Miller is 18 weeks old. Can you believe it? She turned four months old last week, on the 7th!
Soooo many things to talk about on this post since I haven’t given you an update since her NEWBORN PRODUCTS post and her HOW I GOT MY BABY TO SLEEP THROUGH THE NIGHT post!! If you haven’t read those, do so before you keep reading to make sure you are all caught up.
4 Month Update
Swaddle Transition & Current Sleep Time
We start the swaddle transition at 12 weeks. We were following Moms on Call and they recommended 12 weeks because from then on it gets a little harder to transition them and you also want to make sure you can transition them before they roll over. We went from the swaddle to the Merlin Magic Sleep Suit. She seemed to really like it. She cried for an hour the first night we put her in it but then we continued to put her in it during naps the next day and by the time the second night came around she went right to sleep. I think the biggest thing for her was that she couldn’t get her fingers to her mouth. That’s why she fussed.
As you know, we took Miller to the beach when she was 3 months old. She turned 3 months old on the first day of our trip. During the trip she went through a pretty bad sleep regression. I still am not sure if it was the dreaded ‘4 month sleep regression that can sometimes occur early orrr if it was just due to the leap she was in. If you haven’t heard of leaps, make sure to download The Wonder Weeks app or buy the Wonder Weeks book. It tells you when your baby is going through certain developments and when you can expect them to be extra fussy/needy. She was also in a pack n play, in a strange location, in the Merlin.
As soon as we got home from Belize (that night) we put her in a sleep sack (#3 below, to be exact!) She cried for an hour and a half. She had had a super long day of traveling so we knew she was overtired, but her Merlin suit was soaked from her pee explosion the night before so it had to be washed. We just went in every 20 minutes and soothed her and made sure she knew she was in her own crib back at home and we were just outside. When she fell asleep she didn’t wake up again for 12 hours.
The next night she woke up around 2am and cried for 30 minutes. I set my alarm on my phone to go off in 30 minutes. If she was still crying I would go get her if not I would keep sleeping. She was still crying. I went in and fed her and she slept til 7am. The second night she woke up around 4am and cried for 30 minutes (she actually had a poopy diaper that night). I went in and fed her and she slept until around 8am. The third night she started crying and by the time my alarm went off she was done crying. We both went back to sleep. The night after that she cried out for 5 minutes before falling back to sleep.
And she has slept 12 hours straight ever since! She now sleeps from 7-7 (well, it got a little later with the time change.. more like 7:30-7:30!)
Yes! It was so incredibly hard to let her cry for 30 minutes. But I knew she was ok and she had a full belly and that she didn’t really NEED to be fed. And I only had to do that a few times and now she sleeps through the night!
TIP: I make sure she has THREE HOURS between her last feeds. So if I feed her at 4pm I will wait til 7 to feed her and then put her down. If I feed her at 4:30pm I wait until 7:30 to feed her and put her down. If you wait three hours they will be hungry and will drink until they are full and they will sleep longer. Cluster feed from 2-4pm if you have to to get those 3 hours!
Milk Production
Luckily from months 0-4 I had zero problems producing milk. We are so fortunate to have a deep freezer full of milk.
I only say this because I am definitely having to supplement now.
When we dropped her middle of the night/early morning feed my supply went down, just as my pediatrician said it would. I didn’t believe her at the time. I thought I would continue to make what Miller needed. Wellllll I didn’t and I don’t. I now have to give her 2 oz at her 4pm feed and almost 3oz at her 7pm feed.
I am currently pumping after each feed in the day to try to bring it back up and I need to make more of my lactation cookies. I will keep you guys updated!
It is still worth her sleeping through the night!
Just wanted you to keep this in mind in case you notice the same thing!
Miller’s Schedule
8am WAKE (lately), & EAT
Nap 9-9:15 (she never makes it long in the morning)
11am WAKE & EAT
Nap 12:30
2pm WAKE & EAT
3:30pm NAP
4:30pm WAKE & EAT
6 NAP
7pm WAKE & we play or do tummy time or she watches us cook dinner or she gets a bath
7:30pm EAT AND GO DOWN
It is some variation of this schedule. We let her tell us when she wants to sleep and I feed her when she wakes up!
Moms on Call 4-6 Month Schedule, Solid Foods, & an UH OH Moment
So Troy and I decided to continue to go by the Moms on Call schedule for 4 months. IT DID NOT WORK FOR US.
