How do you make your little one sleep like a baby?
It’s so easy in the beginning, but then that self awareness increases and their eyesight gets better, and the teething starts, and suddenly they are totally sleep regressing. So, how do you get your baby to sleep through the night?
I recognize there are a lot of approaches, but I will say, I started sleep training Keaton around 4 months (and over 15 lbs) according to the guidelines of the book I mention down below, and he is an amazing sleeper.
put them in their own bed
I know there’s a lot of beliefs about this, and I fully respect parents who practice attachment parenting or feeding on demand, even at night. But I personally think your little one has to sleep in their own bed to sleep well. Keaton is completely night weaned, but while on vacation last week we had to cosleep. For two nights he had to sleep in our bed, and he woke up like 3 times to eat…. I doubt he was hungry, but his food was like 6 inches from his face, and it’s just easy comfort. But that also means he’s not sleeping, nor am I.
Whereas in his own bed my every toss and turn isn’t interrupting him, and he’s overall getting better sleep.
a consistent bedtime routine is key
Each night my little one gets…
One lotion rub down and fresh jammies.
One round of reading our favorite book Goodnight Moon.
One goodnight feed.
One soundmachine turned on.
5 pacifiers laid out around him. So he can find one easily. 🙈
And a goodnight kiss.
And sometimes it’s right off to dreamland or sometimes it’s play and coo to wind down, but every night it’s sleep. I do think a video monitor is also invaluable. It allows me as his mom, more freedom to not go in when he is “working through things” because I can see that he’s ok.
We read and applied all the wonderful tips in the Sleep Easy Solution which is a super supported minimal cry it out method. And now, our baby is ACTUALLY sleeping like a baby. He’s happier and I’m happier too, because I know longer feel the pressure of getting him to sleep, because he knows how to do it on his own. It only took 4 days to apply.
What strategies do you use to get your baby to sleep through the night?
