going to bed a little earlier (before 10 pm) or later (after 11 pm) to see if this eliminates that 10/11pm wake.

Also, when she does wake overnight – especially for that 10–11 pm wake – try pausing before responding. Give her a few minutes to see if she resettles on her own. If she just fusses lightly without escalating, wait and see. But if she starts to cry and it builds, that’s her way of letting you know she needs you.

If by the end of next week she’s still waking every 3 hours, you could start encouraging her to gradually drop her overnight feeds – focusing first on dropping that 10–11 pm feed. To do this, when she wakes at that time, instead of offering a feed, use the settling pyramid or your usual settling method (patting, rocking, etc.) to help her back to sleep. Over time, this should help her stop waking for that feed and extend her sleep stretch at the start of the night.

Daytime Sleep

It sounds like her naps are going really well! The one thing I do want to mention is at this age, babies are often still on a 3-nap schedule. Most don’t transition to 2 naps until somewhere between 6–9 months. I’m not suggesting you go back to 3 naps, but if her night sleep doesn’t continue improving, it might be worth trying a 3-nap schedule to see if it helps.

Here’s an example of what her day could look like with 3 naps:

• 6:30 am – Wake

• 9:00 am – Nap 1

• 10:30 am – Wake

• 1:00 pm – Nap 2

• 2:30 pm – Wake

• 4:30 pm – Nap 3 (short 30 min nap)

• 5:00 pm – Wake

• 7:30 pm – Bedtime

First Feed of the Day

For that first feed in the morning, I’d recommend offering it when she wakes up for the day – even if her last feed was at 4–5 am. This helps you follow a wake–feed–play–sleep rhythm for the first wake window. If you feel she isn’t very hungry yet, you could wait and offer the feed closer to 7:15 – 7:30 am instead. At that time, she’s unlikely to fall back asleep, and she’ll probably take a fuller feed.

Does this sound like a plan you’d be happy to try?

Emma

[Emma H]

No worries!

[Emma H]

Hi Jillian,

Thank you so much for answering all my questions – it really helps me get a clear picture of what’s happening.

It’s fantastic that your little one continues to sleep so well overnight! You mentioned her bedtime is between 9–10 pm and that you’d like to shift it earlier. To do this, I’d suggest moving everything – wake-up time, naps, feeds, and bedtime – 15 minutes earlier every 3 days until you reach your desired bedtime. A bedtime between 7–8 pm is very typical at this age.

Here are some ideas to help with her naps and transitions to the crib:

Wake-Up Time

Keep her wake-up time consistent within a 30-minute window. Right now, she’s waking around 8:30 am. If you’re shifting bedtime earlier, this wake-up time will move earlier too. For now, wake her by 8:30 am if she doesn’t wake on her own.

Make the First Nap Consistent

Once wake-up time is steady, aim to make her first nap happen at a consistent time each day. With a 60-minute wake window, this would be around 9:30 am. A consistent first nap often helps the rest of the day’s naps fall into place too.

Try the Settling Pyramid

You mentioned that you’re currently bouncing or rocking her to sleep for naps, then trying to transfer her to the crib – but it often doesn’t work. This is such a common challenge, and the reason for it comes down to how sleep pressure works.

When she falls asleep in your arms, the sleep pressure (the drive that helps babies fall asleep during the day) starts to decrease as she sleeps. So, when you transfer her to the crib and she stirs even slightly, she’s now less tired than when she first drifted off. This makes it much harder for her to fall back asleep independently, which is also why trying the settling pyramid after the transfer often doesn’t lead to success.

To help her fall asleep and stay asleep in the crib, it’s important that she’s still awake when you lay her down. That’s where the settling pyramid comes in – it teaches her how to drift off in her sleep space.

If you feel ready to try, there are two options:

1. Start using the settling pyramid for every nap
2. Begin with just the first nap of the day, which is usually the easiest time for babies to learn this skill

Here’s how to try it:

• When she shows sleepy cues, start your usual nap routine.

• After you’ve finished singing the lullaby, lay her down in the crib while she’s still awake.

• Apply the settling pyramid – moving up and down the steps as needed to help her settle.

If starting with the pyramid feels like too big a leap, we can take a smaller step by helping her learn to fall asleep without constant movement first. This makes the transition to the settling pyramid much easier later.

Here’s how:

• Start your nap routine as usual when she’s showing sleepy cues.

• After the lullaby, begin rocking or bouncing her while gently patting her bottom.

