First off we are 5 months old and I am not planning on actual sleep training yet but I am ready to be prepared at we hit that stage.
So talk to me about your kids sleep.
Do they nap? Well?
How long at night?
What's your routine?
Any crutches you know you need to eliminate?
And all those btdt parents what are your recommended sources for sleep help. This is new territory in our house. DD has always been an amazing sleeper.
I know C isn't awful but he isn't great either and I know a big part of it is he doesn't self soothe. We have got to work on that!
Do they nap? Well? He takes two 15-30mon can naps in the morning and one 1.5ish hour nap in the afternoon all on me or in the car. I can't get him to sleep anywhere else during the day. This is a big struggle for me as I can't get anything done, I feel like I am drowning in household chores.
How long at night? Bedtime at 7:45 wakes up at least twice MOTN to eat up for the day.... 6? 7:30? Anywhere in between. We go through phases where he wakes up every 45minutes or so until 10pm and he can't settle himself back to sleep.
After 10 (aka I am asleep) it's generally easier to just feed him and get him back to sleep but I know he doesn't always need to eat so I am trying to find a balance for us.
What's your routine? Bed time routine. Bath, if it's bath night, not every night. Get him dressed, walk him around while DD is getting ready for bed since the diaper station is in his room, nurse and put down.
Any crutches you know you need to eliminate?
Nursing right before putting him down. I know it's not helping him learn to self soothe and will only be harder to break later but I haven't figured out a good routine. Maybe feed him while big sister is getting ready.
We use a zipadee zip at night. I like it as a wearable blanket but I am wondering if he had access to his hands of it would be better for soothing or worse.
Napping on me... I am just at a loss on this one. Maybe self soothing would help here too.
Lilah typically still takes 3 naps, but sometimes just 2 long ones. She is up with me around 7:30 and takes her first nap between 9:30 and 10. It lasts 30 minutes to 1 hr. Her long nap is around 1pm and she usually sleeps for 1.5-2.5 hrs depending on her morning nap length. Then she takes a short nap around 6:30. On 2 nap days, she'll sleep 2-3 hours for one and then 1.5-2 for the other. Those are days her schedule gets messed up by Lillian's activities since she doesn't nap well out.
For bedtime, our "routine" is jammies, turn on fan for white noise, nurse/cuddle until she's asleep, transfer to the pnp. She's still in our room so not too involved yet. She usually sleeps from 9 to 1:30/2 in the pnp. Then she's in our bed. She usually nurses a 2nd time around 5 or 6. Then up for the day at 7:30 because that's when I get up. When I can stay in bed with her, she sleeps until 8.
When we switch to the crib and sleep train, our routine will be jammies, nurse, white noise, read a book, rock in dark with song, put down. That's basically what we do with Lillian except we don't nurse or rock anymore.
Post by goldenlove3 on Apr 12, 2017 8:05:40 GMT -5
I've always been afraid to comment about sleep because I know we're really lucky and so many of you are still up constantly at night. So please don't hate me lol..
He's been mostly STTN for a while now and typically sleeps from 7-7:30 to 5:30-7:30 depending on if it's a workday. It's definitely not perfect every night. Sometimes he wakes up crying in the first couple hours or will wake up at 1am whining but he typically falls back asleep on his own or with a paci. Then some days he's up at 4 talking.
Routine - After dinner, we'll go upstairs around 6:30, do bathtime (not every night), tummy time, jammies, books. Some days he plays more, other days he just wants to go to sleep. We turn on his white noise and red light then we offer him a bottle. He'll drink 2-6 oz then be OUT. Then we transfer him to his crib (usually after some cuddles).
Crutches - We transitioned him out of the swaddle during the regression so he's only sleeping in a wearable blanket now. I guess the only crutch we're wondering about is the bottle. There are already days that he doesn't eat much and a couple times he didn't want the bottle at all. I just feel like that's WAY too long to go without eating if he proceeds to sleep for 12 hours. But he never wakes up crying for food. I have enough time to go get his bottle and change his diaper before he gets whiney.
Naps are all over the place. Since he's been waking up so early now, he is exhausted once he's in his car seat and will nap on the way to grandmas. He sometimes gives them one good long nap and the rest of the time they are 30-45 minutes. There's no schedule really.
Post by goldenlove3 on Apr 12, 2017 8:20:20 GMT -5
danib He's quickly approaching 20 lbs! No weight concerns here, except maybe that he's gaining TOO quickly but his ped said it should taper off once he's more mobile. He's definitely eating enough during the day and is not shy about telling us when he's hungry.
goldenlove3 enjoy it! Don't feel bad about sharing. DD was and still is an awesome sleeper so I appreciate it. I also know DS could be a hell of a lot worse. I agree with danib, if no one is concerned about weight gain I wouldn't be concerned about going that long without feeding. He is clearly getting his needed calories.
