Babies: 3 - 6 Months

Crib "training"

Let me start off with I compare my children. I figure the first is a good learning tool for the second. That being said of course it isn't always going to work which is why im asking for help. They are different and though I am coming to terms with that I don't know what to do.

DD was sleeping in her crib by 2 months. DS just turned 4 months and I just cant break the hold he has on me. We do dinner, bath, bottle, he naps for 30 minutes, and wakes to finish the bottle. When I put him in his crib he is good for maybe 45 minutes. For the past 2 weeks we have put him down and when he wakes tried shushing him to sleep with no luck. His cry gets louder and louder till eventually I cave and pick him up. He is just fine sleeping in the rock and play next to our bed. So about midnight I will just stop trying and put him there just so I can get some sleep (working mom). DD is 2 now so I have no memory of how we had gotten her to stay in the crib. DS sleeps through the night if we start him out in the rock and play. help Help HELP.

Re: Crib "training"

  • Some kids just don't like cribs. Neither of mine did. We went from bed sharing to toddler beds.

    You can try the crib (with one side off) next to your bed. That way baby still feels close to you.

    You should not expect your second to do anything like your first. That's not fair to either kid because they are individuals with individual needs, likes & whatnot. You'll drive yourself nuts & it will make the kids resentful later.

    Children are not robots that follow the same pattern with each new model.


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  • well so far it has been a good tool to go by in comparing. Nothing has matched up but we know what cues we are looking for.

    Sadly the crib doesn't come apart. DH made it for our first and its SOLID. We do the rock and play next to the bed currently...maybe a pack and play...

    I know there patterns are totally different. Was just praying they would be equally "easy". They both have been in their own right.

    Would it be foolish if I slept on the floor next to the crib? Do you think he would get used to that and then I couldn't leave the room? I bought a machine that does the Shushing we just havnt gotten it in the mail yet. Im babbling because Im going crazy. sorry

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  • Instead of that 30 minute nap, can you just put him to bed? That won't solve this problem but it might help a little.

    Is he swaddled in the crib? When we moved DD from the RnP to the crib, she was swaddled, with receiving blankets rolled up and put under the sheet on each side of her so she felt cozy. I also put a soft blanket under her so she could rub the side of her face on it. She was swaddled so I wasn't worried about her smothering herself.

    Then, we started swaddling one arm out, then eventually wrapped the swaddle around her waist, removed the rolled up blankets and just had her in the crib and she has been fine.

    When DD has pounded a 10oz bottle, is exhausted, but wakes 30-45 minutes after I've put her to bed, I let her fuss. Yep, that's what I did and it worked. She is dry, full and tired so she's just having a hard time transitioning into that next level of sleep. We were consistent with this and she has done fine.  

    Whatever you decide to do, consistency is key. My son was much, much harder to get to sleep in the crib. DD has been fairly easy for some reason.

  • He has never cared to be swaddled, but I feel that we need to try. His arms just fly everywhere. He is 4 months now. Do you think its too late to even try a swaddle? He is on the verge of rolling over too. Will the rolled towels keep him from rolling? I don't want to put so much rolled on either side that he turns his head and smothers. we do the soft blanket and that will last for a bit, but he then wakes up. The nap time allows me to get DD bathed quick so I would hate to take that away...Ill have to try the swaddle. 
  • He has never cared to be swaddled, but I feel that we need to try. His arms just fly everywhere. He is 4 months now. Do you think its too late to even try a swaddle? He is on the verge of rolling over too. Will the rolled towels keep him from rolling? I don't want to put so much rolled on either side that he turns his head and smothers. we do the soft blanket and that will last for a bit, but he then wakes up. The nap time allows me to get DD bathed quick so I would hate to take that away...Ill have to try the swaddle. 



    I'd be hesitant to start swaddling now. I probably wouldn't do that, especially if he's about to start rolling.

    For my son, our Pedi was the one that suggested the rolled up blankets to KEEP him from rolling because she didn't think it was safe for him to be sleeping on his stomach at 4 months old.

    You might have to just power through this until things get better on their own. I remember from my first kid that all naps basically suck for a few months and there's really nothing you can do about it. 45 minute naps are pretty much the norm at this age.