• If she’s calm, gradually stop the rocking/bouncing but continue patting and shushing.

• Then stop patting and just continue shushing.

• Finally, stop shushing so she falls asleep without any motion or noise.

Once she’s asleep, you can try transferring her to the crib. Aim to do this when her body is completely still – this is a sign she’s in deeper sleep and less likely to wake from the movement.

Wake Windows

At 4 months, most babies can manage 2 – 2.5 hour wake windows. You mentioned she’s awake about 90 minutes between naps (except for her first wake window, which is 60 minutes). Would you be open to gently stretching her wake windows to see if this makes it easier for her to fall asleep at nap time? If you are you could:

• Start by extending them by 15 minutes (so 105 minutes between naps).

• Keep this for 3 days and just track if it helps her settle more easily for naps – so you don’t need to bounce or rock her for a long or she falls asleep quicker when you lay her in the crib.

• If after 3 days you notice that nap times aren’t any easier but she seems to have managed the longer wake window you can try adding another 15 minutes (so 120 minutes between naps) and see if this makes nap times easier.

Nap Length

You noted her naps are 30 – 45 minutes. That’s very normal at this age as many babies haven’t yet learned to link sleep cycles. Longer naps often emerge around 5 – 6 months once they’re falling asleep independently. For now, she may need 4 – 5 short naps per day.

Wake, Feed, Play, Sleep Routine

Once her wake windows stretch to 2 – 2.5 hours and naps stay 30 – 45 minutes, you may naturally fall back into a wake–feed–play–sleep rhythm with roughly 3 hours between feeds. If not, feeding on demand is still completely fine.

You may also find it easier to follow this routine in the first wake window, which is another reason to try the settling pyramid for the first nap.

Does this sound doable?

Emma

• This reply was modified 2 months ago by  Emma H.

[Emma H]

Hi Kate,

I bet you’ll be so relieved when this heatwave finally passes!

Once it’s not so hot, I think she may tolerate having a bigger feed at the start of her wake window, which might mean she won’t need one at nap time.

As for your question about whether it’s better to go cold turkey or take a gradual approach – it really comes down to what feels right for you. Going cold turkey usually means she’ll learn to fall asleep without the bottle a little faster. But if that feels too much for either of you, a gradual approach is absolutely fine.

For the gradual option, you can try the new routine at her first nap (since that’s often the easiest nap for babies to adjust to) and at bedtime if you’re up for it. If she starts to wriggle, turn her head, or cry when you lay her in the crib, move up the pyramid and pick her up to soothe her if needed. From there, it depends on your time and energy: if you’re able, you can try laying her back in the crib and moving back down the pyramid. But if not, it’s perfectly okay to settle her to sleep in your arms or offer the rest of her bottle in the crib.

As you said, keeping everyone happy and sane is the priority – so choose the option that feels most manageable.

One thing to keep in mind: it can take babies up to 20 minutes to fall asleep. If she’s lying in the crib calm but awake, give her the space to drift off.

If you notice she’s staying awake for more than 20 minutes over a few days, we may need to tweak her nap schedule to make sure she’s tired enough when offered a nap.

Does that sound okay?
Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Thu,

It’s great that the doctor didn’t find anything of concern.

How have the last few days been? Has she started to breastfeed better and is she more settled and sleeping for longer stretches overnight?

If she is that’s fantastic.

If not, would you mind answering the questions below so I can understand what your little one is currently doing and how we can get her sleep back on track?

1. Is her wake-up time still consistently happening between 6:30 and 7am?

2. Can you describe what her nap routine looks like?

3. Can you describe what her day typically looks like in regards to when she naps, where she naps and how long these naps are?

4. Can you let me know how you are settling her to sleep? I understand she sometimes falls asleep while feeding but for the other times, how are you helping her fall asleep?

5. Does she use a pacifier?

6. Given that you are feeding her every 2 hours, I imagine you are unable to follow the wake, feed, play, sleep routine during the day?

7. When she wakes overnight are you able to follow the wake, feed, sleep routine?

8. Given that she is now having very short feeds, have you tried feeding her in a darkened room with minimal distractions to see if this leads to her having longer feeds?

9. Can you let me know what time she is waking overnight?

Sorry for all the questions.

Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Thu,

Given that it is such a sudden change and her wakes are not consistently happening at the same time/spacing, it sounds like she might be waking due to discomfort or pain.

How did the appointment go with the doctor? Did they find anything of concern?

Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Julia,

It’s wonderful to hear that the 3-month schedule sample seems to be working so well for your little one.

