Getting Son to Sleep in Crib - Anoka,MN

If you always carry him after he's fallen asleep he won't learn to go to sleep on his own, I found that out with my first son. Start with naps, to get him comfortable with the crib. Lay him down when he's almost asleep or tired, make sure he's comfortable and leave. When he cries go in after 5 minutes or so, if he's sitting or standing gently lay him down, don't pick him up, but talk in a quiet, soothing matter-of-fact voice, and rub or pat his tummy or leg to calm him down, tell him it's time to sleep, that you love him and leave. You may have to repeat this many, many times, so don't get discouraged.

Also, darken his room with blinds or a shade, and have a fan going for white noise for naps and bedtime. Establish a calming after dinner bedtime routine with a bath, rubdown with nighttime lotion, a story or two, no roughhousing, tickling or excitement. Make sure he has a lovie of some sort to snuggle with to help him self-soothe to sleep and back to sleep. Do whatever relaxes him for sleep. Keep his routine as consistent as possible. It may take awhile for him to adjust so hang in there!

I hate to say it, but you're going to have sleepless nights probably for the rest of your life :) hehe

All babies, toddlers, preschoolers, etc are restless sleepers, and being a terribly light sleeper myself, I totally understand where you're coming from! My first didn't sleep more than 4 hours a stretch until after 19mo... *yawn*

Start with naps. Then, start with the first part of the night. Then, move to putting him back in his bed when he wakes in the middle of the night. Yes, you'll lose some sleep, but you'll eventually get to the point where you're getting 6-8 hours of straight sleep :) This was how I got my son to sleep all night in his own bed. That being said, he's going to be 5 on Sunday and still wakes in the night to crawl into bed with my husband or me.

When it comes to his sleeping arrangements, he's obviously quite comfortable right where he's sleeping or he wouldn't sleep. Most married couples don't like to sleep alone, so why should your baby? And yes, by all accounts, he's still a baby....

I loved loved loved having our daughter in our bed but when she turned one I found out number 2 was on her way so the bigger I got the smaller our bed got. She had a crib that she never took to and trust me we tried from time to time but she hated it. What we did was when she turned 18 months we bought a toddler bed and put it next to our bed on my side. When she started getting sleepy we'd move her to the bed and tell her this is all her space and this is where she sleeps. After about a weeek she felt secure enough sleeping in it that we would put her directly asleep in it. Then we moved it farther away from our bed and eventually into her room. This took a few months but she is two now and she sleeps in her little toddler bed in her room. Her pediatrician was the one who gave us the idea and it worked well. We got our bed back until our new daughter arrived, she got security and a little independence. The best part was we didn't have to transition her from the crib to a toddler bed we just skipped the crib.

Take it gradually. Start with a crib/pack and play right next to your side of the bed. Once he is used to that, gradually move the bed toward his room. You can't do cold turkey on your baby. You are his "soothie" and you can't just take that away from him and expect him to sleep. P.S. I still let my 3 yr old sleep on a mattress on our floor if she wants. Do what works for you to get the most sleep you can.

My son was just like that, really. Only difference was that I often slept with him in the recliner once he woke up. One night he fell out of the recliner, so I knew I had to find a new plan.

We did Cry it Out, which I was super against. However, after three bad nights, he only cried for 1-5 minutes and put himself to sleep. That lasted a couple of weeks, then no crying at all. The bad nights were bad -- I cried most of the time, too. However, we ALL slept much, much better after that.

Good luck. It's one of those hard decisions!