Possibly my favorite time of the day is when my son has just fallen asleep for the night. I love looking at his sweet sleeping face. I love hearing the little sigh he makes when he’s fallen asleep. I love hearing his restful breathing. I love his little sleep twitches, especially when he curls his hand around my arm.

It takes a lot of willpower to not crawl into his little toddler bed and curl up around him and fall asleep too. Often the willpower fails – but it’s a treat I give myself sometimes instead of working or doing the eternal pile of laundry.

The contrast between the vibrant, awake baby or toddler and the same baby asleep  is so dramatic that us moms have to pause and marvel at how deeply and sweetly they sleep compared to how energetically they live their waking lives. Notwithstanding all those infernal times that they wake up throughout the night – but they look so peaceful when they fall asleep.

When my son falls asleep, I kiss his forehead, whisper how much I love him, that I hope he sleeps well, that I’m looking forward to seeing him in the morning, and tell him a mantra that only he’ll ever hear. I hope he won’t grow up too fast and let me do that a while longer.

It’s the middle of the night right now, I’m just about finished working, and I’m about to go and visit my sleeping son, kiss his forehead again, and take a moment to just feel my love for him before I go to bed too. Sleep tight, my sweet baby.

I have heard from lots of women that they have trouble sleeping during their pregnancy.  Usually, the “condition” gets worse as the pregnancy progresses.

Between my racing thoughts, my enlarging belly, and my need to use the bathroom at frequent intervals, night time is not such a restful time.  It seems that when I lay down, the child I am carrying becomes VERY active and this makes it hard to relax.  When the baby calms down, and I do get to sleep, I am wakened by my toddler’s cries!

People joke that having a baby is nature’s way of telling you that you are getting too much sleep.  That may be true, but I don’t agree with nature’s definition of  “too much”.

I’ve heard a bunch of remedies to the sleep issue.  Some folks advocate drinking hot tea or hot milk before bed.  Others swear that a warm bath helps.  I remember being very large at the end of my pregnancy with my son and having trouble getting in and out of the tub.  The stress of those memories, and the fact that my husband is away quite a bit on business keep me from trying that remedy!  A warm shower will have to do I guess.

I have found that I get very tired(and crabby) in the early evening.  I’ve also discovered that if I can just lay down and relax for about 20 minutes at that time, it really helps.  This means that I put my son in the playpen with a few toys and let him watch one of his favorite videos.  If I doze off, I know he’ll be safe.

When you are working and have children, it’s hard to find time to rest during pregnancy.  If you aren’t sleeping so well at night, that can make life very difficult. If you are dealing with this issue, I’d encourage you to listen to your body and catch some “rest breaks” when you can.  It will really help!

The decision to move your child from his or her crib to a ‘big kid’ bed is a big one. I’ve known people who move their children to a bed before their child turns a year old, or others who make the transition right before the arrival of a younger sibling. Still others keep their children in the crib as long as possible. For some parents, the transition to a ‘big kid’ bed means purchasing a toddler bed frame that can be used with a crib mattress. Other parents prefer to move their child from the crib to a regular bed. As with almost all parenting issues, there is no right or wrong answer.

Personally, I keep my children in the crib as long as possible! When they are able to crawl out of the crib, I’ll move the mattress down to the lowest rung on the crib to try to delay the inevitable. I’ve found that the crib tents and other items designed to keep your baby from ‘escaping’ the crib really don’t work. When your child is making a regular effort to get out of the crib, it’s time to make the move to a big kid bed, mostly I feel for safety reasons.

I’ve found that making the transition from crib to bed because of the impending birth of a sibling isn’t a good idea. The idea of sharing mom and dad can be a stressful change for some kids; adding more changes is not such a good thing. Then again, your youngster may be excited to make the transition. If that is the case, take your opportunity when it presents itself!

My son is so active and he gets into everything! Frankly, I worry at this point about making the transition to a bed mostly for safety issues. Just thinking about all the things he could get into after I put him to bed and before he goes to sleep really stresses me out. I usually transitioned my children to a toddler bed when they were around 3, but I am wondering if this is a good plan for my son or not. I transitioned the children again to a regular bed when they were around 4 to 5 years old.

My son is very, very different from his four older siblings, all of whom happen to all be girls. He’s much more active and perhaps because he’s the youngest of 5, he is really focused on being a ‘big boy’ and doing ‘big boy’ things. Nevertheless, he hasn’t made a regular habit of escaping from his crib just yet and so my husband and I have decided to let well enough alone. Perhaps he’ll spend a little while longer in his crib, or perhaps we’ll be making that transition to a big boy bed very soon. Only time will tell!

I have never had a child die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). A co-worker of mine did though. SIDS is defined as the death of an otherwise healthy infant that can’t be attributed to any other cause.

I knew that our son was healthy, but the fact that he was still at risk for SIDS was slightly terrifying to me. I especially worried since his older brother was stillborn and I just did not want to lose another child. I researched SIDS and tried to do my best to lower the risk factors.