The first few days were brutal. We were trying to keep her up longer, the schedule had her skipping a feed, and we were feeding her solids. She was SO INCREDIBLY FUSSY. She would just cry all day. She would cry while we were holding her and scream even louder if we tried to put her down.
1.She was tired from dropping a nap.
-Babies don’t need to ‘drop a nap’ until they are ready. When they stop acting like they need to nap every hour and a half then you can start prolonging their naps. Wait until they are ready (hindsight!)
2.She was HUNGRY from dropping a feed (thus also making my supply drop!)
-My pediatrician said solids are never supposed to replace a feed. They are only meant to teach the baby textures and how to swallow, etc.
3.She got horrible reflux and constipation from the solids.
-We were at our wits end and it just happened to be the same time as her 4 month appt. Miller was screaming in the dr’s office and our pediatrician checked everything to see what could cause her to be so fussy. We told her all about the new schedule (that we had dropped the day before), and the solids that we had given her.
Wellllll it turns out they actually don’t recommend giving babies baby cereal before 6 months anymore. It hurts their tummies. Oh and the apples sweet potatoes we were giving her are the most constipating foods! She recommends starting on pears. Andddd then to top it all off, some babies develop reflux at 4 months.
When she couldn’t figure out what it could be she asked if I would nurse her right there in the room, so I did. I talked about how she would kind of jerk up while she fed and how she was spitting up a little more than usual.
Long story short our pediatrician prescribed us something for reflux and Miller has been a completely different baby since.
We now have Miller back on her old schedule and we give her pears one time during the day as a snack (not as a feed!) Need week we are going to try green beans!
Height, Weight, Things She Loves, Hates, ETC (FUN MILLER FACTS!)
Miller weighed 13.3 at the time of her 4 month appt. This could be the result of eating less the past 5 days and losing some weight. She was in the 42nd percentile. The dr just wants her back up to 50%! I think she is probably there now since I have been giving her more milk after her feeds.
She is over 26 inches long. That is literally off the charts. As in it is >99%. They can’t even measure it haha!
Her head (thank goodness) is now only in the 91st percentile, haha!
She still hates tummy time. We do it in the air more when we play airplane with her. She really lifts her head while we do that so it is definitely strengthening her neck. We also do 2 10 minute tummy time sessions a day. She starts crying at the 5 min mark and lowering her head around the 3 min mark. She is getting stronger every day!
She can’t roll over yet.. and I am totally ok with that! She does roll to her side and we will often see her sleeping on her side.
She no longer takes a paci! She is a finger/thumb sucker eeek!
She can easily reach and grab toys in your hand or on the table.
She sits up nice and tall assisted. She has really good trunk support so the dr said we can start using umbrella strollers and we can start putting her outward facing in her carriers.
She talks a lot but it is sounding more like an alien or zombie. She has this deep rasp she is doing now. It cracks us up.
She is super sweet, loving, smiley, all the things! She is only fussy when she is tired or from 6pm to bedtime!
Items That Keep Us (and our 4 month old) Sane:
Here are all of the items that we couldn’t have lived without these past couple of months! I describe why below.
*Are you pregnant or do you have a newborn? You will need THIS LIST TOO!
4 month baby essentials:
1 I 2 I 3 I 4 I 5 I 6 I 7 I 8 I 9 I 10 I 11 I 12 I 13 I 14 I 15 I 16 I 17 I 18 I 19 I 20
1.Angel Dear Footie. These zip up and are suuuuper soft. Oh and they have little ruffle butts! Make sure to hang them to dry. She sleeps in these every night in her sleep sack.
2.Hushh Baby Sound Machine. We take this with us everywhere. It is the only thing that will get her to fall asleep outside of her crib.
3.Magnetic Me Sleepsack. Worth the price! We use this EVERY SINGLE NIGHT. If she has a blowout we wash immediately and hang to dry and use another option until this one is ready to go again. The magnetic snaps are just too easy and it is nice and soft and has the right amount of thickness to it.
4.Owlet SmartSock. I couldn’t sleep without this. Especially not for 12 hours straight. I still wake up 2-3 times every night and check the monitor and then check the Owlet to make sure the readings are normal.
