I’ve been pretty fortunate when it comes to habits with my sixteen month old. He’s never shown much interest in a pacifier, graduated from a bottle to a sippy cup like a champ, and has never slept with a stuffed animal or security blanket… With that being said, the hardest habit we have had to break with Asher, would be getting him to sleep in his own bed…
Asher slept in a co sleeper in our room until he was about 8 months old. I postponed transitioning him to his crib because my husband, who is in the military, was due for cross country orders around the time Asher was 7 months old. We agreed that we wouldn’t worry about Asher’s sleeping arrangements until we were settled at our new duty station. We both figured that in the mist of moving and changing timezones that it would just be best to start fresh. After we were finally settled and moved into our new home, we began the process. At first I dreaded it and had quite a few emotions running though me, but I knew it was time. Asher transitioned to his crib quite smoothly and within two weeks we had established a healthy bedtime routine that was efficient. To this day we still follow that routine and Asher sleeps about 12 hours throughout the night. He does occasionally end up in our bed around 5 a.m. and still does wake in the night to nurse, but I’m okay with that. As a parent I’ve learned to pick my battles and those little things will eventually come to an end… Here are a few things I did to help break this little habit…
Establish a bedtime routine – Every night before bed we have bath time, story time, brush teeth, and then bedtime. This routine works for us and helps Asher settle down for the night.
Find a method that works for YOU and your BABY – I did a little research before we started the transitioning process and spoke with Asher’s pediatrician about the situation. After hearing his suggestions we found a method that works great for the three of us. Each night we both lay Asher down, say our goodnights, and one of us will stay in his room a pat his back for a few minutes before leaving. We then close the door and within a few minutes he is asleep.
Invest in a sleeping aid – And by sleeping aid I mean a noise machine, lullabies, essential oils, ect. We have found that playing white noise and rubbing a little lavender oil on the bottom of Asher’s feet does wonders for him.
As for now these little tricks significantly help Asher with sleeping. We have been pretty fortunate so far, but I’m sure will we hit a few bumps in the road as he gets older, outgrows his crib, stops nursing, ect.
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