crystal's sleep instructions....

[Oliveshoots]

I read in another thread where Crystal said that she teaches her 18 m.o. and 2 y.o.'s to go to sleep by laying down with them and saying "stop your body, stop your mouth, close your eyes, breathe deeply, and let sleep come".

So I did that with ds last night (he usually "wallers" around on the bed for 15-20 minutes before going to sleep.)

We said our prayers. We hugged and kissed.

I laid beside him and said all of the above (crystal's words) twice. And he closed his eyes and was out!!!!

Okay, maybe it's just a fluke, but....
YAY!!!!

Oh, he has also started doing this cute thing where, in the middle of playing, he will lie down on the floor and say "waing down!!" ("laying down") and look at the ceiling and get really still. Sometimes he'll say "waing down, mama!" Like "look at me, I know how to lay down!" It's SOOOOOO cute. So he's putting togetehr all these actions and directions, like lay down, stop your body, etc. Sleep time has gotten much easier!! It also helps with dipe changes for me to say "lay down!" in his cheery little this-is-a-game voice.

Love that boy.

[DogwoodMama]

Wow! That is wonderful! :) :tu

Yeah, Charlotte has started "playing sleep" as well... she puts her dolls to bed, and if I say "fast asleep" she will scrunch up her eyes and pretend to sleep. :) I'm going to try Crystals words though, I think it'll help her as well.

[2sunshines]

I read that post where she mentioned that too and did it for the past two nights with my kids and it calmed them down really quickly and helped them sleep quicker than usual. :tu

[Oliveshoots]

I just stopped by mom's for lunch to nurse dd, and asked her to try it with ds for his afternoon nap. She said she would, so we'll see. She also said "Well, that's alot like what Greg and Steve say on that CD I used to play for him when he was a baby!" (Those Greg and Steve CDs are so cute...kinda cheesy and 80's, but cute...she had them left over from teaching kindergarten.) So I said now that he can understand what they are saying, maybe that CD will become a good tool for mom to use when dd and ds are both trying to go to sleep at the same time. (That can be such a challenging time of day....not as challenging for me, becuase i can lay down and nurse dd while ds lays there and cuddles up to me....mom has to soothe them both, and it's kind of hard.) :pray bless my sweet mama.

[ArmsOfLove]

:woohoo I'm so glad it's helping!

[Radosny Matka]

That's terrific, and inspirational. I hope I have as much success when my guy reaches that age. :grin

[Oliveshoots]

Just another update....and here's proof that CIO is NOT necessary in teaching a child to sleep!!!

My ds fell asleep the other day sitting on the couch eating a piece of pizza. NO TV....NO mom and dad in the room...NO music on. It was after we had been at church all morning, and he was having a snack of cold pizza :rolleyes (thanks, dh!) while I fixed lunch and dh made limeade. I walked in there, and the pizza had fallen out of his hand, and he was conked out leaning against the couch cushion. DH just laid him flat and he slept like that until we left for our picnic.

Then the NEXT day, while he was eating lunch, he started to nod off...dropped his chicken....if the back of his booster seat had been high enough, I'm sure he would have just put his head back and gone to sleep. So I took him down, laid him in my bed, covered him up, and he went right to sleep.

So, in a nutshell, when someone says "they have to learn to go to sleep on their own" I will say, "oh I agree, but that doesn't HAVE to happen when they are 3 mos! or 6, or 12, or 2,3,4 years....it WILL eventually happen, and they will be happier and healthier for being given the space to do it on their own schedule!!"

:highfive :amen

[chelsea]

Oh, he has also started doing this cute thing where, in the middle of playing, he will lie down on the floor and say "waing down!!" ("laying down") and look at the ceiling and get really still. Sometimes he'll say "waing down, mama!" Like "look at me, I know how to lay down!"
How adorable! I can almost hear him saying it! (In my son's voice of course! ;) ) I'll have to try this!
the pizza had fallen out of his hand, and he was conked out leaning against the couch cushion.
Then the NEXT day, while he was eating lunch, he started to nod off...dropped his chicken
Hehe, eating! Now THAT is a new way to get a little guy to sleep! :giggle

[Oliveshoots]

Hee hee....I need to find the pics of the day after church where he fell asleep in the car holding a sugar cookie.

Okay, just for the record, my son does not ALWAYS eat junky food (i know so far I've mentioned cold pizza, chicken nugget, and sugar cookie.) But HONESTLY...maybe it's just the junkiness makes him sleepy? :shrug

I also need to record him saying "waing down"! It's so cute how he puts the little inflections in his voice. It's like "waing down" is the coolest thing in the world. He does it in the tub, in the wading pool, etc. SOOO FUNNY!

[ArmsOfLove]

That is so awesome! I'm sure it's because we've all been sick and yesterday was particularly bad, but ds2 and dd both took naps which they haven't done in a very long time :eek And then they went to sleep earlier too! :tu I think overtired builds up and when they finally start sleeping they realize how much they need of it ;)