  • I'm a huge fan of the Zipadee Zip for this reason. My daughter hated being swaddled but no constraints on her arm/leg movement whatsoever was causing her to wake up all of the time. It's like she would roll over and feel like she was falling and startle herself awake. Goofy kid.  Maybe that could work for you? I think there are other sleep sacks that do the same type of thing but I don't know what they are called.  Good luck! With time and consistency, it will pass.  :)
  • Naps are a breeze its the bedtime that sucks currently. He is like a human heater! It seems like no matter what kind of sleeper sack he is in he starts to over heat and scream. Anyones littles feet sweat? His feet can be icecubes and drenched with sweat. Looking at my posts we are just a hot mess.
  • My son was a rock and play lover as well. We moved him into his crib a few weeks ago. The first night was awful. I ended up sleeping on the floor when he finally fell asleep. The next day I decided to make changes to the crib to make it more like the rock and play. I did the rolled up towel under the sheet around his head and down along his sides. I also put one of our pillows at the end of the crib so it wouldn't feel like such a big space, and cozydeco like the rnp. Lastly I elevated the head of his matress. He's been sleeping wonderfully ever since!
  • You may try putting the crib in your room for a while. Some babies may take a bit long to get adjusted to new settings and find themselves a little lost in a huge space. We are a huge fan of baby deedee sleep nest. They are super cozy and help LO feel comfortable and secure while sleeping in crib. The heavy weight sleep sack discourages small babies to roll while sleeping. So much better than swaddles. They have like more than 600 positive reviews from happy moms. Crib transition is super easy with sleep sack.
  • DS also loved the RnP. We tried to just put him in his crib one night and it was a disaster. We started doing RnP naps in his room for a few days then moved to RnP naps and bedtime in his room. Finally, we transitioned to the crib when he was ready to be out of the RnP.

    Going from RnP in our room to crib in his room was too much changing at once.
  • @missemmawoodhouse this is exactly what we ended up doing! He has transitioned well now, but we are stuck waking up to put the pacifier in his mouth 12 times a night...get one issue fixed and another comes up! The next kid we are going to do 110% different then the first 2 lol
  • Not too sure if this will help but I thought I'd give it a shot. In order to get DS used to his crib we started putting him in there during the day for a little play time, just so he could get used to being in there. We would also stick him in there for naps and wrap him in a blanket once we had him in. Just some thoughts. Hope it gets easier for you!
  • Looking at my posts we are just a hot mess.

    Lol this cracked me up. You sound like me! My guy is just over 3 months and he's what I call a giant baby. He sleeps great in the Fisher Price bassinet by the bed (which in all honesty does not seem comfortable) but will not for the life of him sleep in his nice beautiful comfortable crib. This week we've started transitioning him because he's too big for the bassinet, poor guy can't stretch out all the way (18lbs 26.5" long). We're starting with naps so he can get used to it. Looong week it's been and it's only Wednesday! No advice but you're not alone!


  • My LO has been using the crib since coming home from the hospital. So I guess I'm curious as to why some moms choose something aside from a crib in the first place. Not being mean I just don't know anyone that's used anything other than a crib before. I don't want this to sound as if I'm saying it's bad because that's not what I'm saying I am just curious as to why a crib wasn't used from the beginning.

    As for transitioning, maybe start out with naps first and then hopefully they will get transitioned into nighttime sleep. Or maybe put something familiar from what they've previously slept in into the crib with them for comfort?
  • MommyMoru said:

    My LO has been using the crib since coming home from the hospital. So I guess I'm curious as to why some moms choose something aside from a crib in the first place. Not being mean I just don't know anyone that's used anything other than a crib before. I don't want this to sound as if I'm saying it's bad because that's not what I'm saying I am just curious as to why a crib wasn't used from the beginning.

    As for transitioning, maybe start out with naps first and then hopefully they will get transitioned into nighttime sleep. Or maybe put something familiar from what they've previously slept in into the crib with them for comfort?




    Good for you? It's not like OP can go back and change the sleeping situation. "Not being mean", but your post is extremely condescending.

    To your question, when LO is waking every 2-3 hours to nurse overnight, it is much more convenient to hem LO close. Further, studies show that rooming in reduces the risk of SIDS. Also, many people have limited space and cannot move babe into their own room right away.
  • MommyMoru said:

    My LO has been using the crib since coming home from the hospital. So I guess I'm curious as to why some moms choose something aside from a crib in the first place. Not being mean I just don't know anyone that's used anything other than a crib before. I don't want this to sound as if I'm saying it's bad because that's not what I'm saying I am just curious as to why a crib wasn't used from the beginning.

    As for transitioning, maybe start out with naps first and then hopefully they will get transitioned into nighttime sleep. Or maybe put something familiar from what they've previously slept in into the crib with them for comfort?




