Sleeping Through The Night

I desperately need my sleep. I have always loved {and NEEDED} my whole full nights rest to function throughout the day. I truly believe in beauty rest – not only for outward beauty, but for inward beauty. If I don’t get my full seven to eight hours of sleep at night, I am little Miss Grumpy! Seriously! In fact, the other day I recognized my bad attitude so I told my husband, “I just need to go to bed! I am so mean right now!” And I went to sleep and it was lovely!

Photo by ArtByDesignLV

When I became a mom I learned very quickly that I was going to have to learn to adjust my schedule. The moment the doctor laid Laila in my arms the first time, I knew my life had changed forever. It wasn’t about me anymore… I was responsible to take care of another human being. I quickly had to learn how to become more selfless and less selfish. This sweet baby I held in my arms, as tears filled my eyes, was what I had hoped, dreamed and prayed for, for many years. I honestly never knew I could fall in love with someone so quickly.

The first night in the hospital seemed unreal and kind of like a big haze to be honest. Nurses coming in to take tests on Laila and I, machines making loud noises, our sweet new baby waking up every two hours to eat, not to mention the whirlwind of thoughts running through my mind as I tried to convince myself of the reality that I WAS A MOM! We didn’t get much sleep that night, or the next night… or the next.

Everyone will tell you as an expecting mom, “Enjoy your rest now!” BUT I honestly don’t think you realize what they truly mean until you have a baby. It is exhausting, tiring and overwhelming. I remember feeding Laila at 3am each night – cherishing the special moment of having a baby, while being a little jealous of my husband sleeping next to me. {Don’t get me wrong – he got up with the baby just as much as I did!! I was just nursing, so often times he was able to go back to sleep, while I got my cuddles in with our baby girl.}

I did a LOT of baby research before I became a mom. I was on bed rest for nearly five months, so I had a lot of time on my hands. I read some amazing books like Baby Wise, The Baby Whisperer , Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby and of course, What to Expect When You’re Expecting. {I love that movie too!}  Each of these books gave me different ideas on how to get my baby to sleep through the night, but I never felt right about one solid sleep habit book. I loved one thing about one of the books and I loved another thing out of the other book. SO – I created my own way to get Laila to sleep through the night.

EVERYONE in the world has different ideas on sleeping schedules and remedies for babies. And let me tell you – EVERYONE will want to tell you what they believe in and that their way is the only way. I am here to tell you, that that isn’t true. I believe that EVERY baby is different. EVERY mom is different. EVERY situation is different. You need to do, what you think is best for you, your baby and your family. Some moms believe in the “cry it out method.” Some moms believe in co-sleeping. Some moms believe in rocking their babies to sleep. There are so many ideas and opinions out there and ultimately it is up to you, as the mom, how you would like to parent.

Did you know that a baby isn’t supposed to sleep through the night at 6 weeks old? Someone told me that their baby was sleeping through the night at six weeks old and I just knew my baby was going to be a little angel too and would be doing that if it was possible! WELL – six weeks FLEW by as a first-time-mom and I suddenly realized it hadn’t happened yet. Why was my baby still waking up every 3-4 hours to eat at six weeks old?! I asked my doctor and he replied, “Because it is normal.”

You will find a lot of different Baby Sleep Chart’s, but I loved this one. To me, it is the most real and most accurate I have seen. Babies get hungry – they need to eat! So it is okay and absolutely normal for them to wake up in the middle of the night to eat.

I have come up with THREE Helpful Tips to remember as you prepare your baby to sleep through the night. I understand that this is what worked for me and may not work for all of you – but these are my ideas that I am happy to share with you!

1. SET A ROUTINE: This is by far the most important thing we EVER did with Laila. The first five months of parenthood was so fun for us! We absolutely cherished every minute. Laila slept in a bassinet next to us in our room. As a new mom, I was always afraid of SIDS and I found a lot of comfort having her sleep in my room near me. I loved hearing her little sounds and knowing that she was okay.

