Sleeping Habits

As of late, I blame everything on Squirmy's growth spurts. She eats too much, must be a growth spurt. She sleeps too much, must be a growth spurt. She's not sleeping enough, must be a growth spurt. She cries, must be growing pains. She's been a little fussy falling asleep lately (yup, must be a growth spurt). Once she's down, she'll sleep 4 hours easily. It's getting to that point that is hard. Now, Ferber Method vs. Dr. Sears' Findings. These are long reads so I'll save you some time. The Ferber Method is basically a "cry-it-out" method. It tells you how to make baby sleep longer through the nights by letting the baby, well, cry it out until s/he eventually falls asleep. However, the findings of Dr. Sears contradicts this method in that he states, "responding to baby's cries is biologically correct" and further, "teach baby to 'cry better' by being attentive to his/her needs by tending to your baby appropriately. A baby's cry is their only means of communicating and by doing so, you are building trust early on because they will start to understand that you will always be there for them and ultimately, learn to cry for only the right reasons which results in crying less since their needs are being met". He also states (which I think makes plenty of sense), "babies thrive when nurtured, not spoiled, since crying is not a form of manipulation. It is simply a baby letting you know something is wrong and asking you to make it right". So to all those people who have said I am going to spoil my baby if I pick her up too much, please know, I am the one with her 24-hours a day. If she needs a hug or a kiss to feel a little better, so be it. (Everyone including neighbors, well meaning parents, friends, the lady down the produce aisle at the supermarket will inevitably feel the urge to share with you what is best for your child. What works for one child simply does not work for another. What may work for your child may not work for mine. What may have worked 30 years ago, may not work the same way now, 30 years later. If you know a "better" way of doing things, that's wonderful and I'm happy for you. If you want to criticize me for the way I am or am not doing something, please let it be constructive criticism so that I may actually learn something from you. Better yet, SHOW me. Other than that, I do what works for me because it keeps my baby happy). I am also trying to get Squirmy used to her nursery so I've been trying to have her take naps in her big crib instead of the bassinet by our bed. So I swaddle her snugly so she doesn't wake herself up with crazy arm movements, yet somehow, she always manages to un-snuggle herself out of being swaddled. Look at the sneaky little fingers squeezing themselves out of the blanket...

She does not stay asleep very long in her crib for whatever reason so by the time I quietly tiptoe my way downstairs to turn on the baby monitor, this is what I am met with...

In the end, I do get her to sleep, but it's not in her crib (or her bassinet)

Much happier.

(Wow, talk about a long read)