Sleep Update

I thought I would update what I have done to get Parker to go to sleep on his own for naps. I appreciate all the comments I received on the last post. It is always reassuring to know that other mothers go through the same trials as you are going through.

Last Monday I decided that I would try to get Parker to go to sleep on his own in his crib. Up until that point I had been bouncing him to sleep in my arms, or putting him in my Moby wrap until he fell asleep and trying to keep him asleep while transferring him to the crib. I have him on a routine of Sleep, Eat, Wake time, then sleep, etc. Some know it from the BabyWise method and it is actually the routine the Baby Whisperer recommends as well. Just to say, I probably don't do any method 100% but make up my own - which is probably good since all babies are different.

Anyway, because I don't nurse Parker to sleep, I have the problem of trying to get him from awake to asleep. My method comes a lot from the Baby Whisperer: I look for his sign of tiredness which is yawning several times within a few minutes. I make sure he has a clean diaper, turn a lullaby CD on, sit down, put his pacifier in and hold him close to me. I hold him for about 3-5 minutes just so that he realizes nap time is coming. Most of the time, he gets quiet and still and his eyes even flutter a little bit. Then, I put him in his crib (on his tummy-Cole slept on his tummy too) get him somewhat comfortable, pat his back a few times and leave the room. Sometimes, like magic, he goes to sleep, but that has only happened a few times, and I think it is because I caught him just at that perfect moment.

Most of the time though, I have to go in there 2 or 3 times to pat his back, hold his head down so he doesn't keep moving it, and sometimes put his pacifier in. Most people would say, "Let him cry". Well, Parker doesn't really cry unless he is overtired, and I really try not to let him get overtired. I wish he would cry sometimes because I think he would fall asleep so much faster. But, honestly, he rarely cries; he is a VERY laid back baby - completely opposite of Cole. The most he will do is fuss. If the process goes on longer though, he will cry and then I just spend a little bit more time patting his back and making sure he is asleep. But, most of the time, I get him calmed down and somewhat in a drowsy state and then I leave and he has learned to put himself to sleep.

So, that is what I have done. The first few days were hard because it took quite a bit of time to do this, but as each day has come and gone, he has gotten so much better. I will say I don't do this for his evening nap. I have tried and he just will not sleep in his crib during the evening hours. So, I usually end up putting him in my Moby wrap and he sleeps for about an hour in that. Also, I usually am a little more flexible when I put him to sleep for the night - if he falls asleep during nursing, then great, but that rarely happens. Most of the time I lay down with him in my bed and he will fall asleep. He is just so much fussier and a little bit more wired at that time of day so I don't want to get him upset. I tried letting him cry in his crib two night ago and it took about an hour to calm him down to go to sleep.

Well, I need to go wake up Cole from his nap. He has been having sleeping issues - he doesn't seem to like to take a nap every day but he still needs one. And when he does take one, he doesn't want to go to sleep at night. What to do, what to do!