Hellobee

Like a lot of new parents I worried about how I would adjust to sleep deprivation. I love to sleep. In an ideal world I would sleep 10 hours a night. I read a lot of blog and board posts about sleep before Little P was born. Of course each baby is different and sleep is not a one size fits all issue, but here is what sleep looked like for Little P the first year of her life.

What was Little P’s sleep like as a newborn?

As a newborn Little P was a pretty typical baby. She slept almost constantly, preferably while nursing or being held. The first 6 weeks between visitors and Mr. P’s paternity leave she had plenty of arms to sleep in. No one minded holding her while she got a nap in. Nights were similar. Mr. P and I took turns sleeping while the other held Baby P and tried to get her to sleep. She had this knack for waking up as soon as we laid her down. It was tough!

Has Little P always slept in a crib? Did she co-sleep or sleep in a bouncer or swing?

Little P didn’t sleep in her crib until she was several weeks old. For the first 6 weeks she was in the room with me and Mr. P where we had an antique mini crib that belonged to Mr. P’s grandfather. We wanted her to sleep there. It didn’t quite work out. Little P hated to lay flat. Every time we would get her settled, she would wake up. We brought her swing into our room and tried that at night. It also didn’t work very well. I fell into cosleeping with her when she was 3 weeks old. It made me extremely nervous and I knew I couldn’t keep it up long term. On a whim we borrowed a rock in play from friends when Little P was 6 weeks old. The first night we used it she slept for 4 hours in a row! Mr. P and I were shocked! We moved it into the nursery and Little P slept in it from 6 weeks until she started rolling back to belly right before she turned 4 months old. We transitioned her to her crib then using Mrs. Blue’s crib nest method. She took to sleeping in her crib pretty well.

One of the only times she was content in the mini crib. c/o Morgan Kerman Photography

Did you swaddle? When did you stop swaddling?

We swaddled Little P from day one. In the hospital we used the blankets they provided. Once we got home we switched to SwaddleMe blankets because it was a lot easier to use the velcro. Little P seemed to like being swaddled and didn’t fight it too much. We were forced to swaddle wean when she started rolling back to belly. For close to two months she had been sleeping swaddled in the rock in play. The day she rolled over I told Mr. P we were going to have to swaddle wean and put her in the crib soon. That night I just had a feeling. After we put her down for the night I was watching her on the monitor and she tried to roll over in the rock in play. We immediately went in, unswaddled her, and put her in the crib.

Does she sleep through the night?

At 12 months old, fortunately Little P does sleep 12 hours overnight. She dropped her last middle of the night nursing session on her own at 11 months. Every so often she will wake up and cry. When she cries longer than 5 minutes Mr. P goes in her room and rubs her back for a few minutes. She quickly falls back asleep after that.

Happy girl after sleeping through the night for the first time

Did she go through any sleep regressions, like the famous 4-month or 9-month sleep regression?

I didn’t notice a 9-month sleep regression. The 4-month regression was so tough. Before that she had been sleeping through the night more often than not. I thought we had gotten lucky and had  great sleeper on our hands. Once the 4-month regression hit she started waking up to nurse anywhere from 2-5 times a night. Some nights she would be up for hours. It was tough!

Did you ever sleep train or nap train?

For months I did what everyone says you shouldn’t do. I nursed Little P until she was completely asleep and then put her in her crib. It worked great for us, until it didn’t. At 10 months object permanence set in along with separation anxiety and Little P started waking up and screaming once she realized I was no longer in the room. Her middle of the night wake ups became unmanageable. Mr. P and I would end up rocking her for hours to get her back to sleep. One night we decided we couldn’t do it anymore and started researching sleep training. I think I read every blog and board post on the subject! We really wanted her to cut out her night feedings. Everything we read said that it wouldn’t work if she couldn’t put herself to sleep. We read up on a few methods and decided that since Little P was crying at night anyway we should put it to use. We let her cry it out with checks. Instead of nursing Little P to sleep, I stopped when she was drowsy and put her in her sleep sack. Then into the crib she went. The first night we went in at 5 minutes, 10 minutes later, then 15 minutes later before she went to sleep. The second night we did two checks, and the third night we did one. That’s all it took. After that she would go to sleep with no fuss. A few weeks later she dropped her middle of the night nursing sessions on her own and began to sleep through the night. At the same time I became more consistent with putting her in the crib to nap. She had always taken naps wherever she was (on me, in the car seat, in the stroller, and occasionally the crib). She cried the first couple of times but quickly took to napping in her crib.

Did you ever have to re-sleep train after illness or travel?

Not long after we sleep trained Little P got sick for the first time. During that week I co slept with her. Mr. P and I were really dreading the transition back to the crib. It wasn’t bad though! She fussed for less than 5 minutes the first night before going to sleep.

Did teething or physical milestones like rolling over or standing affect sleep?

I don’t think physical milestones affected Little P’s sleep. Teething definitely did though. On the worst nights we would give her some Tylenol so she could rest. Otherwise she would stand in her crib with her hand in her mouth crying.

Will she nap anywhere else other than her crib, like in the stroller or carrier?

These days I make more of an effort to make sure Little P takes her naps in her crib. She loves to nap in the car and can nap on me pretty much anywhere.

One of her first crib naps

When did Little P drop from 4 naps to 3, and then 3 naps to 2, etc?

I don’t remember when Little P started dropping naps. I think around 7 months she transitioned to two naps a day. She still takes two naps a day now at 12 months.

What is your nap routine?

When it’s time for a nap I take Little P into the nursery. I turn on her white noise machine, turn on the fan, and close the curtains. Then I nurse her for about 15 minutes before putting her in her crib. Some days she goes right to sleep and others she fusses a bit first.

What is your bedtime routine?

Little P’s bedtime routine starts with a bath. Mr. P bathes her every night. While he is bathing her I get her nursery ready. I close her curtains, turn on the lamp and white noise, and lay out her diaper, pajamas, lotion, and brush. Once I’m done I head into the bathroom and scoop up Little P. While Mr. P drains the tub and puts away the toys I brush Little P’s teeth. Then we all go into the nursery and get Little P dressed and ready for bed. I nurse her. This is her longest session of the day and she will nurse for 20 to 30 minutes. Once she’s done I put her in her crib and she goes right to sleep.

What is your current schedule?

Currently Little P sleeps about 12 hours overnight. She wakes up at 8am. She takes her first nap from 11-12. Then she takes her second nap from 3-4. Mr. P starts her bath at 7:45 and she’s in her crib by 8:30.

Sleeping good minutes after being put down

If you could change anything about Little P’s sleep, what would you change?

I would love it if Little P would go down for her naps without ever fussing or crying.

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That’s what sleep looked like in our house the first year of Little P’s life. I’m expecting it will evolve again soon as I drop nursing sessions, return to work full time, and Little P transitions to one nap. Whatever comes I’ll take it as long as she keeps sleeping through the night!