Alrighty...here I go. I have a three month old son and a 2 year old son who share a bedroom. I jump at every little peep that comes out of my three month old because I don't want my two year old to wake up. I remember when my oldest was young, we allowed him to cry himself to sleep, am I supposed to let him do that now? I don't want my two year old to wake up, will he get used to it? Also nap time is horrible. I put my two year old down, which he never just stays in his bed and falls asleep, he plays a little and usually falls asleep on the floor. Also, I have to close his door so he won't come out. Then while the 2 year old is sleeping in his room, I have to put the three month old in my room so he won't wake up the 2 year old or visa versa. HELP! I need some advice on this sharing of rooms and sleep! Thank you!
My advice is to have them sleep in the same room. It will help them learn to sleep through noise. You could start with the naptime. Continue to put the 2yr old down first, and then take the 3m old in. They will learn to sleep through the little moans.
M.
Thanks for writing this. We plan on having our next kid as soon as God wants us too. In other words we are not using protection so hopefully all will go well soon. My son is 2 1/2 which if things go right he will be just three when the new baby comes. They will have to share a room as well. But reading your responses had me thinking and gave us a plan. I think I will wait until the baby sleeps threw the night until I let them share rooms. My 1st son was a hard baby so he didnt sleep threw the night for the longest time but that was because we attened to his every cry. I think I will do the sleep traing in our room then move him/ her to their room. Looking forward to your update so I can see how things go.
I would do with the 2yr old what i do now i would just add the 3mo. old. while the 2yr old is playing on the floor i would be laying the baby down. You do have to let it yell or it won't get over it. Do just as you did with the 2yr old when he was little the only dif. is you can let they 2yr old play on the floor. He will get used to it. If you respond to the baby's every noise you are teaching it that just make a noise and i will be there and take you out. You don't want that as they get older. That will def. cause a riff in your plan....lol
What we do is put the kids to sleep in different rooms (using our own big beds) until they are both out cold and then move our 5-month old in with her big brother while they are sleeping.
Three months old is still young for letting them cry it out, in my opinioin. I would try moving the baby's crib into your room (or another room of the house) until the baby is sleeping through the night.
I strongly recommend "The Baby Whisperer". We used her techniques when my son was 5 months old to teach him to go to sleep on his own. It only took 5 nights, and we do our bedtime routine, lay him in the crib awake and he goes to sleep on his own within minutes (the same with naps).
Hi there,
First, can I just say PLEASE do not put cereal in your 3 month old's bottle. He's way too young. I have a four month old, which is my third child by birth, fifth altogether, and seriously, pediatricians stopped recommending cereal in the bottle in like the '70's.
I agree that it may work better to put the baby in your room for a while, at least until he sleeps better.
I also agree that letting him cry shouldn't be an option. I
If you keep them in the same room, try some white noise. A cd with ocean waves, or something like that, could really help both kids sleep, and certainly cushion the blow of the baby crying if the toddler is sleeping. White noise is magic in my house!! My 2 year old loves it as much as my 4 month old, and I only just started putting it in the 2 year old's room when it worked so well with the youngest! So he just started white noise and he turned 2 in October!
Anyway, I wish you the best of luck.
Oh, and I also highly recommend the book "The Happiest Baby on the Block" by Dr. Karp. Good read on getting a baby to sleep longer blocks of time.
:)
Hi M.!
I have a 3-month-old too! 10-22-08. My suggestion to you would be to move his crib or bassinet in to your room. Our baby sleeps close to us, and having him closer makes it so much easier for night feedings, night-parenting etc. and it might be easier on your 2-year-old too. I don't know if that would work out in your family, everyone's so different but it has worked for us. Make your life as easy as you can, mama. Good luck :)
First of all don't call you kids monsters, because you will have what you say.
Put your children on a routine the same rountine everyday. Yes your two year old will get use to the baby crying and the crying with the baby will stop once he gets and understanding. You might want to try and put a little cereal in his bedtime bottle to help fill up his little stomach so that he will rest better at night just a teaspoon of cereal.