I made sure he slept on his back, I didn’t allow friends to smoke in our house, I made sure to not overdress him at night, and I let him sleep in a sleep sack instead of using blankets. I also gave him a pacifier at night because studies showed that pacifiers did lower the SIDS risk slightly.

A new study published in a health journal states that the use of a fan may also help to prevent deaths from SIDS. Researchers are quick to point out that further study needs to be done on the issue, but this seems to suggest that air circulation and ventilation are an important factor in preventing SIDS.

Experts agree that the best way to help prevent SIDS is to put babies to sleep on their backs. It is also important to make sure that your baby is sleeping on a firm mattress and that he or she is not overheated when sleeping.

The recent study was published in October’s Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine. The study involved 500 infants from over 11 counties in California and was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health.

Establishing a routine is one of the most difficult, yet important things you can do with an infant. Routines help infants learn to anticipate events and understand the world around them. The repetition of routines encourages memory development and helps to soothe and reassure babies.

I’ve personally found that babies with a routine tend to be happier and less stressed. With my first child, we had no routine. With her numerous handicaps and health issues, I was existing in survival mode for much of those early years and so I really didn’t think much about ‘working’ on a routine. I just did what I needed to do next.

For most babies, they will set a routine themselves. When you bring your baby home from the hospital or birthing center, keep a record of his or her sleep and wake cycles for the first few days. More than likely, some sort of pattern will be apparent. You can begin to use this to establish a routine with your child. For example, if your son has taken a morning nap anywhere from 9 to 10am most days, perhaps try putting him down for a nap around 9:30. Eventually, you and your child will develop a routine.

I also found that if I nursed my children regularly throughout the day in 2 hour intervals, even if I had to wake the baby to feed him, I could guarantee myself at least 4 hours of undisturbed sleep at night. I express my undying gratitude to the midwife that shared that secret with me after the birth of my third child and I pass it along to you!

Since babies, especially in the early days and weeks of their life, sleep much of the time, it’s wise to develop a bedtime routine early on to help your child learn to differentiate ‘bedtime’ from ‘nap time’.

For our son, I began a routine of bathing him, reading to him, and changing him into his pajamas. I talked to him constantly, even in the early days, about what I was doing. This is probably why he is such a talker now! The first few days, he screamed during bath time. Eventually, he progressed to tolerating them. Now, bath time is one of his favorite times of the day.

Although a regular routine is a great idea, the reality is that you will have days where routines just don’t work. That’s another tip I’d like to share with you, don’t worry if this happens. I’ve talked with a lot of moms who get totally stressed out if a doctor appointment, or some other unexpected event ruins their routine. Don’t get stressed, just go back to the routine as soon as you are able. You may notice that your baby is fussy for a day or so after the change, but that’s about it. While it’s great for a baby to be on a regular schedule, sooner or later, he will need to learn what all of us have learned: life is full of unexpected surprises which happen without respecting your routine or schedule!

Remember, do your best, don’t stress!

A new report from the UK published today reminds us all about safe sleeping practices for babies. Babies who sleep with their faces covered are 27% more likely to die from SIDS or crib death, than those who sleep with their heads and faces uncovered.

It seems obvious. Actually, babies who die of SIDS usually don’t seem to have suffocated, and in most cases doctors are sadly mystified as to what happened, and don’t know why the baby stopped breathing.

Doctors speculate that it may be related to babies overheating. Overheating has long been known as a risk factor for SIDS, and a baby with his or her face or head covered is more likely to overheat.

It also may be related to the position that the baby sleeps in. A baby on his or her back can kick sheets or blankets off more easily than a baby on his or her front, especially a younger baby who can’t roll over yet. It reinforces the advice that babies sleeping on their backs are less at risk.

Wiggly, kicky, babies try their best every night to kick their sheets off, or wriggle underneath them. The safest thing a baby can sleep in, many experts agree, is a baby sleeping bag or sleepsack. There’s many adorable sleeping bags on the market – here’s a few of my favorite baby sleeping bags – many costing under $15.

If you don’t have a sleeping bag, put your baby to sleep with his or her feet against the foot of the crib (remember – feet to foot) and tuck the sheets or blanket in snugly under the mattress, and no higher than mid-chest. This makes it as difficult as possible for baby to wiggle down under, and harder to pull the sheets out and get tangled in them.

And always dress your baby appropriately for the temperature. Babies as a rule need the same amount of bedding we adults do, possibly slightly more, and perhaps a snug hat for newborns. Unless it’s very cold, babies just don’t need lots of layers.

Here’s more excellent advice to minimize the risk of SIDS for your baby.

Back to sleep, feet to foot, and sleep safe and sound, all our precious babies.

Like every mom, I worry about my baby when he’s sleeping. Is he too cold? too hot? is he comfortable? And nagging at the back of every mom’s mind is the worry of SIDS, or crib death.

The latest AAP recommendations of how to keep your baby safe while sleeping have dramatically reduced the number of deaths from SIDS, and following them will make it extremely unlikely your baby will be one of them.

