And the Bedtime Saga Continues...

This is us. We're tired.

Last week, we were dealing with Baby T's transition out of the crib. It turns out it was no big deal. He is now sleeping happily in his mattress on the floor. There's just one problem. My toddler now has free will, and he knows it.

Maybe this is more of my problem than his. Maybe I liked the fact that I could keep him contained before. Maybe I liked being able to stay in bed until 6 A.M. without being woken up by a pitter-patter of feet and tiny little hands.

The Big Boy Bed

In my last post, I talked about how, when I sought support for breastfeeding, it was often just empathy that I wanted. I often act like I want answers, but I often just want to know that other people are going through the same things that I am. And I often act like I have answers, but I really don't. I don't know what I'm doing when it comes to mothering. In this blog, although I often try to post constructive content that sounds like I've found the answer, I really don't have any answers.

The Lazy Mom's Guide to Night Weaning

Oh, you thought this would give you the easy answers? Oops--Don't get all excited by the title. This isn't really a guide. I'm too lazy to figure it out.You all know that sleep is probably my biggest challenge as a mom. It’s not even the lack of sleep; I can function great somewhat normally on only a few hours of sleep, at least for a few days. It's the waking up right after I've fallen asleep. Being groggy and stumbling around in the middle of the night is not my forte. I'm cranky and I'm mean and I'm not all there.

That's if I have to get up.

If I can just roll around in bed, I'm great. It's snuggly and cuddly and I can just rest. It's when I have to stand upright that all hell breaks loose.

Sleep Training Part IV—The Data Behind the Philosophy

According to an article called “Sleep Disorders and Sleep Problems in Childhood,” written by C. Carolyn Thiedke, M.D., and published in American Family Physician, sleep behaviors are some of the most discussed concerns between parents and pediatricians. She makes a distinction between sleep disorders and sleep problems, however. Thiedke defines a sleep disorder as one “confirmed by reproducible findings in a sleep laboratory” and a sleep problem as “a sleep pattern that is unsatisfactory to the parents, child or physician.”

Sleep Training Part III – A Momentary Lapse of Reason

I’ve been talking about how I’m not really into sleep training, and I think it’s more important to be responsive to your baby than to establish a strict routine or let baby cry it out. And in my last post, I mentioned that I’m confident that Little M will eventually sleep through the night without having to resort to crying it out.

And I am.

But it’s easy to doubt myself, which is what I did the other night.

Sleep Training Part II – Then and Now

Baby T asleep on Big T's shoulder

Here’s my history with sleep and Baby T. You’ve probably heard it all before. He woke up often, especially between three and seven months. Sometimes he was waking every 20 minutes. I soothed him to sleep every time; I nursed him to sleep, rocked him to sleep, or wore him in a sling or a wrap to get him to sleep. Even in the middle of the night.

I read Elizabeth Pantley’s “No-Cry Sleep Solution,” and it made a lot of sense. There are people who say that it’s too complicated or it didn’t work for them. But I secretly think that the No-Cry Sleep Solution isn’t anything different than what you would do with a little common sense. It’s just a way to gradually (and she stresses gradually) wean your child off of being rocked, nursed, or worn to sleep. And eventually, they do gradually wean off of it.

But I was never alert enough at night to really try the steps in the “No-Cry Sleep Solution.” I just went back to the old standby: nursing, and if that didn’t get Baby T back to sleep, then rocking or babywearing did.

Sleep Training Part I - What's the Problem?

This is one of a four-part series of posts that explores sleep training. I'll talk about why pediatricians push for it, my own experiences with it, and I'll conclude with a post that pulls together facts from actual studies.

 At Little M’s six-month well visit, the nurse asked me all the typical questions:
“Has he started solids yet?”
“Yup, he’s had some.”
“How often is he nursing?”
“Oh, every three hours,” I lied. No point in actually trying to put a pattern on it.
“And does he take both breasts?”
“Not always.”
“How’s he sleeping?”
I laughed. “Terribly! He’s up every hour or so,” I said with a smile. It obviously wasn’t bothering me. My babies’ sleep is like my own inside joke at this point. I have never met anyone whose infants sleep worse.
“And is he sleeping in his crib?”
“Yup!” I lied again.

Fast forward. Doctor comes in. Checks out Little M. Everything looks good. Looks at the chart. “You know, six months is a great time to start sleep training.”