Sleep: What Works for Us

A friend gave me a great bit of advice when I was attempting to read a parenting book before Aliyah was born. She said “Every baby is unique. There is no book that will give you all the answers, so don’t worry too much about trying to follow them - do what you need to do for your baby and family”

I liked that. It resonated with me - but the planner in me still had a desire to read and learn all I could about how to care for Aliyah effectively. I browsed a couple websites on sleep and talked with a few other moms. I took away 2 main things that I decided made sense for us:

1. Stick to a bedtime(ish)

2. Stick to a bedtime routine

During the day Aliyah naps when she wants to. We don’t follow a schedule. Occasionally, I’ll put her down for a nap in her crib but mostly she sleeps wherever she happens to be - in her carseat, in her sling, in my arms, in her swing, wherever. This makes sense for us because we have been getting out of the house a lot - walking, running errands, visiting with friends. We’re lucky because Aliyah can sleep just about anywhere - and sleeps better when there is a buzz of activity going on around her. She gets restless if the room is perfectly quiet so her daytime lullaby tends to be our barking dogs, the cell phone ringing, or the hum of voices in a busy restaurant.

2 months old

Before she was 8 weeks old - we had no routine at all. We just did what we had to do to get her comfortable and asleep but for the past month we’ve been TRYING to stick to a “get ready for bed” routine with the following steps:

* Start between 7:30-8:30pm

* Turn down the lights in our room and turn on her sleep sheep

* Change her diaper and put her in a sleep sack (we used to swaddle her until she houdini-ed her way out)

* Nurse her until she’s full

* Give her a binky. I wasn’t sure if I wanted her to be a binky baby but after reading that studies have shown it can reduce the risk of SIDS, I was all for it - plus she seems to love it.

* Even though she’s too young to really know what we’re saying, we started reading to her from a stack of "goodnight" books. We read until her eyes start to get heavy and then we lay her down while she is still awake.

* Then we turn on her baby monitor and enjoy a couple hours to ourselves in the basement. In the beginning she would fuss some and we’d go in and make sure her binky hadn’t fallen out and rub her head a bit until she settled down. We always check on her if she fusses for more than 30 seconds. Now, she only fusses if her binky has fallen out, and most of the time, as soon as you put it back in her mouth she is content and falls asleep on her own.

With this routine, we are getting her to sleep for 5-6 straight hours - waking up at 2am for a quick feeding and diaper change (less than 20 minutes) - and then we lay her back down awake and she falls asleep and usually doesn’t wake up again until around 6am. When she wakes up in the morning we bring her in the bed with us to nurse and cuddle until we get up. This is what has been working the past 2 weeks.

Between 2 and 3 months she would sleep for 10 hours straight... but then month 3 hit - I felt as if she was back on an infant sleeping schedule again *UGH* But now with our routine, she is back to sleeping longer. Maybe a growth spurt - Maybe Aliyah likes to change things up so she doesn't get bored...

Every baby is different - some sleep in 3 hour blocks for months and others are sleeping through the night at 3 weeks old. But our once a night wake up is working for all of us right now because we wake up fairly rested and ready for the day.

There is one thing that has made our life easier:

Swaddling/Sleep Sacks. Even when she fought it initially - swaddling her made her sleep more soundly and for longer periods of time. Now that she’s getting bigger and stronger, we've been using the zip sleep sacks. The change was tough at first, but now wearing the sack gives her a signal that it is time for bed.

Aliyah in her sleep sack and new pony (thanks aunt penny!)

She looks ready for bed, huh?

I feel like this post is a bit all over the place - but this is what has worked for us. Like I said earlier, every baby has unique needs when it comes to a sleep routine - I’m really interested to hear tips and tricks from other new parents. What has been a lifesaver for you when it comes to getting your baby to sleep?