Babies Don't Sleep All Night?!

THE DAYDREAMS:
I'll never forget the day I found out I was pregnant with our daughter. I was so excited thinking about cute baby clothes, crib bedding, dolling my baby up and taking her everywhere! Everything was going to be SO great and SO perfect... rainbows and butterflies! Right??

THE TRUTH:
When I was about 34 weeks pregnant, my husband said that a lady at his work recommended the book "On Becoming Babywise," a guide to help our baby sleep through the night. My first thought was, "Babies don't sleep through the night?!" Listen, I LOVE my sleep... probably to an abnormal degree. I had a panic moment because I knew I couldn't drink red bulls all day while breastfeeding, so I needed a solution --- like, NOW! I bought the book for a penny on amazon.com, and I can say with assurance (3 1/2 years later) that was the best cent I ever spent.

THE WORK:
Don't get it twisted.. This isn't a magic formula or an instant fix. Teaching and guiding your baby to sleep well takes determination, consistency, and work. The 1st step is- read the book! The bulk of my blogs will be tailored to current Babywise moms; it will not be a "read in lieu of." However, I hope that some of you will be inspired to begin this journey for your baby, yourself, and whole family. I also want to use real, everyday scenarios to help fill in the missing pieces. Let's face it: nothing about being a mom or parent is textbook easy. So, let's make this part of our lives easier on ourselves and use the principles of Babywise to lead us to nights full of sleep and days filled with happy, rested babies.

THE SUCCESS:
My daughter has been sleeping through the night since she was 2 months old. She started at 7 hours and worked her way to 12 hours a night by 6 months (in addition to naps). I now have a happy, ENERGETIC, beautiful 3 1/2 year old that sleeps from 8 pm to 8 am (give or take 30 minutes).
My son will be 1 year old this month (tear). He sleeps from 7:30 pm to 7:30 am, and takes 2 hour naps twice a day. Generally from 9:30-11:30 am and again from 2:30-4:30 pm. Recently, his afternoon nap runs short, but he wakes up happy, so I know he's ready to wake. I've had 2 different journeys with my kids as they relate to sleep, because my kids have completely different dispositions. (I will relate to this often.) The fact that I achieved the same goal with both kids proves that Babywise works. Trust me, if I can do it... You can too! So, follow me as we watch movies at night with our spouses, relax in bed (baby-free), and wake up to our happy, smiley-faced babies!


Look for my Next blog:
Happy Days, Sleepy Nights- the guide to distinguishing days vs. nights, which leads to good naps during the day and working toward wake-free nights.

Also, please leave any specific questions in the comment box, and I will work toward a FAQ blog. Thanks for reading... Lindsey