Sleep, Oh Glorious Sleep

A few weeks ago, I had a long conversation with my wonderful cousin Mandy, regarding babies and sleep.  She has two children of her own, and was (is) a valuable source of information on all things parenting.  Our situation was that Lane refused to sleep lying down, unless it was in bed with me, or lying on my.  He would sometimes sleep in his bouncy chair, and would nap in his swing, but bedtime was awful.  I found myself dreading going to bed.  I spent many nights sleeping napping on the couch, just praying for daylight to hurry up and arrive.  Lane refused to have anything to do with his bassinet, even when swaddled.

I was afraid of Lane become dependent on my for sleep; I was afraid I was "spoiling" him. 

Mandy assured me that I was not spoiling my son, and that things would get better in time.  After all, how many 18-year-olds do you see still sleeping in their bouncy chairs or lying on their mothers' chests?

So, we just waited it out.  And I kept putting Lane in his bassinet during the day, sometimes while awake, and sometimes after he had fallen asleep.  We had discovered Lane loves white noise, so we bought a white machine.  And kept swaddling. 

And wouldn't you know it- he started sleeping in there!  Nightime was still rough, and I kept perpetuating the problem by putting him in bed with me.  But finally, after a particularly rough night, Josh and I agreed something had to change.  So back in the bassinet he went.

And I'm proud to say, Lane now sleeps perfectly in his bassinet.  He'll sleep for 4-6 hours at night, wake up to eat, and then go back to sleep for another 2-4 hours.  He still sometimes needs some "help" getting to sleep, such as being rocked, but we always try to put him down before he's actually asleep.

Its amazing what just a difference a few shorts weeks can make.  We are all so much more happy during the day, and feel much more rested.  Plus, this will all help once we transition Lane into his own room.  And although I sometimes still sneak Lane into our bed for some snuggle time, I feel confident knowing he is on his way to becoming an independent sleeper.