SLEEP BABY, SLEEP

I have blessed to have a child that has never really slept well at night. And really never has. I have also been blessed to have a child who does sleep well. Always has. The biggest challenge has been that the child that doesn't sleep well is my first born. New parents and a new, non-sleeping, baby are not a good mix. We naturally thought she would grow out of it, she never really has. I have often wondered how much of a role my husband and I played in our daughter's poor sleeping routine. Then our second daughter was born, a naturally good sleeper from the get-go, something that continues today.

I recently had the pleasure of asking a sleep expert about sleep and soothing babies. Dr. Heather Pizzo, The Baby Sleep Coach, has some great tips and advice for new and old parents. I know these tips are helping me to make changes and improvements, I hope they are helpful for you too.

THE BABY SLEEP COACH’S 7 MAGIC INGREDIENTS FOR SLEEP

1. BE CONSISTENT. Dr. Pizzo says parents need to choose a method and stick with it.

2.BE PREDICTABLE: Infants and toddlers thrive on predictability and routine. It is important for them to know what is coming next.

3.COMMUNICATE: Communication is important both between you and your spouse, and between you and your child. Parents need to be on the same page as each other.

4. FLEXIBILITY: It needs to be understood that a routine does not mean following a clock or a rigid schedule, says Dr. Pizzo.

5. SLEEP INDUCES SLEEP: A consistent bedtime routine sets your baby's internal clock so that she's naturally sleepy at a predictable time. A consistent wake up time is as important.

6. ELIMINATE ALL SLEEP AIDS: Eliminate the use of sleep aids like rocking, swinging, sucking after the age of three to four months. Babies need to fall asleep on their own.

7. TRANSITIONAL OBJECTS: Babies often choose an object as their security object, which is there for them in the night when you are not, it could be a toy or a blankie.

This was all part of research for an article I wrote for Urban Baby & Toddler, http://urbanbaby.ca/. For more on soothing your baby or helping your child get to sleep and stay asleep, check out the article in the Fall issue of the magazine.

WHAT DO I WANT IT TO BE?

I have been posting to this blog for about a year now. As I have mentioned before, I work in radio news, that's my full time gig, but I have been working as a freelance writer for about 2 years now. I would love to be able to make enough money writing articles that I could put an end to my full time gig. I have lots of ideas swirling around my head.

I originally started the blog just to keep the ideas flowing and to keep writing on a regular basis. It has certainly helped me learn to keep at it, to keep writing and to get me thinking. Now I really need to start thinking about taking this to the next level. I spend countless hours looking at other blogs, reading on the Internet and researching. There are lots of successful blogs and online business out there, especially by Moms. It is inspiring for sure.

I hope that in the months to come I can work at improving this blog and to take small steps toward my future and what I want it all to be.