Bed Time Blues

My daughter started doing that same thing here lately i cut her naps back a lil she will nap before 5pm and then after her bath i feed here and she cant stay up after that even when i want her too.

My husband and put a music box in our sons crib when he was an infant and he has really enjoyed it (he is 4yo now). It is one that straps on to the crib and looks like an aquarium with fish. I have seen them at Babies RUs. The fish will twirl, it lights up, plays music, and even blows bubbles in the water. Once he was old enough to sit up and reach for it on his own we taught him to turn it on. On the occassions when he would wake up in the middle of the night we would go in and check on him. If he was okay, but just couldn't go back to sleep we would encourage him to just turn on the music box for a distraction. It took a bit of training, but eventually he got the hang of it. Sometimes I would wake up in the middle of the night and hear the music box playing and he hadn't called out for us first. We always let him know that he could call us if he needed us, but if he was just having trouble sleeping the music box became enough to lull him back to sleep without waking mom and dad.

I had this problem too. I had to just shut the door and turn down the monitor and let her cry it out. I hated having to do that but it taught her how to go to sleep on her own so in the end it worked. She is now 12 and sleeps like a rock.

Hi there. My son is 18 months old. I too went through the same situation with my son. I soon figured out he needed a routine.
So now I get home cook dinner, eat, have about 30 minutes of play time with him and then I will say it's bath time and then afterward we can rock and read books and then it's nite nite time.
We play a lot during the bath time and then afterwards too for about 10 min.
Then I'll say to him lets go get some milk and tell dada nite nite.
So after we read about 4 books I'll say it's time to go to sleep.
I'll lay him in the bed and rub his face and say sweet dreams.
Turn out the bed light and walk out.
I would put him down around PM. He then would wake up at around 10-11.
Crying.
I had to eventually just turn the monitor down and after going in there every 10 minutes or so he got used to that so I had to cut it out.
Then I sat there one night and listened to him cry it out. I knew it was just a, I want you cry not a hurt cry and I think that hurt me the most.
Once I did that night the next night had a shorter time of crying.
He figured out that I was still there but learned to soothe himself.
Now he sleeps all the way through the night.
He may whimper one or two times on some nights but then goes back down.
Same routine as before he just knows that it's time for bed and it's time to sleep.
He feels better during the morning when he sleeps all the way through. And I tell him that in the morning too that see since you slept the whole night you are so much happier.
He's now getting in the routine of wanting to read books to after he wakes up.
It'll get easier just have to tough it out and try a different method.
What hurts us(emotionally) may not hurt them.

The 2 things that helps me keep my 10 month old in his bed when he was younger we put the musical crib toy...that one that has a money,frog, and fish. The monkey and the frog plays peek-a-boo and bubbles make the fish float around. The music goes for about 20 mins on the right setting and there are many different settings and volums u can put it on. My son kicks it to turn it on. I would also let him cry for about 10 to 15 mins and then walk back in there,pick him up for a second until he calms down and then lay him back in the crib and breifly walk out. I noticed that when I linger in there or stay until he cries and then walk out it makes it worse.Keep doing that and she will realize that even though her crying gets u to check on her, it doesnt get her out of sleeping in her own bed. If my baby can figure it out I'm sure ur daughter can too.

As much as it feels like it's breaking your heart to hear her cry (and trust me, I do understand) helping her have the experience of going to sleep on her own and soothing herself after brief help from you in the beginning is helping her to be a confident, independent person. Developmentally she is emerging from the stage of learning that she can trust that her needs will be met and is getting close to the stage of learning that she is a separate being from you. It's our job as primary caretakers to help our children with this process of separation with reassurance. I do NOT believe in letting a child cry endlessly until they go to sleep from exhaustion but I do believe in "shaping" children's behavior so they increasingly have experiences of success in self soothing and sleeping indpendently. Consistency is key. If you start bringing her into your bed, it will be SO hard to get her into her own bed.... Establish the routine and the way it's going to be and stick to it, lovingly but firmly. I am a counselor for parents and young children in Marietta and Kennesaw and will be happy to help further if I can. Good luck! L.

My son is 2 and i had the same issue. I used to try to rock him, read him books and sing to him but none of that worked. What i finally did was set up a routine for him. He goes to bed at the same time every night and he always get a bath before bedtime so he knows that when bath is over he is going to his bedroom to lay down. I bought him a leap frog baby tad hug & learn friend to keep in his bed with him. It plays up to six minutes of bedtime music. I showed my son how to use it so he can turn it on any time he wakes up. I turn it on for him everynight at bedtime then give him kisses and shut the door. He cries for about 2 minutes then falls asleep. I still have a baby moniter and now instead of hearing him cry in the middle of the night i hear him playing the bedtime music.