5.Merlin Sleep Suit. This make the transition to the sleep sack soooo easy! She wore it for 3 weeks. Some parents keep their babies in it until they are 9 months old which is totally fine! We may put her back in it when she starts rolling haha!
6.Fifi the Firefly. Fifi is still her favorite toy. No she grabs at the teether that hangs and pops it into her mouth.
7.Unicorn. This is competing with Fifi for sure! It is especially great for her to play with when we have her sitting up against us.
8.Infant Optics Monitor. Most people don’t know about this monitor because it isn’t available at Buy Buy Baby! The thermometer never reads correctly but other than that we still think it is the best! We have to run a weird cable through our house for our cable, but we have never had a problem with connection on this monitor! It even saved us in Belize. We could get a signal from her room while we were at the pool! It is great for those who want more than one room to be videoed too.
9.Tubby Todd All Over Ointment. I am loving all of your pictures you send me. This ointment clears everything. Diaper rash, cradle cap, baby acne, eczema, and sooo much more. It is a MUST for your household.
10. Animal Mobile. This cute mobile comes in 4 different colors/animals and you can attach it anywhere. I attached it to her stroller while at lunch yesterday and it kept her entertained for a long time! We also attach it to her play mat.
11. Bella Spoons. We haven’t used the bowl yet, but these spoons are the perfect size for Miller and I love how easy they are to wash! Oh and they all have cute sayings.
12. Sophie the Giraffe. We think she may be teething and this is the only thing the can suck on for a long period of time. Everything else (the smaller items) get dropped.
13.Baby Einstein Aquarium. She watches this during tummy time and it fascinates her! You can also hang it on their cribs!
14.Contour Baby Carrier. This seems to be Miller’s favorite carrier and it is super comfortable for both of us to wear.
15.Baby Bjorn Bouncer. Still what she spends most of her day in! We attach #18 all the time and she plays for awhile before getting fussy. Bouncing her is the only thing that gets her to calm down during witching hour too!
16.Fisher Price Baby Seat. We actually feed her in this seat and then let her play for awhile! She seems to really like it!
17.Play Mat. Still hands down the best play mat every invented. It is a 5 in 1 play mat that eventually converts into a ball pit. A MUST HAVE! Oh and the elephant that comes with it has songs on it. Whenever we turn it on we get instant smiles.
18.Stroller Bar. This is made for the stroller but also works perfectly with her bouncer! The owl that hangs down plays music when hit and she can pull the little orange thing down and the daisy spins (Miller was the one to show us that feature!!) It is so interactive!
19.Doona Stroller. This is what we have been using for the past month. It is just easier for me when I am by myself because I can just pull the carseat out and hit one lever and it becomes a stroller. It also seems to be more comfortable for Miller. We have the base for the Doona in Troy’s car and the Uppababy in mine, so it really just depends on who is driving (and it is usually Troy!) I only wish it was made for tall people. The bar is pretty low on my hip :/.
20.G-Lite Umbrella Stroller. We traveled with this to Belize and we are obsessed with it! It is sooooo light. We also bought the travel back and it goes in so easily and I can carry it with one arm! 100% recommend for those looking for a lighter umbrella stroller. It says 6months+ on it so we got approval from the dr before we started using it. With Miller’s height and trunk support she gave us the OK. Miller loved sitting in it. She felt like such a big girl I am sure! Oh, and the back is all mesh- PERFECT for anyone with super hot summers or if you are traveling somewhere really warm.
Any questions? Please don’t hesitate to ask me! Would love to help in any way I can.
Any advice! I welcome that just as much! Did you have different 4 month baby essentials? Leave links to them below!
Leave a comment below!
xox Amanda
Comments
Great post., Thanks so much for sharing such an wonderful well-researched list., i have been looking for some best baby essentials for my nephew .and i’m very confused on what to buy..,but these are really a great list with detailed information.. you saved so much of my time . thank you for sharing..Really looking forward to read more.
I love all the baby essentials. I’ve gotten a few.m that you have suggested and they have been great. How long did Miller stay in the Merlin before she moved to the sleek sack? And did you use that for nap time as well? My little fella just turned 11 weeks and I’m trying to figure out how to make a month transition.
She was in it for 3 weeks. And yes naps as well! I think you may be able to rent them on their website! Xox A
Thanks for sharing all of this information! My little Chico will be four months this week so it’s been fun to follow along with Miller. When your supply dropped how did you figure out how much extra milk she needed?