Do they nap? Well? C is a great car napper. I do not have her on a regular nap schedule. I should, but our lives have just been so hectic lately. Maybe this summer once we're out of this house. Typically she'll take morning and afternoon naps, but they're not as long as B's were. She hasn't yet taken a crib nap. Buuuut she sleeps great at night, so I'm not forcing the issue yet.
How long at night? From 8:30/9 to 6-7 a.m., typically w/o wake-ups.
What's your routine? Around 7:30 or so, DH runs a bath for B. C joins in about every other day. After that it's jammies, we join B in his room for a book, and then hit the nursery at 8ish to nurse in the dark. She is down by 8:30 or so.
Any crutches you know you need to eliminate? She loves to nap in her bouncer, but she's on the verge of outgrowing that, so I really do need to get her in the crib for naps. We've tried a few times but even putting her down sound asleep, her eyes pop open and she's ready to play. Otherwise, so far we're doing ok.
Misc. We did have to do a little sleep training with Bradley. When he was about 8 months old, he started fighting bedtime like nothing else and was waking up frequently overnight to comfort nurse. I'm not sure what the name of the 'method' we used was, and I didn't really read anything other than a compilation of tips from the internet my mom sent me, but basically we'd put him down and then check on him periodically, lengthening the time b/n each check in. It took a couple nights and I *hated* hearing the crying, but it worked. There were a couple occasions through his baby/toddlerhood when we had to do that again, typically as a "reset" after an illness, vacation, etc. He's a great sleeper now so I guess we didn't scar him for life too terribly.
Post by jubilantsquirrel on Apr 12, 2017 11:21:45 GMT -5
Do they nap? Well? Yes. He naps well on the weekends, I'm not sure about the weekdays though. On the weekends he usually takes 3 naps, one in the morning about 1.5 hours after and it lasts about 2 hours and then one in the afternoon (I try to sync this up with DS1's nap, so about 1pm or so) and it usually lasts 2-3 hours. Then he usually takes a short 30-45 minute nap in the evenings, around 5:30-6. Bedtime is at 8pm. I don't think he naps as well during the week with my ILs watching him. My MIL is so quick to get him at the slightest noise, so I don't think he gets very long stretches.
How long at night? Bedtime is at 8, I usually put him in the crib at 8:30 and he is up for the day at around 7-8. He usually has several wake ups overnight. Anywhere from 3-6 is average (although last night he only woke up twice!)
What's your routine? I take him upstairs, change into a onsie, turn the star nightlight thing on, turn the fan on for white noise, turn off the lights, put him in his Merlin suit and then nurse and rock in the chair until he falls asleep. Then I transfer him to the crib. Some nights we do bath before bed.
Any crutches you know you need to eliminate? We use the swing for naps, which I don't mind, but I think we're going to have to move him to his crib soon since DS1 is starting to him wake up more often. I don't mind doing this, but my ILs refuse to take the baby up or down the stairs, so I'm not sure what we're going to do about that. With DS1 we just used the pnp downstairs, but that won't really work with DS2 since DS1 will still be waking him up. Our downstairs isn't very big and I don't have a closed off quiet area to put the pnp.
I do nurse to sleep, but I don't mind. I'll try to break that habit later on.
Sorry I've been mia, home alone with baby, worrying about DH who is safely on his vessel ( miles offshore) so I'm breathing a little easier!
What is btdt? Do they nap? L hates naps/sleep unless on someone! Otherwise, I get maybe 20 minutes! +1 aggiebug I feel like I have stuff to do and my mom can't come up till next weekend so I'm alone!?!
How long at night? We start prep at 9ish, so he sleeps about 10:30-5am or 10:30-7.
What's your routine? We bath every night, good long soaks (not always with soap) then moisturizer which keeps his eczema at bay! Lotion up (which he hates) then feeding, burping, and a story!
Any crutches? Same as Hangry, letting him fall asleep while nursing. I don't even know how to get him to self soothe! He will cry and keep himself worked up. He sleeps the longest if he's on us.
sophiegrace. If you are really struggling with sleep you might consider talking with a sleep consultant. I have a few friends who have and have been sooo thankful. They start this young and work on helping you get the right routine and timing. It's not sleep training unless you want it to be and they are several months older.
sophiegrace. If you are really struggling with sleep you might consider talking with a sleep consultant. I have a few friends who have and have been sooo thankful. They start this young and work on helping you get the right routine and timing. It's not sleep training unless you want it to be and they are several months older.
Hugs.
I have a clearer head today. She doesn't do much crying, so many continuous hours of it was hard to handle. She's a baby that loves routine and nothing went well all morning. First the housekeeper came by, then a solicitor, then FedEx, and on and on and on. By the time H got home for lunch it was already too late. She was over the edge. Hopefully she'll nap today and I'll be able to come back here and answer these questions with something other than an LOL.
I was always worried about a sleep consultant because we cosleep. It may be a good option once I'm ready to get her in the crib, but I'm still enjoying it too much. I'll get there.....I hope.
sophiegrace Is there a general time she usually is able to fall asleep for the night?
