I have fallen prey to the new-mom phenomena of thinking the worse about every transition. I used to agonize about how to transition Britton from the hammock to the crib, and have the five thousand google searches to prove it. I read how you should put your baby to bed awake but drowsy and thought to myself, "Yeah, right."
But I also read that parents of babies who previously had colic will often go through very elaborate and extended rituals to get their baby to sleep. And how this excessive intervention can actually make sleeping worse for babies. I am guilty. Britton's bedtime routine was more superstitious than a baseball player. I was convinced that any slight deviation would send her into incessant crying and those sleepless nights my memory won't let go of. Essentially, I was creating a lot of work for nothing.
I put Britton in her crib for naps, awake but drowsy. And you know what she does? She falls asleep. Sure, she might play around for a little bit, or cry out or fuss, but she does go to sleep. We don't let her "cry it out" because with Britton, a cry means: (A) gas, (B) needs to burp, (C) hungry, or (D) wet diaper. Those are your options, and none warrant leaving her crying alone in her crib.
At night, the routine is down to bath, then bottle (with a little rice cereal to help prevent spit-up) in her nursery with the lights down and ocean waves playing, a little walk, swaddle, and bed. No more long drawn-out hour upon hour of rituals. Whew! And without those long nights of sleep intervention, everyone is getting more sleep. Yes, the hub and I have turned into our parents. Bedtime at 9:30 (or earlier), up on weekends at 7:00. And the thing I hate to admit - I like it. We get more done, fit more into our day, aren't rushed on errands. What's next, complaining about my old lady bones?
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