9 Month Olds' Schedule

Updated on March 06, 2010
L.V. asks from Ridgewood, NY
9 answers

I want to make sure I have my 9 month old/22 lb son on a decent schedule. I am having some issues and am wondering if im feeding him enough. I think I am but its always good to get other feedback.he has been waking up the past 3 nights at 3am - i think its just to get attention butwho knows....His schedul is as follows: 6am wakeup - drinks 5-6 of 8 oz bottle....off to in laws at 645...breakfast at 730am - 2-3 oz of formula mixed iwth ceral, whole stage 2 container of fruit...nap at 9am - 11am (sometiems)...lunch at 1130am - whole jar of stage 2 baby food (chicken,etc) with 2-3oz of cereal...an hour later attempt to give him his bottle...most of the time he only takes 2-4 oz..thinking I should offer him his bottle DURING lunch??.....2nd nap around 1/130pm....about an hour...snack at 230/3pm....yogurt, fruit.....I pick him up at 330...dinner at 5/530...2-3 oz of cereal and a stage 2 veggie...bath at 6/630 last bottle at 630/7pm...drinks about 5 oz here....IS THIS SCHEDULE OK?? it seems to working for the most part except I feel that hes not drinking enough....about 20 oz a day of formula...NOTE: He is always offered watered down juice at diff times of the day....thank you for taking the time to read all of this and for your imputs - thanks moms!!! =0) L., Nicolas' mommy

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D.W.

answers from Indianapolis on

I definitely agree with Donna regarding the individuality of the sleep cycles. He's at a critical time in his physical development and will be changing so much over the next few months, I'd be prepared for his schedule to change quite a bit more.

It recommends 32-46 ounces of formula/breast milk per day. I'd probably recommend taking the water with juice away for now until his formula levels are back up to where he needs (fat in formula/breast milk is really critical for proper brain development at his age).

The American Academy of pediatrics has the following information on their website:
http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/f...

More Answers

D.S.

answers from Allentown on

Hi, L.:
Honey, I know it is inconvenient for you to be disturbed in your sleep, but sleep-wake cycles are individual. He hasn't established his yet.

Grin and bear it. You're get through this. Wait until he becomes a teenager, I am afraid you won't get any sleep then.

Good luck, hang in there.
D.

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D.M.

answers from Buffalo on

when they get a growth spurt they wake up a lot more. dont give a bottle during lunch,or he will ignore lunch, give it after. dont worry about schedules so much. let him eat when he's hjungry, drink when he's thirsty, sleep when he is tired.:)your little guy alwys tells u what he needs. they also begin to have vivid dreams at this age. its just a phse, after a few eeks it will stop and something else will happen, becuas ethey are constantly changing and growing, so your patterns will change and grow with him..
mother of 3.

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M.T.

answers from New York on

Hi L.,
Sounds like a lot of food. Remember that until a year, his milk is his primarly source of nutrition. Food is simply a supplement. I would not offer him any "snacks" - I would give him a bottle instead. INfants get very little nutrition from food. Meals should really be AFTER a nursing or bottle.
I would take ALL juice away. He shouldn't have juice at various times of day, or at all. The AAP does not recommend juice at under a year. People think it's cute to see babies drinking bottles or cups of juice, but juice simply fills them with no nutritional value. Any juice should be replaced by formula.
Good luck.

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N.D.

answers from New York on

Why does no one give their baby water anymore? Everyone knows to day to drink lots of water to keep themselves 'hydrated', but it seems no one tells moms to give their children water. When they are thirsty, its juice..sweet, sugery juice. Get him used to drinking water and you will have a healthier baby. 5 or 6 8oz bottles of formula are plenty and he should be sleeping through the night or at least not waking up crying. Most babies wake up once or twice during the night and go right back to sleep. When he wakes up give him a bottle of water.

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P.K.

answers from New York on

Sounds good to me. He might be waking due to teething. I definitely
would not feed him. You will set yourself up for problems. Just pat his
back and reassure him. Other than that you sound right on target.

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M.I.

answers from New York on

Hi L..
Sounds like a great schedule. If he's only drinking 5-6 oz of 8 oz bottle in the am, you might want to just make it a 6oz bottle so you don't waste the formula...he'll let you know if he's still thirsty after that, but sounds like he isn't. The foods and times you're giving them sounds spot on (my son (14 months now) is a daycare kid and he's been on almost the exact schedule as your son since he was about 9 months. One thing, I would offer him another 5-6oz bottle at lunch time and nix the cereal w formula. Just offer him some baby food and a bottle. He really only needs cereal once a day.
Does he have any teeth? Can you start giving him a little regular people food (hard boiled egg yolk? little bite sizes of turkey coldcuts? cheese?) - he might really enjoy that.
My son was 23 lbs at 10 months and ate a bunch of the 2nd stage dinners - (turkey/rice, ham & peas...).
As far as schedule tho - congrats, it's a good one.
My son does:
6-7am wake-up:
7am, 5-7oz bottle at home/ 8am, breakfast at daycare.
11:15am, lunch + 5oz milk
noon-2pm (sometimes): nap
2:15pm, snack + 2-3oz juice/water
5:00pm, dinner + 5oz milk
6/6:30pm: bath
6:45ish: 3oz milk
7pm: bed.

At 10 months he was still doing 2 naps (9:30ish and 2:30ish)..but meal times were pretty much the same as they are now.

Guidelines state that our babes should be getting between 16-24oz of milk/formula a day - so, you're right on.

You're doing a great job! Another great site to check out is babycenter.com....gives wonderful information on how to's, what to's, health concerns, feeding...even gives help on transitioning babies/kids during daylight savings time which can mess up their sleep and schedules (it's coming up - I'm personally dreading it - March 14th we "spring forward" ). ok- i just reeread that, and I sound like I work for them. Haha. Anyway -it's my go-to for questions + this site.

Best!
M.

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E.C.

answers from New York on

Sounds great. To simplify life, I'd probably give the lunch bottle at lunch - or give it in the sippy cup - do kids do sippy cups at that age? Sorry I forget!

My daughter woke up at 9 months; I thought it was a growth spurt, but it turned in to yeah time with mom. So, she had to cry that one out - we all needed our sleep and schedule. They don't need food or drink in the middle of the night.

e

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R.E.

answers from New York on

First of all, congratulations! He sounds like a very healthy baby with a good appetite - 22 lbs at 9 months tells me he is on the upper end of the growth charts (similar to my own boys!). Second, your concerns about the amount of formula he takes are valid. Milk is meant to be a baby's primary source of calories for the first year. I would consider switching that mid-afternoon snack to another bottle. My third thought is in regards to juice. Current nutritional guidelines for infants basically tell us the only liquid they need is milk (breast or formula) and maybe some water if it is really hot. There is tons of research on the connection between kids who drink juice and later obesity (sorry do not want to freak you out!). I would forgo the juice for now and offer him either water or formula - maybe in a sippy cup - periodically during the day.

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