    Good for you? It's not like OP can go back and change the sleeping situation. "Not being mean", but your post is extremely condescending.

    To your question, when LO is waking every 2-3 hours to nurse overnight, it is much more convenient to hem LO close. Further, studies show that rooming in reduces the risk of SIDS. Also, many people have limited space and cannot move babe into their own room right away.
    I wasn't trying to be condescending which is why I stated I wasn't meaning to be mean. My LO has slept in his crib in our room with us since he was born and we have little space and don't even have a nursery room.

    I was just unsure why people don't use cribs. I've been around children my whole life and the women I've known have always used cribs. And what's been available to me in Japan has been only cribs so I was just inquiring as to what other means women use for sleeping and why. If what I'm asking sounds rude or anything I don't mean for it to be. I genuinely am curious because it's a situation I've not been in. So please don't take it that way.
  • MommyMoru said:

    MommyMoru said:

    My LO has been using the crib since coming home from the hospital. So I guess I'm curious as to why some moms choose something aside from a crib in the first place. Not being mean I just don't know anyone that's used anything other than a crib before. I don't want this to sound as if I'm saying it's bad because that's not what I'm saying I am just curious as to why a crib wasn't used from the beginning.

    As for transitioning, maybe start out with naps first and then hopefully they will get transitioned into nighttime sleep. Or maybe put something familiar from what they've previously slept in into the crib with them for comfort?




    Good for you? It's not like OP can go back and change the sleeping situation. "Not being mean", but your post is extremely condescending.

    To your question, when LO is waking every 2-3 hours to nurse overnight, it is much more convenient to hem LO close. Further, studies show that rooming in reduces the risk of SIDS. Also, many people have limited space and cannot move babe into their own room right away.
    I wasn't trying to be condescending which is why I stated I wasn't meaning to be mean. My LO has slept in his crib in our room with us since he was born and we have little space and don't even have a nursery room.

    I was just unsure why people don't use cribs. I've been around children my whole life and the women I've known have always used cribs. And what's been available to me in Japan has been only cribs so I was just inquiring as to what other means women use for sleeping and why. If what I'm asking sounds rude or anything I don't mean for it to be. I genuinely am curious because it's a situation I've not been in. So please don't take it that way.




    It's actually quite uncommon for babies to immediately go into a crib when they come home from the hospital (in the US). Some women bed share, some use a Rock 'n' Play or some use a bassinet. Very rarely will you find a newborn baby that doesn't scream bloody murder when put into a gigantic crib, all alone AND on a flat mattress. Most babies don't like that. If your baby didn't cry, then you have a special snowflake.

    Babies, especially newborns like to feel cozy and secure. Cribs usually don't provide that.

  • @mommymoru I didn't take it that way at all! My DH made our crib by hand. That being said it is gigantic and bulky and wont go from room to room. I have never, personally, been comfortable with the thought of my child in a different room right off the bat. DD has a baby monitor in her room and when we tried to plug in a  second for DS room it created madness between the two. So we unplugged DS and he has been in a rock and play next to our bed. I was in the middle of potty training and didn't want to pull DD monitor in case she had to go in the middle of the night. SO 4 months later I was ready to transition and I suppose in my mind expected it to be easy. NOT the case. Although has gotten much better. Every parent has their own way of doing things and when I get hung up I for sure like to see what others are doing so I have options. :) Super jealous your little started in the crib but like @Bigboobsmcgee also said SIDS is always a fear. (For me personally anyways.)
  • sorry @Bigboobsmcgee in looking again it was @Missemmawoodhouse that commented on SIDS. I don't know how to do the highlighted quote thing...
  • My girl started sleeping in crib when she was 3-4 week old and we made it through 3 years. Whoa! She was such a good sleeper. We use a baby deedee sleeping bag each night and I really think she'd be climbing over her crib rail except she's in a sleeping bag. There was something about the bag that comforted my elder one to sleep well. Knowing that she was safe and comfortable there I could sleep more. You can find them on amazon or online at www.babydeedee.com

    DD2 also uses use them each night. It's a part of our BT and we carry it everywhere we travel, camp, grand parents, etc.
  • @MommyMoru : the answer is simple: because the kid won't sleep there or has medical issues that require other sleeping arrangements.

    You got lucky & your baby tolerates the crib. I used a co-sleeper (on top of the mattress) for breast feeding ease. Then a pack & play. That worked great (space saver) until my kid refused to sleep in either.

    Never say never! Your next kid might teach you a thing or two about flexibility. Your post seemed Judgy & condescending without any attempt to empathize with those who didn't luck out. Different babies = different temperaments & preferences.

