Any other expectant Dads?

Any other expectant Dads?

Author
Discussion

TCS1

595 posts

135 months

Monday 10th December 2018
quotequote all
Merry said:
Anyone got any tips on what to do with a 15 month old who has decided 5am is wake up time despite being pretty tired?

He is sleeping through till then from 7pm.

Used to wake up for a bottle between 4 and 5 and go back down till half 7. Now he doesn't really want a bottle and doesn't go back to sleep, preferring to wail until one of us gives in and gets him up. He'll then be slightly/moderately /very grumpy all morning till his nap, which is usually about an hour and his only one. Level of grumpiness follows no pattern at all.

As ever the internet is awash with conflicting advice. A lot of it is 'that's normal get over it' but to be honest I don't fancy that. I'm more of the opinion that you should get them into a routine that suits everyone, not just them.
Sounds like he could be over tired. Assuming a normal-ish bedtime, 1hr during the day isn't much. Obviously they can get by on it but my 14m old sleeps better when she's had a couple of hours. I'm surprised he's not wanting his bed earlier in the morning. Mine was back in bed by 9 at the latest if she woke at 5.
Could he be waking out of hunger? I've also had early wake ups with a hangry baby so we started giving ours her dinner, followed by porridge and bottle before bed to ensure she was going to bed on a full tummy which sorted that out.
Of course as you mentioned, some buggers just wake early. Even with everything we do mine never wakes past 7.

Trying to change what appears to be a habit at this age will be difficult so good luck..

Edited by TCS1 on Monday 10th December 21:44

cbmotorsport

3,065 posts

118 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Congratulations!

My advice is as follows:

You don't need to prepare much, other than the usual nursery etc. (you don't even need to do that as baby will be in with you for a while, but your Mrs will insist it's done)
Buy second hand stuff, you'll save a fortune (nursery furniture etc dirt cheap second hand, little used and absolutely ideal as a secondhand purchase)
Go on holiday, go out to dinner, do fun stuff - This is the last six months of you and the Mrs as a couple, make it count.
Sleep as much as possible.

That's pretty much it.

Gary29

4,159 posts

99 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
Congratulations!

Next 6 months, sleep, sleep and sleep! And enjoy your freedom laugh

We're 9 weeks in now, went for her first vaccinations yesterday, she wasn't impressed at all, cried like a.....baby I guess. Then had an afternoon of hysterical crying as she must have had a mild fever, upset mum as well seeing her so inconsolable. Calpol to the rescue, all seems well now.


Vaud

50,503 posts

155 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
Gary29 said:
Calpol to the rescue, all seems well now.
For future vaccinations you may want to try pre-emptive Calpol about 30 mins before the jab.

Vaud

50,503 posts

155 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
TCS1 said:
Even with everything we do mine never wakes past 7.
My eldest was a terrible sleeper - 3 before she slept through. Number 2 no different.

Now No1 at 5 sleeps 12 hours and needs levering out of bed in the morning.

Gary29

4,159 posts

99 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
Vaud said:
For future vaccinations you may want to try pre-emptive Calpol about 30 mins before the jab.
Thanks! Yes we actually did that, she was on cloud nine, until the doctor stuck a scaffolding pole in her thigh then it all went south rather rapidly laugh and took 12 hours to get over the trauma.

will_

6,027 posts

203 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
TCS1 said:
Merry said:
Anyone got any tips on what to do with a 15 month old who has decided 5am is wake up time despite being pretty tired?

He is sleeping through till then from 7pm.

Used to wake up for a bottle between 4 and 5 and go back down till half 7. Now he doesn't really want a bottle and doesn't go back to sleep, preferring to wail until one of us gives in and gets him up. He'll then be slightly/moderately /very grumpy all morning till his nap, which is usually about an hour and his only one. Level of grumpiness follows no pattern at all.

