8 Month Old Baby Feeding and Sleep Schedule: With Milk, Solid Food, Naps, and Nighttime Sleep – For Breastfeeding and Formula-Feeding Babies

8 Month Old Baby Feeding and Sleep Schedule

This article outlines the average 8-month-old baby schedule, including milk feedings for breastfeeding and formula-feeding babies, solids, naps, and nighttime sleep.


Skip to the schedule

8 month old’s sleep

At this age, many 8-month-olds can sleep through the night, without a feeding, but some won’t and will continue to need 1-2 feedings up through 9+ months old. And, 8-month-old babies take 2-3 naps daily for a total of 2-3 hours per day plus 11-12 hours at night. If you’re having trouble with naps, you might be interested in helping your baby nap.

All babies vary, but here are some rough schedules you can use to make your own for your unique baby. I should warn you that I am in the camp that breast milk or formula should be the primary nutrition for the first year and solids come secondary. Below are the amounts we recommend. For more information on starting your baby on solid food, we have a series of blog posts dedicated to the subject. We include recommendations about how and when to start solids, as well as helpful information on food allergies, recommended products, baby-friendly recipes, and more.

How Many Naps for an 8 Month Old?

Most 8 month old babies take 2-3 naps each day that total 2 to 3 hours. Babies this age stay awake and have wake windows between 2 and 3 hours at a time, on average, but up to 4 hours before bedtime if they are taking two naps. This is a common age for babies to drop the third nap.

Wake Windows for 8 Month Olds

The typical wake windows for an 8-month-old are 2-3 hours with the first wake window being one of the shortest. Usually, that first wake window is around 2 to 2 1/2 hours at this age. If your 8-month-old baby has already dropped their third nap, they are more likely to stay awake 3 1/2 to 4 hours before bedtime, though, unless they are a long napper.

8 Month Old Feeding

The amount of food at 8 months is very similar to the 7-month baby schedule, but you will most likely go to 3 small meals per day, rather than just 2.

Average amounts per day:

  • At least 5 nursing sessions per day or 26-32 ounces formula or combination
  • No more than 2-4 oz of water or juice (to ensure they drink enough breast milk or formula)
  • 2-3 servings baby cereal or grains (1 serving cereal = 1-2 Tablespoons dry and grains include Cheerios, 2 crackers, etc.)
  • 2 servings fruit (1 serving = 2-3 Tablespoons)
  • 2-3 servings vegetable (1 serving = 2-3 Tablespoons)
  • 1-2 servings protein (1 serving = 1-2 Tablespoons)
  • 1 serving Dairy (1 serving = 1/2 cup yogurt, 1/3 cup cottage cheese or 1 oz grated cheese)
  • You can also offer cooked egg (due to allergens, check with your doctor first)

The first schedule is what I call a “staggered” approach. My first son did better with a full feeding and then having solids a bit in between. He was a little hungry but not famished. He just didn’t do well with stopping nursing or his bottle mid-way to eat solids.

You May Also Be Interested In:

Sample 8 month old schedule

If your baby has already transitioned to just 2 naps, please see the 9 month old baby schedule for a sample 8 month old sleep schedule.

Schedule 1

7:00 – Wake and Breast milk or Formula
8:15 – Breakfast
9:00 – Morning Nap (at least 1 hour)
10:00 – Breast milk or Formula
11:00 – Lunch
12:30 – Breast milk or Formula
1:00 – Early Afternoon Nap (at least 1 hour)
2:00 – Breast milk or Formula
4:00 – Optional Catnap (30-45 minutes)
4:30 or 5:00 – Dinner
6:15 – Begin bedtime routine
7:00 – Breast milk or Formula and Bedtime (goal to be asleep at this time)

+Plus possibly 1 nighttime feeding

If your baby doesn’t mind a more “consolidated” approach to eating, like my second son, here is another type of schedule:

Schedule 2

7:00 – Wake
7:15 – Breakfast plus Breast milk or Formula feeding
9:00 – Morning Nap (at least 1 hour)
10:00 – Breast milk or Formula
11:00 – Lunch
12:30 – Breast milk or Formula
1:00 – Afternoon Nap (at least 1 hour)
3:00 – Breast milk or Formula
5:30 – Dinner plus Breast milk / Formula feeding
6:15 – Begin bedtime routine
7:00 – Breast milk or Formula

+Plus possibly 1 nighttime feeding

Note: When giving any feedings during your bedtime routine, be careful not to create sleep associations, which we saw become important at 4 months old.


Want more information about how to help your 8 month old sleep well? Check out our detailed case study about Carrie, Ben, Elliot, and Andrew.

Read how Carrie and Ben helped 8 month old Elliot learn to sleep longer stretches at night (and, eventually, to sleep through the night completely!) and take better naps – and how they helped to change those sleep associations that were keeping Elliot awake! Just join our VIP Members Area, and access the case study instantly. And that’s not all – our VIP Members Area is packed with additional premium content and resources: e-Books, assessments, more case studies, peer and expert support, and more. It costs less to join than buying products separately!


Looking for more sample 8-month schedules?

baby naps

We have over 40 sample schedules for all ages in our e-Book, Mastering Naps and Schedules. Banish naptime battles and regain control of your day (and your sanity) starting today!


You Might Also Like:

All content of The Baby Sleep Site®, such as articles, e-guides, e-Books, advice, evaluative consultations, text, graphics, images, and other material contained on The Baby Sleep Site® (“Content”) are for informational and supportive purposes only. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional or medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always, always, always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding your or your child’s medical condition(s), behaviors, feeding and sleeping habits, and environment. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on The Baby Sleep Site®.

The Baby Sleep Site® is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and other product affiliate programs. If you click on a product link and make a purchase, The Baby Sleep Site® may (but not always) receive a small commission from the company selling the product, but will not affect your purchase price. We only recommend products that we believe are quality products and are good for our readers.

Holistic Sleep Solutions from The Baby Sleep Site®

e-Book bundles

Do-It-Yourself: Just getting started with your research but you want to stop Googling? Choose from any of our e-book bundles for practical advice you can put to use TODAY!  

Become a VIP Member

Do-It-Mostly-Yourself: Would you like to continue learning with the option of getting answers from an expert sleep consultant? We have a perfect solution! Become a VIP Member for access to all of our premium content. This includes ALL of our e-books and bonuses, audio courses, access to our “ask the author” feature giving you answers to your pressing questions from an expert baby sleep consultant, and more!

Get a Personalized Sleep Plan

Work With a Sleep Expert: Tap into over a decade of experience with thousands of families before you! Get a Personalized Sleep Plan® just for your unique situation, get guidance and answers to all your “what if?” questions while you work through your plan, and benefit from expert support along the way. We can’t tell you how many times we’ve heard “I wish I had done this sooner!” Not sure? Read these stories from well-rested parents.

Don’t lose another wink of sleep — GET STARTED TODAY with our gentler, kinder approach to healthy sleep!

FREE Guide: Five Ways To Help Your Child Sleep Through the Night

Join over 500,000 parents for 15+ years & sign up today to receive the guide and Newzzz, our Baby Sleep Newsletter absolutely FREE!












 
109
Share to...