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Everyday parenting

Surviving the 4am kitchen

The room you will spend most of your nights in. Set it up before you need it.

4 minute readNewborn · 0 to 3mo
04:00

Published by Dad Reckoning · Editorial standards and corrections

From the Dad Reckoning manual. General editorial guidance, not professional advice. Follow the sources linked in this guide for specialist and current information. About the manual.

At 4am the kitchen is the only room that is lit. Treat it as a forward operating base.

Keep within reach

  • A kettle, pre-filled.
  • Formula or expressed milk, measured and ready.
  • A chair you can feed in without your back seizing.
  • A dim lamp, not the overhead light. Bright light at 4am is a declaration of war.

What to remove

Anything you might trip over in the dark. The kitchen at 4am is not the kitchen at noon.

You will be here often. Make it bearable.

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