Should I put my 4 month old on a nap routine yet?

Question

My 4 month old has slept through the night since she was 5 weeks old...she goes to bed at 9pm and sleeps through 5-6am to eat, and then goes back to sleep until 9am. But her naps are still all over the place. Should I put her in her crib at a certain time during the day to begin a routine, or is it too soon? How much additional sleep should she get during the day?

Answer 1

Yes.  Babies need to nap.  At four months baby should take 3 naps per day.  One midmorning, one midafternoon and a short one in the early evening.  Tons of sleep research has been done about that is the normal pattern until 6months when they drop the early evening nap.  

In today's 24 hour world kids are not getting enough sleep.  It is great that she is is sleeping well at night so keep up the great work!

Answer 2

jennifer j 's schedule sounds bout right..  they need 3 hours extra sleep during the day.  however many naps that turns out to be.  most of the time its 3 until they hit 7ish months then they may go to 2...depends on the day and how warn out baby is also.  

Answer 3

My 5 month old daughter has also slept through the night since around then and I don't put her down at a certain time for naps. She usually is tired a couple hours after waking up so she takes a nap then, but her other nap is when she acts tired and starts rubbing her eyes, different time everyday. She does just fine on that.  

Answer 4

no...she'll make her own schedule. just be happy she sleeps through the night!  

Answer 5

Different babies need different things. Your baby may be just fine without a structured routine. If she's doing well, then no need to alter things, know what I mean? If she starts to get fussy and you think it's related to lack of a structured naptime, then it would be a good time to implement one. Until then, it doesn't sound like there is a need.