You asked so I’m sharing some of my top tips of how I get my baby to sleep throughout the night. I want this to be a judgment-free zone and know that every family and baby is different. I’m by no means a baby sleep expert, just a mom of two sharing the things that work the best for my family. When it comes to getting your baby to sleep, it’s super controversial (I had no idea). As a reminder, there’s no right or wrong way to get your kids to sleep. The right way is what works for your family and how you get sleep.
If you’re struggling with getting your baby to sleep and stay asleep for longer stretches, you need to reach out to our Baby Sleep Coach, Lily. She is the best and helped our family so much when it came to both babies, especially during the tough 4-month sleep regression. She provides free 20-minute calls to connect and see if you’re a right fit, but she also has a great program called the Your Dream Plan (use code HEALTHNUT50 for $50 off).
I’m an 80/20 mom. Eighty percent of the time, we stick to a very consistent sleep schedule, but life happens, and I don’t want to miss out on fun experiences because of our sleep schedule. It’s okay to allow the kids to have late nights, stray off schedule, and have fun occasionally.
I’ve also taught my kids how to nap anywhere. I pack the pack-n-play, blackout curtains, and a portable sound machine. I recreate the sleep environment that they’re used to, and they’ve learned to adapt and sleep anywhere.
At around six months, I moved my baby to their own room. It’s not because I want my room or my space back. It’s because, well, A: they usually grow out of their bassinet at this point, and B: they just sleep better in their own room. I noticed this with my first child, and the same thing happened this time around. Something about a dark, undisturbed, cozy room that feels like a cocoon, I don’t know, but they sleep longer stretches.
I’m always concerned about the air quality in our children’s room, with the door closed all the time for naps/bedtime and only one vent. I’m always worried there’s just not enough airflow. A few months ago we finally got a Jaspr air purifier. I heard about them on a podcast and knew I needed one in our home. It is a commercial-grade air purifier that fits easily into any room in your home but also looks beautiful. It filters out 99.9% of harmful particles, including mold, dust, pet dander, and allergens in the air. You only need to replace the filter every 6 months and it literally takes 30 seconds to do!
Check out Jaspr HERE (use code NIKOLE for $100 off) to check out Jaspr and learn more about ways to improve the air quality of your home today.
There are some easy and free things you can do to improve the air quality in your baby’s room today. Remove the diaper pail and place in the garage or bathroom as every time you are opening it literal poop partials are entering the air in your baby’s room. Another easy thing is simply opening up the windows to let the fresh air inside because our indoor air can be up to 10 times more polluted than the air outside so its important to get fresh air in the house. I promise you’ll be able to tell (and smell!) the difference.
Not only are blankets not recommended for children under 12 months of age, and they can also slip off in the middle of the night. Instead, we use sleep sacks. We used sleep sacks with Sage (our first) until she was 3 years old. A sleep sack is like a blanket that zips around them, similar to a sleeping bag, but with holes for arms. It’s a safer option than a blanket because it stays in the same place, providing comfort and a secure sleep environment. It can also help prevent babies from climbing out of the crib since it limits their movements and provides plenty of room for hips and legs to move freely. I’m a strict nothing else in the crib kind of mom.
Our bedtime routine is about 15-30 minutes max. I know it’s not uncommon for parents to have an hour-plus routine, but that’s not me. Whatever works for your family but I like it short, sweet, and simple. Something I can do every day and won’t feel overwhelmed. We focus on consistency and the order of things (ie: diaper, pjs, milk, book, sleep sack, lullaby, bed). That being said, when we have time, we’ll do cozy, long bedtime routines when it’s a bath night or we’re all just craving extra cuddles.
I used to put my baby to bed at 7:30 pm, but I noticed he was getting up much earlier, around 5:30-6 am. I decided to start doing his bedtime earlier, and now his bedtime is 6:30 pm, and he still wakes up at the same time. You’d think that if you put your baby to bed, he will wake up later, but that’s not the case. Sleep math is a whole thing; there’s this weird sleep formula that honestly doesn’t make sense but it just works. An overtired baby is also a baby that will wake up earlier and usually is harder to settle down. Try putting your baby to sleep earlier and see what happens.
I don’t have a quiet room instead I use a white noise machine. I like to have it away from the crib but on a high setting. It keeps all the outside noise (aka older sibling) out of the room. We also travel with a Pack-N-Play, portable sound machine, and travel blackout curtains, which are great for vacations or when we’re out in town and can’t nap at home. It’s also a great cue for sleep because my baby knows it’s bedtime as soon as I turn it on.
I don’t let my baby oversleep during the day unless my baby is teething, sick, etc. I wake up my baby at exactly the same time every day. I know that if my kids sleep too long during the day, it will affect their sleep at night which is the best quality of sleep for them. So, if your baby is waking up more at night, look at their nap times during the day and maybe adjust them to see if that helps.
I don’t do nighttime diaper changes, and I know this may sound crazy but hear me out.l. I do a size-up in diapers at night, and I’ve had no issues with diaper rash. I’ve noticed that at night when I do diaper changes, it gets the baby out of that sleepy stage, makes them more awake, and makes it harder for them to lie back down. With that said, if there is a poopy diaper or baby is crying/uncomfortable, I do change those, but most of the time at night, my babies don’t poop. Also, most babies wet their diaper more when they are awake not asleep. I’ve spoken to a lot of parents and apparently most people follow this method as well.
There is a sweet spot you want to look for when it comes to putting your baby down for sleep and for us that is drowsy but awake. That’s why I also separate breastfeeding from bedtime. You want your baby to be sleepy but not asleep and so I nurse first so baby isn’t too sleepy just yet and doesn’t fall asleep on the breast. You want them to be awake before they fall asleep so they know when they are. Babies do this thing: if they fall asleep in one place (aka parents arms) and wake up in another place (aka in the crib), they can wake up scared and confused. So if baby falls asleep in their crib, they’re less likely to wake up and not be able to go back to sleep.
If you’re struggling with sleep, I hope that this helps! If I missed something that works great for you and your family, please comment below. If you’re looking for more sleep content, make sure to check out my blog posts, which I’ve linked below.
Baby Sleep Schedule 0-6 Months
How To Get Baby To Sleep Through The Night
5 Natural Remedies For Better Sleep
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