The Angelcare BebeSounds nursery monitor is a movement-sensing pad that goes underneath a crib or bassinet mattress. The pad detects baby’s movements, and every breath they take, and if no movement (i.e. breaths) are detected for 20 seconds, a warning chirp beeps, then an alarm sounds.

It’s also a regular baby monitor, and available with one parent receiver, or two.

I bought one of these monitors to use with my newborn son. We had the occasional false alarm, when he rolled right to the edge of the crib, and when he woke up in the middle of the night and I forgot to turn it off after picking him up out of his crib.

Then one night, when he was about 4 months old, I woke up to the warning chirp. Half asleep, I was wondering what it was. Then the alarm went off. I ran to my son’s crib, and put my hand on his back. He wasn’t breathing. I rubbed his back. Nothing. I shook his arms. No response. I shook him and shouted his name. He took the most enormous inhale. I spent the rest of the night sitting up with him asleep in my arms. I’ve never been so terrified, and so relieved.

This device is not marketed as an anti-SIDS product, or a safety device, and they make no claims that it will prevent SIDS. Always follow all the recommendations from the AAP and use the monitor as a little extra peace-of-mind.

It retails for $80 for the dual monitor set and $66 for the single monitor receiver. Expensive for a baby monitor, but I truly believe this monitor it saved my son’s life, and I don’t believe I’ve ever spent a better $80.

The Grand Prize winner is Jude Reed

Thanks to all the babies (and their parents) who participated in this weeks round.

From now until April 14 we will be accepting entries for April’s contests. April’s theme is April Fools!

The contest is free so enter your babies picture today! Or just vote for your favorite. (Anyone can vote)

At the end of each preliminary week one (1) winner is chosen and will be awarded a prize package. The winners of each preliminary round (3 total), as well as two (2) runner-ups from each round are automatically entered into the Final Round. The winner of the final round is awarded the Grand Prize.

Round 1: 1st through 7th
Round 2: 8th through 14th
Round 3: 15th through 21st
Final Round: 22nd through last day of the month

Click Here for more information.

Week 3’s winner was Mason Xavier !
Runner-up: Amelia Kimberly
Runner-up: Payton Brooke

Thanks to all the babies (and their parents) who participated in this weeks round.

From now until April 14 we will be accepting entries for April’s contests. April’s theme is April Fools!

The contest is free so enter your babies picture today! Or just vote for your favorite. (Anyone can vote)

At the end of each preliminary week one (1) winner is chosen and will be awarded a prize package. The winners of each preliminary round (3 total), as well as two (2) runner-ups from each round are automatically entered into the Final Round. The winner of the final round is awarded the Grand Prize.

Round 1: 1st through 7th
Round 2: 8th through 14th
Round 3: 15th through 21st
Final Round: 22nd through last day of the month

Click Here for more information.

Week 2’s winner was Liliana Marie !
Runner-up: Elizabeth Lee
Runner-up: krishna sai akhil

Thanks to all the babies (and their parents) who participated in this weeks round.

From now until April 14 we will be accepting entries for April’s contests. April’s theme is April Fools!

The contest is free so enter your babies picture today! Or just vote for your favorite. (Anyone can vote)

At the end of each preliminary week one (1) winner is chosen and will be awarded a prize package. The winners of each preliminary round (3 total), as well as two (2) runner-ups from each round are automatically entered into the Final Round. The winner of the final round is awarded the Grand Prize.

Round 1: 1st through 7th
Round 2: 8th through 14th
Round 3: 15th through 21st
Final Round: 22nd through last day of the month

Click Here for more information.

I was a little terrified when I headed home from the hospital with my first baby. I think it’s natural for most first-time moms to be scared out of their minds after their first babies are born, especially in cases like mine when I had never really been exposed to newborn babies. Why was she crying? Was she nursing enough? Did she innately know that her mommy didn’t have a clue?

What I remember most about bringing her home was how I would sit there while she slept, timing her every breath and making sure that she was still breathing. I was honestly scared that if I didn’t monitor this that she would simply stop breathing while napping or sleeping in the middle of the night. Yes, I know that’s irrational, but when you combine sleep deprivation with the strongest and truest love I have ever experienced, I guess I couldn’t be surprised that my mind was working in weird ways. As a result, I wound up spending a lot of time sitting there and listening to my daughter breathe.

You may find yourself in a similar situation. Maybe you’re like me and you spend an inordinate amount of time listening to your baby breathe, or maybe you have something else you feel compelled to do before you can rest well. You probably tell yourself that you’ll lighten up as your baby gets a little older, but let me tell you something: My first-born just turned four last week, and guess what? I still can’t get to sleep at night unless I stand outside her room and listen to her breathe in her sleep for a while. My guess is that I’ll probably follow this ritual until the day she heads off to college.

The fact of the matter is this: No matter how old your kids get, you still feel compelled to protect them. Although you may be able to loosen the proverbial apron springs as your babies age, you’ll always think of your daughters and sons as the little babies you brought home from the hospital. Seriously…I plan on sending homemade cookies to my daughter long after she has been sworn into the Oval Office.