As ever the internet is awash with conflicting advice. A lot of it is 'that's normal get over it' but to be honest I don't fancy that. I'm more of the opinion that you should get them into a routine that suits everyone, not just them.
Sounds like he could be over tired. Assuming a normal-ish bedtime, 1hr during the day isn't much. Obviously they can get by on it but my 14m old sleeps better when she's had a couple of hours. I'm surprised he's not wanting his bed earlier in the morning. Mine was back in bed by 9 at the latest if she woke at 5.
Could he be waking out of hunger? I've also had early wake ups with a hangry baby so we started giving ours her dinner, followed by porridge and bottle before bed to ensure she was going to bed on a full tummy which sorted that out.
Of course as you mentioned, some buggers just wake early. Even with everything we do mine never wakes past 7.

Trying to change what appears to be a habit at this age will be difficult so good luck..

Edited by TCS1 on Monday 10th December 21:44
I think this is a "thing" at around that age.

Have you tried white noise when he wakes up to see if he'll re-settle?

Agree that one hour during the day doesn't sound like much. Sleep begets sleep sometimes.

Davey S2

13,096 posts

254 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
cbmotorsport said:
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Congratulations!

My advice is as follows:


Go on holiday, go out to dinner, do fun stuff - This is the last six months of you and the Mrs as a couple, make it count.

Sleep as much as possible.
First suggestion is spot on. Do as much as you can together as a couple as you wont get to do much of that at all.

Second point not so much. You can't bank sleep so sleeping lots now will just make it even harder when you're up all the time. If anything I'd try sleeping a little less now to get your body used to it.

If you haven't already got one but a Nespresso machine.

Blown2CV

28,816 posts

203 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
Davey S2 said:
cbmotorsport said:
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Congratulations!

My advice is as follows:


Go on holiday, go out to dinner, do fun stuff - This is the last six months of you and the Mrs as a couple, make it count.

Sleep as much as possible.
First suggestion is spot on. Do as much as you can together as a couple as you wont get to do much of that at all.

Second point not so much. You can't bank sleep so sleeping lots now will just make it even harder when you're up all the time. If anything I'd try sleeping a little less now to get your body used to it.

If you haven't already got one but a Nespresso machine.
totally disagree. People assume it's impossible to take a < 6 months baby out for a meal or on holiday, but it's not true. People get freaked out about these things but for the first 6 months you can continue to do the things you want to do with the Mrs, no problem. It's what happens after that that is more restrictive, so 6 months before the birth is more like the last year or so of relative freedom!

Vaud

50,503 posts

155 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
Blown2CV said:
totally disagree. People assume it's impossible to take a < 6 months baby out for a meal or on holiday, but it's not true.
It's a lot easier when they don't crawl and they sleep a lot. We have always gone our for meals (more lunchtime than evening as there is the older one as well)

Long journeys are easier when they sleep 17 hours a day smile

It's 9 months - 5 years that gets trickier.

cbmotorsport

3,065 posts

118 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
Davey S2 said:
cbmotorsport said:
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Congratulations!

My advice is as follows:


Go on holiday, go out to dinner, do fun stuff - This is the last six months of you and the Mrs as a couple, make it count.

Sleep as much as possible.
First suggestion is spot on. Do as much as you can together as a couple as you wont get to do much of that at all.

Second point not so much. You can't bank sleep so sleeping lots now will just make it even harder when you're up all the time. If anything I'd try sleeping a little less now to get your body used to it.

If you haven't already got one but a Nespresso machine.
Ha! My suggestion was a bit tongue in cheek! :-)

cbmotorsport

3,065 posts

118 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
Blown2CV said:
Davey S2 said:
cbmotorsport said:
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Congratulations!

My advice is as follows:


Go on holiday, go out to dinner, do fun stuff - This is the last six months of you and the Mrs as a couple, make it count.

Sleep as much as possible.
First suggestion is spot on. Do as much as you can together as a couple as you wont get to do much of that at all.

Second point not so much. You can't bank sleep so sleeping lots now will just make it even harder when you're up all the time. If anything I'd try sleeping a little less now to get your body used to it.

