How Our Daughter Started Sleeping Through the Night at 6 Weeks Old
The first few weeks of newborn life are a BLUR. I’m someone who needs a good night’s sleep in order to function, so waking up every two hours had me feeling like a full on zombie chugging coffee nonstop.
So when I finally woke up on my own one morning feeling rested, I panicked. I thought for sure I had slept through her crying, but when I checked her Owlet, I realized she had slept the entire night.
Our daughter started consistently sleeping through the night at just 6 weeks old, and I wanted to share what worked for us. Every baby is different, but this little bedtime routine made all the difference.
Our Bedtime Routine (Starts Around 9 PM)
At that time, I was exclusively pumping, which actually helped me a lot with tracking her ounces. I knew exactly how much she was getting, so before bed, I always made sure she’d had all her ounces for the day, and then gave her an extra ounce before her last feeding to keep her full through the night.
During this stage, she was drinking about 3-4 ounces at a time and sleeping about 8 hours straight overnight. Based on her weight which was around 7 lbs, she needed about 19–20 ounces total in a 24-hour period. Every baby is different, but for us, tracking her ounces and making sure she got enough during the day so that she could sleep longer at night was big key part.
Here’s what our bedtime looks like most nights:
Bottle about two hours before bed – a little “pre-bedtime” feeding.
Playtime or a short walk – right after her bottle usually something calm and easy to help her wind down. If I’ve been feeling cooped up in the house we take a nice stroll around the neighborhood.
Bath time – warm water and Baby Dove Wash to start the relaxing mood. I “yuka-ed” this baby wash and it came back rated as “excellent” which made me feel even better about using it on her every night. This step was the GAME CHANGER for us. The biggest shift happened when we started giving her a bath every single night even if it was a quick one. That small change helped cue her that it was time for bed.
Lotion and massage – a gentle baby massage using Baby Dove lotion helps her relax and feel cozy.
Pajamas and swaddle – soft PJs and a snug swaddle signal it’s bedtime. We used the Halo Swaddle, and it worked wonders for her because she didn’t like having her arms tucked in. The option to leave her arms out while still feeling snug made such a difference in how well she slept.
Story time – we read a short story in low light to keep things calm and quiet. This step is just the teacher in me I guess 🤷🏻♀️
Final feed with an extra ounce – I always make sure she finishes the day’s ounces plus one more ounce before bed.
Burp and rock to sleep – we keep the lights dim while rocking her until she drifts off.
By around 10:00 PM, she’s usually sound asleep and that’s when our house finally goes quiet. Now that she sleeps through the night, I’m finally getting back to my own version of a bedtime routine, whether that means an everything shower or a little doom scrolling in peace before bed 😂
This is what works for my little family, but remember every baby is different! There’s no “right” way to do it. Just do what feels best for you and your baby. The long nights will pass and just remember as long as you’re doing your best, that’s all that matters. 💕
