If you are a parent, then you already know that baby + sleep = non-existent. At least, that’s what I thought after having my daughter. You see, my son was a sleeper. When we slept, he slept, and since everyone in the house LOVES sleeping (it’s my favorite thing lol), he didn’t have any trouble falling asleep when we put him down. Although he didn’t have a set “nap” time or bedtime for that matter, we would always find him passed out in different parts of the apartment throughout the day. What can I say? The boy really loved sleeping. I was a first-time parent and didn’t know anything about sleep training and schedules. It turns out we got lucky with my son. He was such a good sleeper; I just assumed that my daughter would be too. Boy was I ever wrong! If your baby is anything like my daughter (a sleep hater), then this post is for you.
5 Ways to Help Your Baby Love Sleep
1. The right schedule for your baby
Remember earlier I mentioned that I didn’t have a routine for my son and he turned out just fine? Yaaaa…No. Not with my daughter. She’s one of those babies that craved consistency. The first six months were TOUGH! She would wake up every 2 hours at night and barely did 4 hours in the day. At seven months I started to get her to bed at the same time every night. I followed a sleep routine, and before I knew it, she was falling asleep alone. She also stayed asleep longer. What worked for me are the tips that I found on the Baby Sleep Site. Depending on the age of your baby, follow the sleep & feeding schedules as a guideline to get your little one on track for a full night of lovely sleep!
2. Comfortable sleeping environment
I’ve never been able to sleep if the room is completely silent. My daughter is the same. When she was a baby, I would turn the fan on at night to create white noise. That always helped her (and me) sleep better. If you don’t have a fan, you can always get a white noise machines or app for your baby. Unlike her brother, my daughter loves being under the covers. It can get pretty cold at night, especially during the winter. If it were up to me, I’d have the heater cranked up, but babies shouldn’t be too warm either. Make sure you keep the room temperature around 68-70 degree. Now, if your child doesn’t like staying covered during the night, you could always get a baby sack.
Help Your Baby Love Sleep
3. Full belly = Happy baby!
Growing up in a Haitian home, one of the things I would often hear is that “a baby with a full belly will sleep longer.” And I find that to be true with my children. Always make sure your child has had enough to eat before bed.
Not sure how much milk baby should be drinking before bed? Read more info HERE.
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4. Teach your child that their room/bed is a fun place to be in.
When I was growing up, I was often told that the bedroom was a place to sleep only. Now, being a sleep lover, that didn’t change the way I felt about bedtime. But for babies that have issues with sleeping, associating their bedroom/bed for sleeping only could make things a bit harder come bed time. Try spending some non-sleeping time in the bedroom with your baby. Play, read stories and let them feel safe in their room.
5. Stop the night wakings!
Now that my daughter is a bit older, I find that my biggest challenge is keeping her from waking up multiple times during the night. Most nights she does her solid 11-12 hours. But other times she’ll wake up and suddenly declare it “play time” and too bad so sad if you are too tired. I recently downloaded the free ebook “5 Ways to Help Your Baby Sleep Through the Night” from the Baby Sleep Sites, and it’s jammed packed with great tips. I don’t have to wake up early for work, so I don’t mind picking her up and falling back asleep as oppose to letting her cry it out. But I know that may not be the case for many new parents. I highly suggest you download the free ebook to get some tips that may work for your family’s lifestyle.
Need more help getting your baby to “love” sleep? Check out The Baby Sleep Site for more tips.
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This post is sponsored by The Baby Sleep Site. All opinions are my own.
This is some amazing timing. I am having a baby next week and sleep concerns me for sure!
I always remember my doctor mentioning set up a schedule for bedtime and truly try to stick with it. It worked for my son as well as my daughter. Each child is different and you have to tweak it a bit until it works for you. These tips are all true and helpful.
These are some great tips!!! I thank god everyday that my daughter loves her sleep! I totally lucked out in that one. I have besties who haven’t slept in years because their kids are up 24/7!
My son didn’t sleep through the night for the first 15 months. We were basically dead. Our daughter is 9 months now and she would have slept more in the first few weeks, but I was told to wake her (so I set an alarm every night to wake her to eat.) It was so different! She has to go to bed by 7pm or everything is thrown off. Babies really do need some schedules!
These are all great tips. The importance of a stuffed baby prior to bedtime cannot be overstated. They will sleep like rocks.
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I love tip number 4. I used to play with my kids in their bedroom all of the time. My kids did struggle with waking at night and wanting to get in my bed.
This is great advice for parents. I’ll have to share this with my friends who have new babies.
One of my kids could sleep for hours but the other was very difficult. I do not miss the days of being up all night.
This is going to be a great post for my friend. Her little one has been having a hard time sleeping. She wants to fight it every time.
I definitely think you have the right ideas! Once you have a good schedule and a consistent routine, things become easier!
I have a preschooler that is still having trouble sleeping at night. While I think it might be a sensory issue, I do see a couple tips here I haven’t put to use yet.
I think this is definitely appropriate when they get older, but as a mom who has breastfed three children, they definitely should not be on a feeding schedule as exclusively breastfed babies. It’s digested much more quickly than formula, and they require nursing on demand and night nursing. We follow a bedtime routine and get good sleep and feel rested when we cosleep when they’re still nursing.
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You are right! I used to feel guilty when she would wake up in the middle of the night, and I would pick her up and just let her sleep with us, but it’s what’s working for us, and I’m ok with that.
Having a routine works for most babies. I found it easier with my second baby when we established a routine.
That is one of the biggest problem some mom encounter. Good thing there are books that can are helpful.
When my kids were small, I always had trouble getting them to go to sleep. I wish I had known these tips back then.
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I think you have great tips for helping kids sleep and love to sleep. I wish we all could have good sleep habits!
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These are wonderful tips! I’m expecting my third child, so these tips will definitely come in handy soon.
I so miss when my baby boy was this age! He can’t sleep without white noise either, so we always had a room fan on to help him.
Thankfully my kids were all pretty good sleepers. It was the waking hours they needed constant attention! I’ll share this with my mama friends who have little ones.
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I totally agree with all your tips. Lucky me, my son didn’t give me problems when he was your daughter’s age when it comes to sleeping. 🙂
A sleeping child brings peace in the house. It is also a rest time for moms. These are helpful tips 🙂
Yup, you have to have a little flexibility and let your little one find the rhythym that works best for them, also.
Your little girl is so adorable! These are definitely some great tips to help your baby sleep better!
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All the tips and resources you mentioned are very helpful especially for the new parents who are struggling to put their babies to sleep. I’m sure there are lots of struggles and these can all be overcome with the right strategy.