Baby and toddler sleep tips – what works for me
Jun 13
Being a mother to only 1 child (and an aunt to 1), I feel a little silly doling out anything related to parenting. There are so many people who are so much more experienced than I. But, I suppose every child is different and what works for me might just help someone else who’s trying to find a solution. Jack is a great sleeper, great at going to bed, not so great at sleeping late, but that’s just how he’s built. He was not always a great sleeper though. But, I believe sleep is one of the keys to having a happy child and a happy Mommy, so we have really worked at it. So, here are the things that have worked for me:1. If they won’t sleep when they’re really little on their back, try wedging something on either side of them (Laura used rolled up towels), or letting them sleep in a carseat. They may just need to feel snugglier. I wish I had known this sooner! Jack had such a hard time getting through the night. The open crib was just too open for him. He got a cold at about 5 months and the pediatrician suggested sleeping him in his carseat. He slept through the night for the first time that night and has ever since. The Noggin Nest
2. I started out taking all the advice about developing a bedtime/naptime routine, and just have gotten away from doing anything at all and found that it doesn’t make any difference. I now try never to get in the habit of doing anything at bedtime or nap time. Maybe some kids need routine, and maybe Jack’s just not one of them, but even with Emily, who I have during the day – I put them down, say “night night” and leave the room. No problem.
3. When there is crying, which happens every couple of months, unless it is screaming because something is wrong, I do not go in Jack’s room. If I think something might be wrong, I feel for a diaper leak, comfort him for a minute and do not go back in again. When Jack started testing the sleep thing at about 15 months (“hey, maybe I don’t have to listen to Mommy after all. Maybe I don’t have to go to bed when she says or stay in my bed all night.”) because he had been such a good sleeper, I thought something surely is wrong with him. By the time I finally realized he was just testing, I had made the problem worse by going in several times and even laying down in his room on the couch trying to help him understand it was night-night time.
4. I try to put Jack down for a nap with a full tummy.
5. Crying it out works. Every person I’ve ever known that did it says so.
6. I try and go into Jack’s room as quickly as possible when he does wake up. (He’s not one of those kids who will play in their crib for a while before really wanting to get up) This way, when he does cry at 5am because he thinks it’s time to get up, it’s relatively short because after getting no response and knowing that crying is not going to accomplish anything, he goes back to sleep. This also is keeping him from trying to climb out of his crib, which I’m sure he could do if he really wanted to.
7. Using a cloth diaper (the thin kind) to put over Jack’s face as he was trying to go to sleep worked great. I guess this is pretty common- for some kids just a light breathable cloth over their face as they’re fussing, trying to get to sleep is just what they need to “turn the lights out”. Cloth diapers make perfect “loveys” as well. Jack always asks for his “night-night” when he’s getting into bed.
What are some sleep tips that have worked for you? I’m particularly interested in what will work as Jack transitions out of the crib into a big boy bed some time in the next year.
Find more helpful hints at “Works for me Wednesday” over at Rocks in my Dryer.
Hum a Diddy –
Emily doesn’t necessarily have to have a tune sung, but if she is getting sqirmy and not really in a relaxed mood to sleep I hum Silent Night and it seems to help get her ready for sleep mode.
Thanks for the post. My son has also been a great sleeper since about 6 months. We’ve recently gone through a move transition and are temporarily in an apt until our house is ready; he had been sleeping well and suddenly has stopped sleeping well. It has made me re-evaluate everything we did to help teach him to be a good sleeper. I’ve been searching the web world for advice and this has really been a great reminder how wonderful it is when they sleep. Thanks!
Leave him in the crib as long as possible!! I recently read in a list of what babies should do when that you shouldn’t even try to take them out of the crib until they are at least three. Isaac was four. We had his “big” bed set up and would periodically ask him where he wanted to sleep. It was always the crib. Then, shortly after he turned four, he woke up one a.m. and said, ” I fink (think) I’ll sleep in my big bed tonight. He’s been in it ever since.
Yeah, I’m definitely in NO hurry to move him to a big bed!
My daughter has slept through the night ever since she was 2 days old. I would have to wake her up to feed her as an infant, but here recently she has started a new behavior. Now when she goes to bed she requires the blanket to be all the way over her head. She has no siblings that she would pick this up from and I am just curious why she would start doing this all of a sudden at almost 3 years old.
My son is and has been a great sleeper. He is 15 months and has been sleeping in his big boy bed for about a month now. I couldnt believe that he took to it so well. I was really nervous about him falling out of bed (my fiance just took the entire side off of his crib), and getting out of bed to cry at the door. He has fallen out of bed, but I was in there so fast he didnt even wake up! Only a couple of times has he gotten out of bed and when I can hold out from going in there (and it is HARD sometimes), he always gets back into bed and goes to sleep. So just stay consistent!!
When we moved our son out of the parents bedroom and into his own room at around 14 months he started some big drama every time he was supposed to go to sleep.
What seemed to help was for him to know that we are still around, i.e. we left the door open just a little with some light and the TV on outside, so he knew mommy and daddy were still there.
Babies go through the growth spur about this age, and therefore need to eat more. Do add rice baby cereal to his milk/formula at the last feeding especially. This will be more nutricious then a milk alone. This should help, babies go through the growth spur every couple of months, this greatly varies from child to child, but as they grow there is a need for an increased portions. You can ask your doctor in which growth percentile he is, and that should also give you some idea of how much he needs.
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toddlers development is step by step, I have two year old daughter she is a late sleeper. all she need is her stuff toys to put around her bed before going to sleep. Thanks for posting this article.
this is what i want to read. simple but useful.
although this post is outdated, however this is timeless. our baby may different from others, in term of habit. so, we need different approach and test what will works and what is not. it’s clear that parents need to put some efforts to understand the behavior of their children and baby. it seems like baby sleep positioner can be used here but under several circumstances. you can read more about that in my blog.
If he does try to climb out of the crib, it’s probably time to transition to a ‘big boy bed’ with a baby bumper.
You’re totally right about letting them cry it out.
My son is very active, so he spent a lot of energy. When he began to sleep so he would fall asleep for a long time because he was too tired. He is very hard to wake up when it comes time to wake up.
For older children is they still have trouble with sleeping maybe try sleeping bags which can help alleviate difficulties when transitioning from cot to bed. You can view our range of sleepsacs here: http://www.babyo.com.au/sleeping-bags-organic.html
Sizing allows for use from 0 to 2 years and 2 to 4 years.