It’s also fantastic that she’s falling asleep on her own in the crib. Given that she mainly falls asleep on her own, it makes me think that she might not be waking every 3 hours because she needs you to recreate what she needs to fall asleep. It is possible she might be waking due to a mixture of hunger and comfort. So the steps in the 4 month sleep regression would be helpful.

But something else to consider is the timing of her last nap and bedtime. you mentioned she’s protesting more at bedtime and taking longer to settle. One possible reason for this could be that she hasn’t been awake long enough before bedtime to build up enough sleep pressure. To figure this out, you could track the time she wakes from her final nap and the time she actually falls asleep at bedtime for a few days to a week. This will help you identify how long she needs to be awake in that last wake window.

If you find that lengthening the last wake window helps her settle more easily and sleep for longer stretches overnight, we might need to adjust her routine slightly. This could mean shifting her bedtime later for now or capping that final nap to ensure she’s awake long enough before her 9 pm bedtime.

Does that make sense?

Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Kate,

I just saw your update.

It’s great that you were able to settle her to sleep in your arms. What I think we need to do is start to follow the wake, feed, play and then sleep routine but this is tricky during the heatwave. Is there a date when it’s meant to stop?

The other option is you let her feed on and off during each wake window and then when you see those tired cues you:

• Carry her around the apartment
• Walk into the bedroom
• Close the blinds
• Feed her a bottle if it is bedtime – making sure she doesn’t fall asleep
• Read her a book (if bedtime routine)
• Walk around the bedroom while singing the lullaby while she is in your arms
• Lay her in the crib and start patting and shushing straight away and then gradually stop patting and then stop shushing

Would you prefer to do this once the heatwave has passed?

Emma

[Emma H]

Hi Kate,

Thanks for answering my questions.

In regards to your little one waking 40 minutes after bedtime. This could be due to 3 reasons:
– It might have to do with sleep pressure – So she might be tired enough to initially fall asleep but not stay asleep and this is resulting in her waking 40 minutes later. The solution to this one is to lengthen the time she is awake before bedtime. You could initially just try to lengthen it by 15 minutes and see if this eliminates that wake up. If it doesn’t you could try stretching it again by another 15 minutes and see if that has an impact.
– Something might be disturbing her – this can happen if someone is entering the bedroom around this time or using the room adjoining the bedroom. If someone is entering the room then the key is to look at the baby monitor or listen at the door before you enter to make sure that she is still (which indicates she is in deep sleep). If she is moving around or making noises she is in REM sleep and will be more likely to walk up if you were to enter the bedroom at this time.
– Or it might be because she is hot.

Regarding the overnight wakes, you mentioned that she will wake 1 – 2 times before 4/5am and then wake more often after this point. At this age, waking this often isn’t that unusual. And what you have noticed – that she wakes more frequently after 4/5am is also not that unusual – as sleep pressure would be low at this point. Something you could try is when she wakes at 4/5am instead of following the feed, sleep routine you could try feeding her, then changing her diaper to wake her up slightly, then feed again and then when she falls asleep while feeding, lay her in the crib. You might find that adding in the diaper change results in her having a bigger feed at this time, and helps her stay asleep until 7am.

When she wakes at 5am and then wakes on and off until 7- 7:30, then I would still wake her up at this point and if she falls asleep while feeding, I recommend you wake her back up. You’re right that you do want to follow their lead, except for the morning wake up time. We want to make it consistent (occurring within the same 30 minute window) to help in the maturation of her circadian rhythm (this is still developing), as well as, help bedtime become more predictable and the timing of that first nap.

In regards to her nap and bedtime routine, having 40 minute naps at this age, is not unusual at this age. Also, waking 3 times overnight is also normal. Given this, it is possible to take a slower approach to the nap and bedtime routine and then shift the bottle to the start of the routine. So her routine might look like this

• See tired cues
• Carry her around the apartment
• Walk into the bedroom
• Close the blinds
• Give her the bottle and let her eat 3/4 (Is she in your arms drinking this bottle or lying down in the crib?)
• Read her a book (if bedtime routine)
• Walk around the bedroom while singing the lullaby while she is in your arms
• Lay her in the crib and give bottle, then start patting and shushing
• Remove hand from belly, continuing to shush
• When she releases the bottle – take it.
• Shush

Once her morning wake up time is consistent and that first nap is happening at the same time, we can then look at tweaking this nap routine slightly to see if you can remove the bottle before she falls asleep.

Does this sound okay?

Emma