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You won't believe what happened last night. For the first time ever, my baby slept from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.!! I could hardly believe it when I looked at the clock. Qué milagro! He just turned two months old and I am so sleepy.
The days of having a leisurely siesta are over for a time and did I mention that I am soooo sleepy? But last night gave me hope. Last night was my silver lining. But this hasn't happened by accident. I've been working really hard at making this happen and I have some tips to share with you mami's about coping with newborns and their sleep (or lack of it):
1. Feed them every four hours
As soon as they turn eight weeks, try to feed them every four hours. You can be flexible about this because they do have growth spurts but for some odd reason, the longer they wait between feeds, the longer they will sleep at night.
2. Watch for "The Yawn"
The moment you catch your baby yawning, swaddle him and put him to bed drowsy but awake and he will just melt into the crib. If you miss the yawn (which I have) you will have to really work to wind your baby down or else they are too overstimulated to fall asleep.
3. Don't overstimulate
With my first baby, I kept her up way too long between naps and when she was awake, I would dangle all these different toys in front of her. It was way too much for her and she would get stressed out and couldn't settle to sleep. With this baby, I keep things really really boring. I hold him a bit and then put him on the floor for tummy time a bit but I don't put anything around him or above him (like a baby gym). I think it's kept him a lot more calm.
4. Put you baby to bed before 8 p.m.
For some reason, after 8, things go a little loca. I've learned that the earlier I put him to bed, the longer he will sleep.
5. Hold him when he is happy
This is a great tip that I read in a book recently. If you only pick him up when he cries, he will think he has to cry to be held but if you hold him a little, then put him down, then hold him some more a few minutes later, he won't get that Pavlovian reaction.
Well, I gotta run. Guess who just woke up?? He does this weird thing where he only naps for 45 minutes at a time but he is still tired. Any tips for me mami's??
