Should my baby go to bed earlier, and how do I do that?

A baby who goes to bed too late doesn't sleep in but sleeps worse: waking more often, and up earlier the next day. The same happens after an afternoon nap that was too short. Overtiredness works exactly the opposite of how you'd hope.

So the question isn't whether earlier is better, but whether it applies to you.

The times and numbers below belong to a baby of around three months. If yours is younger or older, check wake windows by age for the numbers that fit.

How you recognize it

Pay attention to how your baby wakes up from the last nap of the afternoon. If your baby wakes up cranky or crying from a nap that ends around six, that last nap no longer fits the day well and bedtime is probably too late.

That's the signal. Not the clock, but your baby's mood on waking.

How to move bedtime

Not all at once. Move the whole routine 15 minutes earlier each evening, until you're at the time you want. For many babies, that's somewhere around seven or half past seven.

You don't only want to move the moment of putting down, but the whole lead-up: the bath, the feed, the dimming, the ritual. See how long a bedtime routine should take.

And meanwhile, watch the wake windows. Around the third month, the limit is about an hour and a half to two hours at most awake; after that it's time to sleep again. If the previous nap was short, your baby can stay awake less long than after a long nap. More in wake windows by age.

If seven doesn't work for you

This is the honest objection, and it's fair. If you've just gone back to work, you get home in rush hour, dinner needs cooking, and your baby goes to bed almost right away. Then you barely see your child.

There's a solution that doesn't cost your baby's night: give a short bridging nap around five. That gets your baby through the last stretch of the afternoon without getting overtired, and bedtime can move toward eight or half past eight. Then you do get that time together.

What you shouldn't do in return is skip the last nap to "tire your baby out". That produces exactly the overtired baby this article is about.

What you can count on in this phase

For orientation: around the third month, total sleep need is about 14 to 17 hours per 24 hours, of which about 10 hours at night and 5 hours during the day, spread over three to four naps. Two to three night feeds is still normal, usually between ten in the evening and six in the morning.

And fill that daytime sleep tank, in whatever way works: in the carrier, the stroller, the car or your arms. A rested baby goes into the night better than an overtired one.

You don't force sleeping through. If your baby wakes two or three times to feed, that's still needed; at this age you simply follow those signals.

What you don't do yet around the third month

No strict sleep training and no strict schedule. What you do is lay the foundation: a rhythm that slowly emerges, enough calories during the day, and attachment. From there you'll naturally get to the gentle techniques, and only after that to falling asleep independently.

If naps stay short, that's also simply normal in this phase. If rocking or a walk gets your baby back to sleep, great; if not, the nap is over and the next wake window gets a little shorter. See extending a short nap.