Sleep Training Day 1

After reading a sleep training book for babies, I decided to give it a try! Daylen still wakes up every 3 hours on normal nights and every hour when teething. I can not keep doing this because i'm at my limit for lack of sleep! Daylen is a year old and this should not be happening!!

After reading the book, I realized that it wasn't his fault that he continues to get up at night but the full blame is on us, the parents! Daylen does not know how to fall asleep on his own and giving him a bottle in the crib has been his sleep aid! We have been aiding him to sleep so when he wakes up during the middle of night, he needs his sleep aid to go back to sleep! That will happen no more!

Monday, November 21st was the first day I started the sleeping training. I started with nap time and I put him to bed without a bottle in crib! I fed him and rocked him a little before putting him down. Of course he cried but he was out within minutes for the first nap, and down within 30 minutes for the second nap. I've always been against the cry-it-out method, but the book helped assure me that this was best for him.

We wrote out a new bed time plan for him, which includes a bed time routine which apparently is really important and something we had never done before. We always just let Daylen call the bed time shot and then we change him and put him down with a bottle.

Here is his new bed time routine...
Bed time must be between 7-8 and the routine should only take 30 mins.
-Bath time
-brush teeth
-lotion/skin medications
-bottle/cup
-aspirin
-rock a little
-lay down

Last night that is exactly what was done and he went to sleep at 8pm and didn't wake up until 3:30am! I was suprised! After he woke though, he cried for a good 40 minutes and I tried the soothing and calming tehniques in the book but he was too upset. I didn't leave his side until he was calmed down for the most part but every 10 minutes for the next hour you could hear him wheep a little. The book says if baby wakes around 6am, its okay to bring him to the kitchen to eat food and milk. This lets him know when morning has arrived so that it will help his internal sleep timer stretch further. We made it to 5 am and his father finally caved in and let him have breakfast! He went back to sleep shortly after and didn't get up til 930!

If we can continue to do this well then I will be a very happy mommy! Lets hope day 2 goes just as planned!