Yes. 9-9:30 on a typical night. Which is fine except we start bedtime at 7-7:30 so it's a long two hours at minimum. She's ready for bed by 7:30-8, but it takes that long for her to shut down. I've tried playing with the times, but it never works out. Going away for the weekend really messed things up. I've at least in the past two night have been able to put her down drowsy after nursing and lightly rub her belly while she gets herself down. It takes about an hour lying there with her, but if she falls asleep on her own like that I noticed that the first stretch is a bit longer. If she falls asleep nursing she's up in 45 minutes and gets upset that I'm not there.
I think that is where the nap struggle is. It takes so long for her to get into a deep sleep that she feels refreshed enough and is ready to go after a light cat nap. I think it's work for her that she doesn't feel like doing when literally everything is the most amazing thing in the world to her. Even dark rooms with nothing around us lol. I think with time, persistence, and patience we will get there. I hope.
What really keeps me going is the thought that these first five months flew by. It's only going to keep going like that and eventually I'm going to be that lady with grown up kids reminiscing about all these quiet moments that I held her instead of doing anything else. That thought doesn't get anything done, and it doesn't get me through all days, but usually it does.
sophiegrace I think an hour to hour and a half bedtime routine is typical when you add in all the stuff. Lilah's is about an hour right now and Lillian's is 1.5. What happens in those 2 hours?
Naps...are not a thing I am good at. I had Lillian who I prayed would nap for any length of time over 30 minutes while she was a baby and only fell asleep on me nursing or in the car. And now Lilah who I can literally just say, "oh you're tired, go take a nap" and she's out for at least an hour.
sophiegrace the consultant I know even works with cosleeping. Many do a consultation to see if you are a good fit to work together so if you aren't then you can walk away. If you aren't ready to reach out that is absolutely fine, just something to think about.
I am glad things are off to a more positive start today. Hopefully it continues.
Post by cookswithwine9 on Apr 13, 2017 14:53:12 GMT -5
Do they nap? Well? Yes he does! Better at home than at daycare. It took us a long time to get there though. I think when I went back to work and he got on a consistent routine that really helped. He takes a morning, afternoon and sometimes evening nap. They can range from 30 mins to 3 hours. Naps are all in his crib.
How long at night? Sleeps from 7ish pm to 6:30am. Normally we only have 1 wake up and I nurse him then. He's been sleeping in his crib from 8 weeks.
What's your routine? Bath on wed/sun, jammies, play, nurse, (sometimes rock), bed. I would like to incorporate a book somewhere in there.
Any crutches you know you need to eliminate? I don't think so. Eventually I might need to move his "dinner" time earlier. He's not a huge fan of rocking anymore and doesn't like the pacifier either.
So the unicorn sleeper is in the cookswithwine9 household.
He's not STTN! I do consider myself lucky though. Idk if this contributed to it but I only go get him if he's really crying. If he's just fussing I let him figure it out; therefore, he's good at putting himself back to sleep now.
So the unicorn sleeper is in the cookswithwine9 household.
He's not STTN! I do consider myself lucky though. Idk if this contributed to it but I only go get him if he's really crying. If he's just fussing I let him figure it out; therefore, he's good at putting himself back to sleep now.
It definitely helps I think, but some of it is nature too. My first is like yours and man it's still amazing.... This kid is a stinker.
Bumping to ask if anyone has any no-cry sleep training pro tips. We're not ready just yet but with babies sharing a room (and W in there as well), too much crying would just wake everyone up. I need to prepare.
thanks for bumping. I am starting to look into these solutions as well. I am 100% certain C is not going to be ok with any type of sleep training that involves crying. Don't forget to check out your library for the books they have available.
Post by sophiegrace on Apr 20, 2017 19:20:18 GMT -5
I'll admit, Mia has never been a good sleeper but I don't help the situation. If I don't have anything pressing to get done I love having her nap on me. I can't blame her for not know how to soothe herself or flipping out when I put her down. Three weeks ago we were doing great. Similar to what Vino was doing, but I laid next to her the whole time with my hand on her and shushing until she was asleep. She was napping and in bed at night at a decent time. Went away for the weekend and that all went out the window and she regressed big time. Idk if more awareness also kicked in or what. She didn't go to sleep at all until 10:48 last night. It was torture. Next week sucks so I'm waiting until next Friday and we're hitting it hard again.
I really don't mind holding her. And I will continue to if this gentle sleep training doesn't work, but like all things Mia I don't want to mess her up just because holding her comforts me.
Post by cookswithwine9 on Apr 21, 2017 8:50:24 GMT -5
My routine is very similar to vinolove. O loves to talk to himself in the crib. Most nights he wakes me up by talking instead of crying. So I let him be until it turns to crying. Sometimes he talks to himself for 15 mins! This happens with naps too.
E napped in her crib for almost an hour and half!!!
I put her tummy down and she repositioned twice but didn't wake up! This is a win for us.
I am going all in tonight and will try to put her to bed in her crib which shares a room with big bro. This could be a colossal fail but she doesn't fit in the bassinet anymore and I'm ready to move her.
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