Sleeping FAQ: 6-9 Months – Daytime Sleep

How do I adjust the routines for my twins of 7.5mths so they are waking at 7.30am?

My twins are 7.5 months old now and they are sleeping until 7am with only 90 ml at 10 pm which I will decrease to 60 ml and drop all together in the next couple of weeks. We’re following the routine for 6-9 months. They eat different varieties of vegetables, fruits, cereal and protein. They still have milk at 7.15am, 11.45am, 2.45 pm, 6.30 pm and around 90 ml at 10 pm.
My question is about the timings of the routine. I’d like them to wake up around 7.30am. In your books and FAQs you mention simply moving forward by 15-30 minutes. Is it really that simple or are there some details that I should be aware of? The last thing I want is to disturb their feeding and sleeping patterns, so I will be really careful about this.

If they wake up at 7.30, should our day look like the following:
7.30 awake
7.45am – milk and breakfast
9.30-10.15am – nap
12.15pm – lunch
13pm-15pm – nap
3.15pm – milk
4.45pm-water or juice
5.30 pm- tea
6.30pm-bath
7pm – milk
then going to bed probably around 7.15-7.30
Do you think this is going to work? Any other suggestions?

I also have two more questions;
1-How long should the bath time take?
2-In the book you say, after they finish their milk at 6.30, they should be sitting their chairs when mothers are tidying up and also lights dimmed, where should this be happening? In their bedroom, kitchen, living room? If in the bedroom, dimming the lights no problem but I don’t keep the highchair in their room. If somewhere else, then am I suppose the dim the lights in the living room or kitchen? I am confused about what to do and where to do it after last milk and before going to bed? And it is very important for me to do the right thing because this will affect their behavior at bedtime.
I know other mothers from message boards also confused about this.

Moving the routine on by half an hour should not pose any real problems providing you do it carefully. The best way to approach this is by moving things forward slowly. If you already have to wake your daughters at 7am then let them sleep on for another 10 minutes and adjust your timings in the day accordingly. Leave them on these timings for three or four days before moving things on again by another 10 minutes. If you work in this way towards the later times the girls should fall into their new routine without becoming disrupted or upset.

If your girls are awake by 7 o’clock in the morning at present, then begin to move their daytime feed and sleep times on by 10 minutes every few days.

One thing you do need to be aware of is the changing need for daytime sleep in the second half of the baby’s first year. The morning nap begins to push on and decrease in length. Gina writes of this in the Sleeping notes at the end of the 6-9mth routine. See p180 of The Contented Little Baby. In The Complete Sleep Guide, p 103, she also points out the pitfalls of not doing this. If your daughters begin to sleep until 7.30am you will need to push the morning nap on to 9.30/9.40am and begin to make it no longer than 30 minutes. This in turn helps push the lunchtime nap on to 1pm. You will need to be guided by the needs of your babies but, if you are conscious that things begin to change at this age, you should be able to adjust timings accordingly.

Bath time should be a calm and happy time of day. At this age both your girls may be sitting up independently and like to play for a while with simple bath toys. Learning how to pour water from one container to another is a very popular pastime at this age, and develops good hand/eye co-ordination. Allow around 15-20 minutes for their bath time. Dealing with two babies does require a little organization on your part but, with help, this can be a time of day when they receive plenty of one to one time with you. Keeping this time of day calm, rather than encouraging wild splashing games, will help them to wind down towards bedtime.

The reason for Gina writing about babies sitting quietly whilst you tidy up is that you want them to have a wind down period and be ready to settle into their cots by 7pm/7.30pm but without them falling straight into a deep sleep. A baby who stays awake happily to 7pm is more like to fall asleep within 15-20 minutes of going into their cots and to sleep through to 7am/7.30am. Just as you had a wind down period when they were younger this time helps them calm before bedtime.

Depending on the layout of your house and nursery there are different ways to deal with this time of day. Where you give their girls their last feed should be quiet but could be cozily together in the living room. If you find they get quite awake and active after this feed move into the nursery with them and dim the lights. Depending on the layout of the room you may have somewhere they can sit calmly, such as baby bean bags, whilst you tidy up around them. Provide them each with a “quiet time” toy such as a soft toy or board book if they are not content to quietly watch you. If you have a sofa or cozy chair in their room you could begin to introduce a short story time as part of their calming routine. What you are aiming for at this time is for them not to fall asleep straight after their feed, whether it is given at 6.30pm or 7pm. Depending how long they take to drink their last feed this quiet time may only be for about 10 minutes but it will help them settle into their cots whilst still awake and happy to chat for a while before sleeping, and so hopefully avoiding one of the causes for early morning waking.