“Does Master Menzies sleep through the night yet?” I wish I had a dollar for every time I was asked this question.

Babies all have varied sleep patterns. I don’t think I have spoken to a single mother who’s baby has the same sleep pattern as Master Menzies or any other baby. Some mummies use rigid routines with their babies and some just follow their babies cues never finding predictability. Strict routines do not suit us but we have fallen into a routine by following Master Menzies’ needs. Routines from the bazillion baby books on the market can be an excellent way for new mummies to learn how much a baby should be sleeping and how to see their new little person’s sleep cues. Master Menzies goes to bed at 6pm because he just can’t handle himself after this time. It works well for Mr Menzies and I because we can have some time together, cook dinner and actually eat a warm meal together. If Mr Menzies and I want to go out for dinner then we can after Master Menzies has gone to bed and he won’t even know that he is being looked after by a babysitter. We have been advised to push him to 7pm so he’ll sleep longer. This will only give us a devil child for an hour a day, cold meals eaten separately again and a baby that will wake up at the same time as when we would have put him to bed at 6pm.

Master Menzies sleeps from 6pm, and that is where the predictability stops. He can wake at 1pm then every 2 hours after that or sleep right through to 5am. A ‘full’ nights sleep depends on any one of the following happening or not happening.

• A growth spurt
• Teething
• Hunger
• Wants a cuddle
• Doesn’t want a cuddle
• It’s too cold
• It’s too hot
• The water pipes are banged
• Daddy is cooking dinner
• The heater kicked in
• The heater stopped… and so on.

Now I may have dug our own grave here but since the first couple of weeks Mr Menzies and I have had a very easy night times without any crying episodes. And this is due to one thing. The only way I use to settle Master Menzies is boobie. I gave up the rocking, shooshing or cuddling when none of it worked, only boobie works and that is perfectly fine, because that is what keeps my baby happy and Mr Menzies and I sane. It may be a hard habit to break but i am going with the hope that he will just grow out of it.

So tonight I am going to bed and hoping that we get the same deal as last night 6pm – 5am, a quick feed, and then up at 8am. Wish me luck!