He has never been a child to fall asleep while playing or in his crib alone. He has always needed that close connection through rocking or bouncing (as Daddy B does). I would be ignorant if I didn't recognize that's partially due to our routine but I also strongly believe it's just part of his personality for wanting close touch. However, as Little B gets older, I can't help but wonder if we are doing him a disservice. Will he ever be able to go to sleep on his own? He is a light sleeper and still wakes several times in the night. Sometimes as I listen to him on the monitor, I hear him toss and turn and put himself back to sleep. Just as often - if not more so - we have to come in and give him his binky back. On a rare night, we even have to rock him if he's too worked up.
I thought I'd be okay with the "Cry It Out" method, but that just doesn't work for us. We tried it for a while and it didn't seem to help him and definitely tore our hearts in two. So, instead we continue our routine and continue to hope we aren't creating a monster who will never go to bed on his own. In the meantime, I will continue to listen to my heart which says that my baby will only be a baby for a little while. And once he gets a little older, he won't be interested in his mommy cuddling and rocking him to sleep. I tend to believe I won't regret the extra time our bedtime routine takes because this part of the routine will change into something else all too soon.
I have been thinking the same things lately. Carter's reflux kind of made the decision for us because we have to hold him up for thirty minutes and he always falls asleep with his last bottle. I have concluded that he will not need to be rocked to sleep until he is ten years old, or something ridiculous like that. Three years old maybe, but I'm willing to rock him to sleep for three years :) Bedtime cuddles are the best kind and I'm not willing to even try to give that up for awhile. And he does the same thing sometimes at night, fusses a bit and then falls back to sleep. So I know he's able to do it. I'm sure our boys will be just fine, and so will we since we get those bedtime cuddles :)
ReplyDeletegirls....i rocked ava to sleep until she was 18 mo old. it was our routine. then i would put her in bed and sit by her bed until she got quiet and sneak out the door. the day will come for you too. hang in there and enjoy it while you can!
ReplyDeleteThanks Tara and Tami! I am loving it and like you Tara, I'm not ready to give it up :)
ReplyDeleteSavannah was the same way as a baby, our routine was and is like Tami's comment above.
ReplyDeleteShe STILL is like that at 3.5 years old. She likes for me to lay with her until she is nearly asleep or happens to be fully asleep when I get up. And if we're not in her room, she likes to know we are nearby. She likes that closeness, back rubs, some times we still even rock, etc. While it did take her longer to sleep through the night than other kids, she does just fine now. She can absolutely go to sleep on her own as well, especially during the night (thank God for that milestone!). They grow out of that need eventually, so treasure those moments :-) When he gets older you can cut back if needed, but the bed time snuggles is one of the best way to end a day!