morning feeding starting point?

My girls were sent home from the nicu eating every 4 hours..so that is what we stuck with. We are on the 7, 11,3,7,11,3 schedule. They are not close to eiminating the 3am schedule and I wonder if it is because they do not eat so much during the day? And, if they do start sleeping a bit later, like until 4 or 5 am, what to do about the 7 am feeding? do you switch it to 4 hours after they wake up or do you keep the 7am feeding always as a starting point? I would like to stay on a schedule if possible.

 

When mine started to drop night feedings, I still keep the start point at 7:30 am...it seemed like when my two did drop overnight feedings it was the 2am and 5am that they dropped first, so I think it was easier to keep them on a 7:30-8am "breakfast" schedule.

 

My kids didn't drop night feedings consistently until they were quite a bit older.. I was feeding them sporadically through the night until they were 8 months old. They were not to be ignored when they woke up.. they wanted feeding no matter what and if I was going to hold them off it would be to listen to hours of screaming. I suspect your kids will tell you what they need, when they need it rather than adhering to a strict hourly schedule.

That being said, remaining consistent with a 7 am feeding will help ease them into a time when they start solids and you're getting them up for breakfast, but that's a ways off yet

 

Ours have recently started sleeping a little bit later, like you mentioned so dream feed around 11pm and then sleep until 4/5am or so. We still do the first feed around 7/730. Even though it's only like 2 or 2.5 hours later, they still take it. I agree to stay consistent with the 7am feeding and I think it will work out. Mine have figured out that schedule pretty easily.

 

Well said.

My kids were on the perfect schedule right out of the NICU too... sure didnt last long though. The reason why they are on a schedule at the NICU is because they are ignored (for lack of a better word) until its their care time... at home is a totally different story.

 

We were on a 3 hour schedule when twins came home from NICU, we still follow it, at 9 months. Our starting point is more or less 6am for breakfast, 9, 12, 3, 6dinner. We dropped the night feed around 2.5 months, the 3am dropped first, then midnight. The last to go was 9pm. I wonder if the every 3 hours instead of 4 made a difference, since we got more calories in during the day.

 

I'm different, I also liked staying on a schedule. I think when my boys moved to 8oz bottles, they could go longer and longer and eventually elminiated that 2am feeding.

I remember Michael still needed it and I moved him to 4 oz to "ween" him around 3.5 months old. I did that for 2 weeks and then we was fine and STTN. They weren't early though, I don't know if that makes a difference.

My boys eat at 8:00 in the morning. They normally wake up around 7:30 am. I workout in the morning at home before work so they have their first bottle when we drop them off at daycare. Our provider is amazing, she has their bottle ready to go when we walk in the door.

On the weekend, I sleep in a bit and still feed them at 8:00 to keep the schedule. It's nice so be able to get extra ZZZ on the weekend. We made sure all of our kids were "trained" this way because we aren't early risers. LOL! My DD and Nathan will sleep until 830-900 but Little Michael is our early riser.