If you haven't already got one but a Nespresso machine.
totally disagree. People assume it's impossible to take a < 6 months baby out for a meal or on holiday, but it's not true. People get freaked out about these things but for the first 6 months you can continue to do the things you want to do with the Mrs, no problem. It's what happens after that that is more restrictive, so 6 months before the birth is more like the last year or so of relative freedom!
Sure, I wasn't suggesting that life was over after the birth, just that it'll be a bit different, and to enjoy the last few months of it being just the two of you.

Merry

1,370 posts

188 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
will_ said:
I think this is a "thing" at around that age.

Have you tried white noise when he wakes up to see if he'll re-settle?

Agree that one hour during the day doesn't sound like much. Sleep begets sleep sometimes.
He's got a little bee thing that plays music or white noise. He tends to turn it on himself but it doesn't really help him go back to sleep.

Could be worth trying to structure his naps better, but you're quite correct it could just be a thing. He woke up wailing at 5 again this morning, but the wife managed to settle him and he was still asleep at half 8.

Kind of makes me think he's a bit under the weather to be honest..

Vaud

50,503 posts

155 months

Tuesday 11th December 2018
quotequote all
Merry said:
He's got a little bee thing that plays music or white noise. He tends to turn it on himself but it doesn't really help him go back to sleep.

Could be worth trying to structure his naps better, but you're quite correct it could just be a thing. He woke up wailing at 5 again this morning, but the wife managed to settle him and he was still asleep at half 8.

Kind of makes me think he's a bit under the weather to be honest..
They also go through development "leaps".

I got rid of all of our baby books as they just made us paranoid and conflicted with each other.

The only one that made sense was "Wonder Weeks" - app or book - that charts the various development leaps and consolidation phases they go through that can go some way to explaining their behaviour. It was spot on (to the week) for both of ours.

eatontrifles

1,442 posts

234 months

Thursday 13th December 2018
quotequote all
Last night (12/12, should make it easy to remember) at 21.53 our bundle of fun Imogen Eloise arrived, five days late. She was 7lb 7oz and it was an absolute whirlwind labour. I got a call from my wife at 17.15 saying she was feeling odd and things may be happening, but to still go and play squash at 18.30 and keep my phone within range. 30 minutes later she calls again and it was definitely happening so I diverted home to start counting contractions which started coming thick & fast.

We arrived at LGI at 7pm to be assessed after we were told to come in, and within half an hour they had got us onto the delivery ward. There wasn't even enough time to fill the birthing pool so that plan was thrown out of the window and two hours later we had a beautiful baby girl.
My wife took a bit of a pounding so had to go almost immediately to theatre to repair a 3rd degree tear, which left me literally holding the baby but she slept soundly on my chest for an hour or so while mum was away and I just couldn't bear to let her go when my wife arrived back. redface

We got to the maternity ward at 5am and spent the day recovering and both are doing great so far. They had to stay in again tonight to make sure all was still OK so I sorted them a private room on the ward to try and get some good rest and I've come home to sleep in an actual bed for what is probably my last night of real sleep for a good while... All being well, I'll go and pick them up tomorrow morning and we'll let it all settle in and hopefully have a fantastic Christmas.

Haven't slept since I woke up on Wednesday morning, so now I'm going to bed!

The Moose

22,848 posts

209 months

Friday 14th December 2018
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Congrats! thumbup

Can’t wait for ours to come along now...

Xcore

1,345 posts

90 months

Friday 14th December 2018
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Currently sat in hospital waiting for the misses c section. More nervous this time round as I know exactly when he’s coming out then the first kid that was a natural bith

Jonnny

29,397 posts

189 months

Friday 14th December 2018
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Congratulations Eton and Family.

And good luck XCore! Post an update soon.

Jonnny

29,397 posts

189 months

Friday 14th December 2018
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Side note: Anyone up for a PH Expectant Dad's Facebook Group? Can be closed so only we're in there, could be nice to share pictures etc?

Peanut Gallery

2,428 posts

110 months

Friday 14th December 2018
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Congrats eatontrifles!

Indeed, your last night of sleep for at least 18 years, then you stay up at night worrying about them....

(That said, I now look forward to the patter of little feet at 2am wanting a cuddle)


Re. a closed facebook group, sign me up - there are very few pics of junior PG online though!