8 weeks old LO drinking varied amounts every day (ranging 590-850ml)

Question

1. LO (8 weeks) ebm intake can range between 590ml and 850ml. Should this much difference in amount be normal?2. My baby is most of the time sleeping through the night (about 7 hours) at 8 weeks now since 1 month+, and usually his last intake would be close to midnight. Otherwise his usual routine is every 2-hrly. Yesterday night, he woke up at 11+pm at night crying (her last feed was 9.30pm). I would usually offer my ebm right away so that he could sttn with a fuller stomach, but it was the first time that when he cried at 11+pm, I managed to pat him to sleep yesterday and he still hasn’t woken at 5am (writing as of now). Felt guilty and wondered if he was really hungry when he cried but he managed to fall asleep. Should I have offered him the milk then or let him sleep?  3. While baby is quite accurate at waking up 2 hourly in the day, his feeding timing is not quite the same everyday e.g. his first feed of the day is sometimes at 5am sometimes at 7am (depending on his last feed) which will then affect his next feed. Should this daily inconsistency in feeding times be normal at 8 weeks old and that I should just follow his hunger cues?

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

Hi mama, babies do vary their intake from day today. You can try to set a gentle routine if you'd like to have a bit more predictability. At 8 weeks the maternal melatonin (that regulates sleep) wears off, so sleep may become a bit poorer for some babies. Young babies are still quite driven by basic needs, if you managed to pat him back to sleep, he should be alright. Babies will let us know when they are really hungry. You're doing alright don't worry! Personally, I would actually take the 7am as first feed and 5am is still considered night wake feed and extension of night sleep.