Once upon a time we had a newborn in a swaddle wrap, who slept (though that's not quite the word for what she did) next to our bed in an
Amby Baby Sleeper. She finally figured out how to unwrap the swaddle and turn herself over any way she pleased around four months. She preferred her tummy, like most babies, so the next thing to do was drop the wrap. From there we decided to flip her to her back over and over and over until she won the battle of wills. And at six months we tried to move her to the crib, unsuccessfully. She ended up in the pack n' play for a few months while we went back and forth trying to figure out the best way to make the move. We tried again at eight months and finally made the switch permanently right after her first birthday.
Our sleeping journey has been a long one with many trials and errors, online research, and plenty of advice from anyone who was willing to share. The thing about the process of teaching a baby to sleep is that everyone has an opinion and usually it's a controversial one. We have never been on one side or the other. We've tried every thing we could think of, including co-sleeping, to finally find something that worked for us. And that is our stance. Whatever works for your family is the right choice. At first, we were very nervous about her being in bed with us with SIDS being such a heavy weight on our minds. So we attempted to go with the safer options. That is... until the the lack of sleep made my brain a little hazy and things got desperate.
Once the real exhaustion kicked in, after many many months of trying new things, I would have tried just about anything to make it through a few more hours of uninterrupted sleep. We tried mixing some oatmeal or rice with a small bottle before bed to fill her up. We tried tiring her out, staying up later, and strict routines. At one point, we moved our bed into her room next to her crib. That only ended in co-sleeping and getting less sleep than before we moved. Honestly, I think the only thing that finally worked was being ready and committed to some sort of solution. She was old enough to feel secure, her body was big enough to hold more food and sustain her until the morning, and we were more confident in our parenting.
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| Last night in her crib |
Finally, we conquered the crib. She was in her own room and sleeping through the night. Then... she grew... and grew... and grew. She scaled the walls of her pack n' play in a fit of rage, landing on the floor in a thud heard around the apartment. There were tears, many conversations about the "right time" to make the switch, and pillows now line the perimeter of her bed. We did research, talked to friends and family, and even made a plan (complete with printouts). Early one Friday morning, before Dad went off to work, we broke out our screw drivers and went to work.
"Song of the Entry"
My Fair Lady by Kelsey Brown
