Back when the pacifier was King
Does he sleep through the night? This seems to be the question that every parent LOVES to ask us. "Sometimes"," Almost the whole night for the most part", " Kind of" These are the responses that I hear from fellow parents. I'm not sure why we don't just say no. The length of time your baby sleeps at night even becomes bragging rights. I'm not afraid to come out and say that he does NOT sleep through the night. Well he does, he just wakes up a few times. lol.
We have tried all of the commonly used methods to put him to sleep and have been crossing them off of our list these past sixth months. Our plans are usually thwarted in five minutes, by a suddenly awake baby with no plans of going to sleep.
Soothing method- Singing and rocking baby to sleep.
Alex: Why are the lights suddenly out? Where did everyone go? Wahhhhh
Rocking-rocking baby to sleep in a chair, or walking
Alex: wahhhhh. Rock me the whole night!
Driving down- Drive around until baby falls asleep. When you return home lift baby out of carseat and into crib. (Five minutes later.)
Alex: what's the plan for tonight guys?
Wear down- Feed baby to prevent nighttime nibbling.
Alex:I'm greedy. Didn’t you know this? Wheres my milk woman!
Nestling down- Rocking baby to sleep follow by snuggling him in your arms.
Me: Yay he's sleep! ...Wait I am too.
Calming down- Warm bath before bedtime to relax and calm baby before going to sleep.
Alex: I love to play in the water. Playtime! No bedtime for me.
The nurse down
The nurse down worked for a long time. The trouble came when it was time to move him from my arms to his crib. With the change in surroundings he usually woke up and we were back to square one. He also became dependent on being nursed to sleep even when he wasn’t hungry.
Although many of these methods worked to put him to sleep, he did not STAY asleep. Two weeks ago we started the Ferber technique. Don't Judge me, I was desperate. This method really hurts in the beginning. Alex is particularly stubborn and believed that we would eventually pick him up if he cried forever. The first week he cried for atleast thirty minutes.
I was convinced that he would harbor resentment in the morning for not being held, but he was his usual jolly self. Lets cross our fingers that he doesnt outgrow his new sleep technique.
