# When do new babies start to settle into a nap pattern?



## Phoebe (Jun 12, 2003)

Yes, I have done this before but I forgot!!

I also realize that all babies are different. But in general, when does the haphazard sleep pattern start to become more predictable. I'm looking forward to some predictability!

Amy


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## evenstarlight (Aug 16, 2006)

I'm confused too.
My baby sleeps on and off through the night (we've been co-sleeping) but during the day she will not settle for a nap until late afternoon....she then sleeps very well for 3-4 hours but getting her there is very hard. Today I just had to crash out after feeding her while my mom managed to get her down.
She's now sound asleep.....but she'll probably be awake after this until bedtime...is this normal?
I thought new babies napped and slept all the time!!! I worry that she's not getting enough sleep. She's defintily getting enough to eat as i'm nursing almost all the time when she's awake.


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## deditus (Feb 22, 2006)

DD mostly woke to nurse, get her dipe changed and then nurse some more until 6-8 weeks. Then it was very haphazard for a few weeks (during which we had to be very creative to get her to sleep, and no same thing worked 2xs in a row), but by 12 weeks she settled into a fairly regular nap pattern. And now at almost 6 mo. she's pretty much still at a 2 hr. morning nap, a 2 hr. afternoon nap, and a short early-evening nap. Don't get me wrong, we had(have) plenty of days that vary from that routine. But about 5 out of a week are that way.


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## jenmk (Apr 28, 2005)

Mine have settled into a pretty regular schedule by around 4 months old. Up until then it was always anyone's guess as to when they'd be napping or awake! Things settle down by 3-4 months, with baby and you falling into a predictable schedule . . . which is such a blessing. Makes life feel much less chaotic.

Oops, crying babe waking up from his nap! Gotta run!!


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## Phoebe (Jun 12, 2003)

Wow...I'm jumping the gun a bit at 5 weeks then! I think my older boy must have been about 8 weeks or so. I just cant remember.

This little one sleeps for what seems all day. He wakes to nurse...sometimes I wake him to nurse. He does the same at night...except I certainly don't have to wake him to nurse then!

This is the hard part. I rely on things being the same every day! Well, I just wont worry about it and go with the flow. I was thinking I may need to coax him into a patter but man I am way early! Now that I know, I can relax and just go with it.


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## *guest (Oct 7, 2005)

It was around 11-12 weeks when I really noticed. And it never went by the clock, more like she developed a routine. Ours went "up 2 hours from mornin waking, nap, up 2 hours, nap, up 2 hours, nap, up an hour or 2, bed." Around 5.5 months, she started sometimes dropping the 3rd nap, and she'll do more of the 2-3-4 pattern (wake, up 2 hours, nap, up 3 hours, nap, up 4 hours, bed). It's never like "Oh, it's 1 pm, time for a nap."


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## smallmama (Dec 6, 2006)

It was close to 16 weeks with DS. Also around the same time we instituted a regular early bedtime for him.


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## 425lisamarie (Mar 4, 2005)

by about 5 months both mine settled into 2 naps a day....by 6-8 months some days were one nap and before a year one nap. DS dropped naps exept maybe twice a month before 2 years old. DD is 7.5 and about 1/3 the time she takes only one nap


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## BathrobeGoddess (Nov 19, 2001)

boy did I need to read this today...

It is so hard to remember when my ds started napping and going to bed at a decent time...thank you for grounding me...I feel less stress already!


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## bratmobile (Jun 30, 2004)

I had totally forgotten as well. We are just now getting to the 3 or 4 naps a day thing. And my baby is 6 months old now. I think he was getting tired like every two hours or so before, but the "schedule" was so varied based on how long his nap was and when he woke up in the morning, etc. Totally unpredictable. I think he would have settled into something more regular if he would have been the only kid in the house but he gets dragged along with his big brother everywhere.


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## Boobiemama (Oct 2, 2002)

mine were 4-5 months.


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## Phoebe (Jun 12, 2003)

Geez, alot of the children spoken of here seem to get into a pattern later than what I remember ds#1 doing. He dropped to 2 naps at 6 months. Before that I remember he took 3 for a few months. He has always been a pretty awake little guy though. I was thinking it was about 2.5-3 months when he got into the 3 nap routine.

hmmmm...
we'll see what this guy brings!


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## strawberry_fields (Oct 12, 2006)

4 to 5months here, too!


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## shortcake2386 (Jul 13, 2006)

around 2.5 months...but at 4 months its still not consistant every night(especially if we sleep in late or get off schedule in another way)


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