Parenting Tips - Be A Better Parent Each Day

  Although your baby may give up regular nighttime feedings on his own by the time he’s three months old, do not expect – or insist – that such a young infant give them up altogether, all of a sudden. But if your child is at least three months old, still nurses, or requires a bottle at bedtime, and needs to eat again several more times during the night, then the extra feedings may well be causing the extra wakings. If that is the case, you may be able to help him sleep better by decreasing the number of these feedings. However, if your baby takes in a substantial amount of food – from extended feedings at the breast, or bottles adding up to more than eight ounces over the course of the night – then he has learned that certain times of night are mealtimes. To eliminate these feedings suddenly wouldn’t be wise or nice. The amount of milk or juice your child drinks during the night may be considerable. If he finishes four full eight-ounce bottles, that is a large amount for even an a...

Seeing your baby cry is perhaps the most heartbreaking moment of all. You don’t want him to cry. You want him happy. And of course, you want him healthy. But for all that to happen, he needs to sleep properly. It would be nice if your child could learn how to sleep without any crying or frustration whatsoever. Every parent would sign up for that. Unfortunately, the truth is that all children, regardless of the method you use to help them sleep, inevitably do shed some tears in the process. Let’s see why. NOTE:  Have you heard about this new medically-proven way to make your baby fall asleep in minutes? No tricks. No gimmicks. No gizmos.  It works almost instantly...Click here to watch the video.  First and foremost, children cry when learning to sleep because they are protesting – they don’t like change. In fact, they hate change. Just think about it. Do you remember what your favorite book was as a kid? Do you remember wanting to read that book over and over again, even ...

Early morning wakings are one of the toughest sleep problems to fix, if not the toughest. If you’re wondering why it’s because after a decent night’s rest your child has got more energy to fight sleep in the morning. And the truth is, all of us come up into lighter sleep phases in the last hour of our sleep, preparing to take up for the day. Remember, however, your child is waking early only if he is not getting the right amount of night rest for his age and his body. In other words, if your child sleeps from 7 PM to 6 AM, it’s a perfectly reasonable schedule for him, even though it might feel early to you. We can’t ask our children to sleep more than 11 hours at night. Their bodies are usually rested after this much sleep, and they won’t be able to do more. Also, keep in mind the following fact: if your child is waking even at 10/½ hours, if he is rested and energetic in the morning and makes it easily till his naptime, then he’s getting enough rest for his body. Problems arise if you...

  I want out! That’s the message your toddler will send – one way or another – when he’s ready to wave goodbye to the crib and say hello to a big-kid bed. Your child might actually verbalize displeasure, or more likely, simply climb out of the crib. So, what needs to be done? First, resist the temptation to move him too early. Most experts recommend doing so around age 3. Unless your child is climbing out of his crib or needs more space than a crib can provide – his body is growing at an astounding rate – it’s better to keep him in the crib, which allows him to feel safe. This way, your child can feel comfortable taking giant developmental leaps during the day but still regress to the security of his old crib at night. Moreover, until age 3, toddlers are very impulsive, and your child’s difficulty in understanding and being able to follow directions or rules (like staying in bed all night) will make sleeping in a bed a real challenge. If you transition to a bed before age 3, you ...

  Baby Sleep Miracle - From Stress To Sleep In No Time Out of all the baby sleep programs I’ve reviewed, this one is definitely my favorite. The program is created by child psychologist Mary-Ann Schuler , mother of two, and in it, she offers easy-to-follow guidelines for successful sleep training of your baby. What I really love about this guide is that she covers a wide variety of topics. As a matter of fact, there isn’t a topic she doesn’t cover. She talks about the importance of sleep in a baby’s development and the dangers of sleep for both children and adults alike, highlighting many problems that may arise during the process. Furthermore, she underlines the importance of consistency and routine. The guide contains 4 chapters and 16 sub-chapters that focus from start to finish on how to put your baby to sleep, the signs you need to look for when your baby is tired, as well as the issue of tantrums and separation anxiety. Moreover, it includes valuable advice on how to overcome...

For an adult, sleep may seem a simple thing. You’re tired, you sleep. A baby, however, needs to learn how to do that. As surprising as it may sound, sleep is a skill that needs to be learned.  Sleep training a child is undoubtedly one of the most challenging – and frustrating – things for all parents. You may be tired or exhausted from helping him to get some, but your child won’t understand that as he or she is too young.  The only way to overcome this hurdle is to teach him.  First, let’s answer the question: “Is it hard to train my child to sleep”? The short answer is no. Training is synonymous with learning and babies love to learn – even when it comes to sleeping. They suck in new information as if it were warm milk. However, some parents think of it as hard because of the word ‘training’. This is due to the fact that they don’t agree with the term, arguing that training is for animals and not for children. But think about it.  Even as an adult you train in some...

Are You Tired? Do You Feel Exhausted? You’re a parent, and like any other parent, you do everything you can to make sure your child gets nothing but the best. Day and night. But day and night, sleep is a problem. A big problem.  In his room, your baby is restless and crying. He can’t sleep. In your head, your brain is exhausted. You can’t sleep. What’s worse, your child’s sleeping issue is not only a problem in itself, but it is also one that cascades on yourself. Emotionally and physically. There’s no denying that sleep is essential. Your child’s health and development depend on it.                    Undoubtedly, sleep training counts among the most common – and challenging – things that parents face. You know that. But your baby doesn’t. And the only way to go through – and come out successful – from this process is to properly sleep train your child. If you wonder where you should begin, what program you should follow, or which...

Co-sleeping is the practice where the child sleeps in bed with his parents. Not surprisingly, it is one of the most hotly debated and controversial topics related to pediatric sleep. Let’s see why. Some people argue that co-sleeping is the right and natural way to raise a child because the practice fosters a stronger bond and a more secure attachment. Conversely, others will tell you that co-sleeping is risky, ridiculous, or even dangerous and they don’t want it for their family. RELATED:  The 5 Pieces of Co-Sleeping Advice That Parents Should Ignore 5 Tips For Emotionally Preparing For A Baby So, which approach holds the truth? First, it’s important to understand that co-sleeping is not magic. Although some proponents of the family bed would disagree, numerous couples have reported that their babies did not necessarily sleep deeper or longer because their parents were close by.  In fact, some parents found that their child slept longer and woke less frequently when they stopp...

  Co-sleeping is controversial in the United States and that controversy has led to big myths that aren’t helping anyone get shut-eye. For many cultures around the world,  safe co-sleeping , the act of parents  sharing a bed  with their children, is the most natural and obvious way to get some rest while bonding.  These cultures often have  strong collectivist ideals  and a more traditional, centralized family life, with several generations living together under one roof. Generally speaking,  American families tend to live more geographically disparate lives, with an emphasis on independence and privacy. In the context of the modern American family, what is co-sleeping, and what are the risks and benefits for kids and parents alike? There is a tremendous amount information — and misinformation — out there, muddying the waters around safe co-sleeping and making it difficult for parents to make comfortable, rational decisions about the best way to r...