nighttime diaper changes?

So, my girls are able to go all night without needing a feeding most nights (6pm-6am).  However, they kept waking up at 4-5am and not going back to sleep much if at all, regardless of whether they ate or not.  We discovered that if we changed their diapers at their nighttime feed at 2-3am, then all of a sudden they slept until 6 with no problem.  Great find, right?  I switched to a different kind of diaper in a larger size for overnight (pampers baby dry size 3, they usually wear swaddlers size 2), but while it's a little bit better if we don't change it they still are up at 5 most of the time.  So here's my dilemma: I want them to sleep through the night.  If I get them up for a diaper change, they need to have a feeding too because they're too awake after the diaper change and they realize that they're a little hungry (we feed 4.5oz at nighttime feed, daytime is 6-7oz per bottle).  Is there any other thing I can try to get them to sleep all night without needing a diaper change?  It's not poop or anything, they just pee a whole lot.  I imagine at some point they're going to stop needing to pee all the time overnight but I'm not sure when that is (when they're potty trained maybe?).  Should I just try a whole lot of different diapers?  Most of the overnight ones in size 3 only come in gigantic packages and I don't want to buy 72 diapers if I'm going to try it for two days and not like it.

 

I don't know how old your LOs are but we went through a stage of early waking no matter what we did.  We did not go in until X time.  It was still early but a compromise .  If they were well rested they would play happily.  If they were short on sleep they would fuss.  We still didn't go in but i made an note to get them more sleep.  (this still applies at 2 years).
 
NiteDiapers would be worth the try.. anything to improve sleep!
Pick a brand you are familiar with.. over nights are the same materials, only more of them.  Even if you don't use them for night, you will use them.  the difference in price is about double, so as long as you use them, you have only really wasted half the money.  But i bet you will like them.
 
And sleep is priceless!
GL

 

I agree with daisies. I would switch to the overnight diapers in the brand you like in a size 3 and then just try to push it in the morning (ie, hold off on going in until 6 unless they are screaming).

 

I agree with was has already been written as well. We've determined 7am as wake up time and unless someone is really losing it, we don't go in.We've found that if they wake up crying, they're not really ready to get up. Playing and talking away means they're rested. Pampers Baby Dry have always worked well for us overnight.

 

You also might put a layer of vaseline on their bottoms before bed time.  (Making sure they are very dry first, of course )  That might help reduce any irritation from having a wet diaper.

 

I used to change my two just before I turned in for the night at around 10pm.  Couldn't bear the thought of them being in a wet diaper all night. They became so used to it that they wouldn't even wake up or if they did wake, they'd just smile at me sleepily and fall asleep again.  Maybe if you changed your babies earlier, they wouldn't be hungry yet and might just go right back to sleep. 

 

Thanks guys!  Amy, my girls are 8 months, 6 adjusted.  They've pretty much always been early risers.  Our "compromise" is that we'll get them at 5:30 if they're fussing, but a lot of the time we end up going in and giving them a pacifier or something earlier if they're crying.  Usually it's only one girl who wakes up and the other is still asleep but gets woken up by her sister crying.  Of course, today they were both up at 5 with big poops so definitely not going back to sleep at that point!  I feel kind of silly putting them down for their first nap before the sun is even up (7am today) but once daylight savings time changes again their wake up and bedtimes will be a little more normal I guess.
 
Is it best to use the same brand for overnight diapers?  We tried the baby dry because it's pampers, but I know they make a pampers overnight diaper too.  Not sure what the difference is since the baby dry package says "up to 12 hours" on it.  OTOH I have heard good things about the huggies goodnites, but I've never used huggies.
 
Lindsay, if waking up crying means they're not ready to get up, do you just let them cry and they go back to sleep again eventually?
 
Tarcoulis, how long did it take for them to get used to it enough that they didn't wake up?  We go to bed at 8pm right now so we can get as much sleep as possible so it's only a couple hours after the babies, but I'm usually up once to pump whether or not the girls are awake.

 

I don't think it matters.  more about what you prefer.  the only reason i said, the same brand is because then you know the material won't irritate them.

 
 

Yeah, 5:30 compromise sounds like what we did, including the crazzy early first nap.   It felt like this stage went on forever, but it will pass.  
 
I found once I go in in the morning, i better be prepared to start the day.  therefore, unless they were really loosing it i did NOT go in.  
They are getting to an age where they are enjoying your company.  If you let them dictate wake time they will get up earlier and earlier to play with you.  
 
Now is the time let them learn how to sleep through the others crying.  If you go in, they both wake up.  If you leave them MAYBE baby 2 will sleep, or at least rest.  We went through a stage where they woke nearly every day (one or both) around 4 or 5 and fussed or cried (not hysterically) for 10, 20, 30 minutes and then went back to sleep.  We did not go in.. and it destroyed MY sleep.  I would lay there and listen for them until morning.  By leaving them you will teach them the schedule.. how else will they learn when wake up time is?
 
DS (my difficult sleeper) will still occasionally wake up early and fuss and then go back to sleep. based on DD behavior i don't think it wakes her up at all.  And according to his behavior it doesn't really disturb his rest either.  So, it is only me who's sleep is disturbed.. but not nearly like it use to be.  It only happens about 3 times a month now, unless he is over tired.
 
It won't hurt them to stay in a dirty diaper for an hour, (if their bums are not irritated to begin with.)  
Are they on any solids yet?  You might pay attention to when you feed fruit.  I found if i fed fruits like pear (that loosen stools) only in the morning & afternoon and fed food that firm stools (like banana, rice) in the pm they were less likely to have an early morning poop.  *Sorry if TMI.. maybe, something to keep in mind for later when they are eating more solids.  I don't know if it works that way for all kids but definitely works for us.
 
As pp said, Vaseline at night is really helpful to protect bums at night.  Doing that i have never had a problem leaving them until morning even if they pooped.
 
Oh... keep in mind, that even though you are letting them stay in the bed, you should start the count down to nap at 'wake up' time not 'get up' time.  oh yeah.. fun.

 

A few days, maybe a week. They were used to putting themselves to sleep at night and for naps by then. You might have to try slightly different times until you figure out the deepest part of their sleep cycle.

We used pampers during the day but found that Huggies night diapers were better. I'd put them to bed with an overnight and a diaper doubler insert, change to a clean overnight before I went to bed, and check again when I got up during the night. They would wake up at 6am. Good luck.

 

Lindsay, if waking up crying means they're not ready to get up, do you just let them cry and they go back to sleep again eventually?

Well I was never really one for cio so if they were crying I went in, replaced pacifier and whispered "goodnight". In my mind (and I think eventually theirs) that was a signal that it wasn't time to get up. It seemed to work...they ocassionally wake up a few minutes before 7am but they'll talk quietly until we go in.