Sleeping R

I have been worrying a lot about R's sleep, now that she is beginning to be old enough to have more of a regular schedule (instead of just sleeping all the time like a little newborn). This isn't because she is a bad sleeper though; actually, she is doing a great job at working on developing good sleep habits. I am just anxious about getting her off to a good start, both for her health (since I think sleeping well is really important for brain development and general health) and for my happiness and welfare (since her sleeping well is necessary for me to sleep well, which means I can be more productive and feel better).

She isn't sleeping more than 4 hours or so at a stretch at night yet, which is fine. I am sure she will start sleeping longer once she is a little older and can eat more at a sitting. But I do want her to have a regular schedule: maybe 8 pm -8 am sleeping at night (albeit with 3 breaks for eating/diaper changing, for a total of 11 hours or so). And supposedly she should have 3 naps a day until 6 months or so, maybe 9-10 am; 12-1 pm; and 3-4 or 5. That gives 14-15 hours of sleep a day, which is the amount she is supposed to sleep right now. I have been trying to put her to bed at 8 every day, and for the last week or so, she has been sleeping 8-8 more or less (it's not totally consistent, but she's working towards it, and has slept those hours more often than not). I thought that she would put herself to sleep for naps, but she hasn't really been sleeping independently beyond very brief catnaps (15 min or less). But then she seems fussy and tired.

I put her down for a nap today at 3, when she seemed tired and fussy but was not sleeping. To my surprise, she fell asleep within 10 min and has been sleeping for the last hour and a half. So maybe she needs help in developing naptimes as well: I will try the above schedule for her, and see if it helps her feel better. The only glitch is that I will need to make sure my schedule fits with these naptimes (although I suppose she can nap in her carrier, so I don't necessarily have to be at home).

We'll see how it goes: I don't want to get too obsessed or stressed out about it, but I do want to get her off to a good start.