After she turned five months old, we knew it was time for her to move into her own room. This was honestly scary for me. I didn’t know how I would handle her not being near us, but now I know it was best for our family. Often times up until this point, we would have her fall asleep in our arms, cuddling. We love our cuddles to this day, but knew it was important for her to learn how to fall asleep on her own. Not only for herself, but we were missing the “us” time as husband and wife.

This was when a schedule became most important. Every night we would EAT dinner, take a BATH, give her a BOTTLE, READ a book, SING a song, SAY a prayer, PUT her in the crib, TURN off the lights and WALK out. This was our schedule and it worked! In fact, it STUCK! And we have done it EVERY day since. To this day, if she misses a step in her schedule, she sometimes has a harder time sleeping through the night. She loves her routines – BABIES love routines.

I may get ridiculed for this, but I do not believe in the “cry it out” method. I never have and never will. I heard a friend once say, “Why have a baby if you are just going to let them cry?” And I couldn’t agree more. I can’t stand letting Laila cry, so I don’t. I have never let her cry it out and she has been going to sleep on her own since and sleeping through the night (8 hours) since she was six months old. She now sleeps 12 hours straight through the night and LOVES bed time! She loves her crib and it is a peaceful time for her – even when she wakes up, she doesn’t cry. She either plays in her crib until we go check on her or says, “MA-MA-MA-MA” and bangs on her bed. 🙂

Make sure you create a schedule, that way they can recognize what is going to happen next. When Laila gets in the bath – she knows it is play time and splash time! But once she is dressed and has her bottle and book, she knows we are calming down and it is quiet time.

2. MAKE SURE THEY ARE COMFORTABLE: Overnight Diapers were the best thing we ever purchased! When Laila started sleeping longer than just a few hours at night, she would wake up SOAKED! That was when we purchased Pamper’s Overnight Diapers and they worked like a charm! She never woke up soaked again. They absorbed everything throughout the whole night and she was able to sleep DRY!

We also put up black out shades which literally saved the day! Not only do they help with the morning sun, but her naps are longer and better too as her room stays dark all day long!

One other thing that helped me, {not so much her} was a camera in her room. Like I mentioned before, I was scared to have her leave my bedroom. It was such a big deal for me! We got a web Camerathat connects to our iPhones and brought me SO much comfort those first few months of her sleeping in the her own room. I was able to chime into the camera and see her sleeping peacefully and breathing, which put my mind at ease.

3. YOU ARE THEIR MOM, LOVE THEM: This is so important to remember. YOU are their MOM! YOU know what is best for your little one. Always remember that and don’t let someone tell you that you are doing it wrong. If it works for you – perfect! I was actually nervous I wasn’t going to have those “motherly instincts” everyone always talks about. But, they really do come! The first time I saw Laila, I had a connection with her. She needed me and I needed her. I don’t always know what she needs, but for the most part as moms we learn how to handle our children. Most newborns cry because they are hungry or need a diaper change. As their mom, you will learn how to meet their needs.

LOVE them. Hold them. Cuddle them. Kiss them. Cherish them. I promise – they grow SO quickly!

I hope you treasure motherhood. I hope you love your babies! Becoming a mom is a lot of work – but beyond worth it! I wish you the best of luck as you go through the journey of getting your baby to sleep. Always remember those little moments of rocking your baby or cuddling their little bodies on your chest. They grow so fast and before you know it – they will be sleeping 12 hours a night and you will be missing those middle of the night feedings and tiny fragile baby features.

“There is no way to be a PERFECT mom… but a MILLION ways to be a GOOD one.” – Jill Churchill

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Danielle is the owner of Today's the Best Day. She strives to provide creative and uplifting content in order to enrich the parenting experience for women everywhere. Danielle hopes to help you and your family to make every day the best day!

March 31, 2014 by Danielle Davis | 21 Comments