Sleep!!

It's my thing... I have said it before in this blog and will probably say it again, but I LOVE and NEED sleep.  (And a hiccup this past week with my 2.5 year old crawling in our bed has reminded me fully of that!)

I am VERY grateful I had two full term, good latching, healthy, not colicky boys. And I know there are different personalities of even babies, but when people say I am lucky to have good sleepers, I don't believe it was all luck.  Here are things I learned before my firstborn was here and thru child #2

1)  Babywise was the guide book I followed via many recommendations of friends who had 3 months old sleeping 7-10 hr stretches!  I knew cosleeping/baby in our room wasn't for me as I am a light sleeper! Has recommended schedules but so does a babywisemom blog.

2)  Eat Wake Sleep Eat Wake Sleep is cycle to start striving for from 2 weeks on. Premise is fuller feedings because baby is rested, and lay them down while they are in their zoning out, tired phase before they are asleep.  Really believe this sleep

3)  DO wake a sleeping baby during day to EAT then PLAY... DO lay a baby down to sleep at last bedtime feeding and middle of night feedings if night!

4) After day EATING and PLAYING, SLEEP baby in one or two locations where they learn this is where they sleep putting them down awakish.

5)  DON'T wake a sleeping healthy growing baby during the night. (Or yourself to pump unless desperate to build supply for work return.)   DON'T go get a baby at first sound in crib during night or nap.  Make sure they are up and not falling back asleep. 

6) Research safe sleep environments and sleep baby on back... and try stop swaddling around 2 months, especially if attending daycares... they can't be in swaddles there.  (I learned there were 54 infant deaths in MN in 2014, and 52 were preventable!)

7) Good sleep brings on good sleep!  Routines are important.  BUT be flexible too... even when you all start getting good nights, they will get sick, teeth, regressions, etc... but you know easier they need you when they have had good sleep.

8) Study their cries.  They will have a different tired/fussy cry vs a hunger cry.  My first would cry for 5ish minutes most times whether I held him or not so I was ok laying him down knowing sleep is what he needed.

9) ASK FOR HELP! Dad's and family need to know if you are desperate for naps or after feedings wake dad to hold if baby unsetteled

10)  Good sleep makes them smarter.  At least I read something like that in my other favorite baby prep book: Baby Brain Rules.
And because I could get chores and work done while they slept on their own, I had time to rock them and sing and play on the floor with them when they were happy and awake!  (But of course holding for some naps during tv show netflix marathons happened too, just not every one!)

Good "luck" Momma's!