    The mentality that "one size must fit all" for kids drives me up a wall. They are little people too. Not robots that we produce to do what is convenient for us.


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  • Also, there is no such thing as a "good sleeper" . Just because a baby conforms to convenience for a mother (out of sheer dumb luck) doesn't make those with other sleep patterns somehow "bad sleepers" or "bad babies". It's not a value judgment on the baby or the parent.

    It just is.


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  • We had a similar problem and then a friend lent us our fix. She gave us a wedge to put under the sheet so he still has the feeling of being on the incline. She also lent us her "Merlin Magic Suit". This thing is AMAZING!!!! It looks like a snow suit without the hands and feet and gives him the feeling of being swaddled without being swaddled. It's warm so we need to figure out a solution for the summer but in the meantime we are using it every night. You can buy them on Amazon for around $40 and they come in a couple of sizes according to their weight. Give it a shot! It worked for us! (He sleeps for about 10-11 hours a night without waking to eat or cry and has been doing so since we started about 2 months ago!
  • @melissa11015 we are almost 2 months in and he goes through so much pain with teething that I still get up 2 times a night. we did the CIO and on occasion we will make it through an entire night but it is rare. We cant do sleep sacks with him. He is such a warm baby already that im sure I could cook eggs from the heat he emits. So for now im just being as patient as can be
  • My LO will be 5m. He was almost 3m early and was in the hospital for almost 2m. In the hospital they had him swaddled so tight he couldnt move and he loved it. When it was time to go home they told me no swaddling nothing in the crib. Ya now i cant get him to sleep in the crib. He loved to be wrapped up tight and go to bed. He sleeps through the night he can sleep up to 12hrs but that is on the futon with me. I have broke him of sleeping with me. But i cant get him in the crib. As soon as i place him in it he screams bloody murder. Ive done everything i think i can do with out putting things in the crib to make him feel secure. As soon as i put him on the futon he is out cold. Im at a lost on what i can do. He doesnt know how to roll over he prefers sleeping on his tummy. I was told back only. I dont know what to do. Any suggestions?
  • My LO will be 5m. He was almost 3m early and was in the hospital for almost 2m. In the hospital they had him swaddled so tight he couldnt move and he loved it. When it was time to go home they told me no swaddling nothing in the crib. Ya now i cant get him to sleep in the crib. He loved to be wrapped up tight and go to bed. He sleeps through the night he can sleep up to 12hrs but that is on the futon with me. I have broke him of sleeping with me. But i cant get him in the crib. As soon as i place him in it he screams bloody murder. Ive done everything i think i can do with out putting things in the crib to make him feel secure. As soon as i put him on the futon he is out cold. Im at a lost on what i can do. He doesnt know how to roll over he prefers sleeping on his tummy. I was told back only. I dont know what to do. Any suggestions?



    If he can't roll yet then I don't understand why he can't be swaddled?? That's odd.

    I'm sure the futon is softer and more comfortable than a big empty crib and that's probably why he likes sleeping there. Babies just have to get used to cribs and it takes time. When I first started putting DD in her crib, she was swaddled (she couldn't roll yet) and I rolled up a small blanket and put it UNDER the crib sheet on each side of her so she felt snuggled. Then I slowly started swaddling her with one arm out, then both arms out but with the swaddle around her waist. Then I moved her to a sleep sack and had nothing else in the crib with her.

    Try different, SAFE things to see what works for your LO.

    I strongly recommend NOT letting your LO sleep on his stomach at this point.

  • WillyBean said:

    I'm a huge fan of the Zipadee Zip for this reason. My daughter hated being swaddled but no constraints on her arm/leg movement whatsoever was causing her to wake up all of the time. It's like she would roll over and feel like she was falling and startle herself awake. Goofy kid.  Maybe that could work for you? I think there are other sleep sacks that do the same type of thing but I don't know what they are called.  Good luck! With time and consistency, it will pass.  :)


    I noticed this with my son too! We had him in the rock and play to sleep. A friend recommended that because its at an angle so it gives you a little peace of mind while they sleep in case they spit up. We just started transitioning to the flat cosleeper. After a day of barely any napping unless he was in my arms, I decided to swaddle him. Everytime I set him down before he would stay asleep from 5-15 mins and then startle himself awake. Once I swaddled him, HE SLEPT. My son is 2 months and babies this young still don't understand that their arms and legs are attached to them. So when they keep moving them around its a distraction for them and they cant sleep soundly.


     

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