Just trail and error! Gave her a small amount and if she sucked it down and cried after I knew she needed more!
A
Do you give her the pears after you feed her or do you wait an hour and then give it to her, my daughter is 4 months and we were told to start the cereal but she doesn’t like it and then after a few days start with stage one foods
We wait an hour!
xox A
My daughter is also 4 months and our pediatrician gave us the green light to start solids 🤔
ours too she just wanted us to take it slower and start only with 1 item 1 time a day! A
So glad you are finding what works for you and your family! My little girl has had bad reflux since she was born and the Zantac is a lifesaver. But we could NEVER go 4 hours between feedings because she would just spit it all up. She eats every 2 1/2 – 3 hours and smaller bottles. I also can only give her 3oz before bed or else she spits a bunch and wakes up from it. Margo was 25″ at her 2 month appointment…we both have some long skinny babies! Anyway, Miller is so sweet and I love all the milestones you share of her!
Awh thank you so much!!! That is a lot to deal with- you sound like supermom!!! xox A
Hi Amanda – I’ve been enjoying following you as I had my baby girl the exact same day as you had Miller! I wanted to reach out because my baby had horrible reflux her first 3.5 months and I started weekly chiropractic care and probiotics (Klaire Labs) and was recently able to wean her from her reflux meds! Just a little mom to mom tip on some natural remedies that have actually worked for us!
Yes I heard chiropractors can work magic on babies for all the things!! Just not sure if I am ready to take that leap yet eeek! xox A
Love these posts! I’m just waiting for my baby boy in July!
Awh congrats babe! So exciting!!
My baby started sleeping through the night really early and my supply TANKED! I met with a lactation consultant several times and she said the best thing to do is get up and pump in the middle of the night. It sucked (and still sucks) so much BUT it was definitely a game changer! Now I can pump 6-10oz when before I could only get 2-4. And I’m half asleep during the middle-of-the-night pump so it goes pretty quickly and I hardly mind it anymore. Just a tip that makes a huge difference! Xo
Ahhh I think I would rather power pump for an hour each day than get up in the night again! Did the power hour pump not work? xox A
I have a baby just a little older than Miller. He was waking once a night to feed, but recently has been making it to morning. I am noticing my supply is decreasing as well. I am supplementing him before he goes to bed. Right now I pump every AM and PM, but thinking I need to pump after every feeding like you are doing. Just curious, do you wash your pump parts and dry them after every pump? Right now I wash them every time and let them air dry, but won’t be able to do that if I start pumping after every feed. Thanks!
I was wondering if you could share what the doctor prescribed Miller for reflux?
I’m due in July and the thing I’m most unsure about is maternity leave. I plan to take 4 months and then 2 months part time at home but I’m worried that at 4 months I will still be incredibly sleep deprived and not ready to go back to my (admittedly) demanding clients. Now that you’re at 4 months, do you feel like you have your bearings more, or still sort of waiting for things to really click? Are you getting to spend time with your baby or do you feel like she’s mostly sleeping and her personality isn’t hire coming out yet? Thank you for any insight you have!!
We follow moms on call also, and we are waiting until 6 m to do solids as well. We waiting with my son, and it was a much smoother transition! I still think it is the best baby schedule, BUT I think you must tailor it to your lifestyle, and realize that every baby is different 🙂 You have done a great job relaying this message!
Thank you so much!! Xox A
What did you swaddle her in until this point? My baby is 3.5 months. Right now he is swaddled at night in a Halo Sleepsack swaddle with one arm out and during his naps he is in the Love to Dream 50/50 swaddle. Not sure when to stop swaddling! Or if I should try the 50/50 swaddle at night and see how he does?!
She was in an Ollie swaddle with both arms in before the Merlin! Xox A
Thank you so much for this post. I have a little girl that just turned 3 months this week and we are using the Moms on Call sleep schedule because of your recommendation. It has seriously been a life saver! I am going to have to order some of these products you mentioned. Thanks again for all the helpful information! Miller is just a doll. 💕
I feed her at 7:30 then change her and put her owlet on and give her medicine and then she goes down! Xox A
Thanks for sharing! was just wondering: She naps at 6 PM and wakes at 7 PM and then 730 is bedtime? only 30 min awake? I thought babies at this age needed more awake time before bedtime so was just curious about it!