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monica, I think the method might make the baby sleep and this is why you get half comments as great. The critics on the other hand include the medical and child development establishment and point out you may be causing some real long term development issues with parent directed feeding. It's too controversial for me, and also very troubling that the AAP has ripped it apart. The book I was recommended by a number of doctor friends is "Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems" By Richard Ferber; however we don't like its "let the baby cry it out" approach though, even if it's only for a night. If you can take it, then go for it. We sort of have figured out our own way which includes a nighttime bath. My daughter usually sleeps from 11pm to 6 am.

wow bbk you are so lucky... from 11 to 6. I would be in heaven. I have tried the bathtime and feeding before bed... but he still wakes up wanting to eat about every 3 hours. Right now he has a cold so I am just doing whatever is comfy for him. I know its hard to hear them cry the most I can stand is around 15 minutes then I have to and pick him up. I go back to work in Novemeber and I have to have him sleeping at least for 5 hours straight otherwise I wont be able to drive myself to work or fall asleep at work. I work far... I work all the way in Oakland. Its sad but I think there is going to have to be a day when he will have to cry it out....:( As far as the book I am not getting it, the thought of it and all the readers comments gave me an uneasy feeling.

monica, she has her nights where she wakes up at 4:30, but she goes back to sleep after a short nursing session. I think the swaddling helps too. Anyway by November your boy will be a better sleeper. By that time he'll be having cereal and I heard that helps babies sleep much better. Wow, Oaktown is a long way to go but I think you got BART in SB now

BBK, how long has she been sleeping that long. our kids are about the same age. He has done 5.5 and 6 a *few* times, but his average is about 4 to 4.5. I was just wondering when I could expect the next increase :)

I use to take bart could not stand people coughing and sneezing on me...plus can you believe that it takes longer to get to work on bart than me driving in. Plus when I drive in I get a 10 minute walk from where I park to work and that wakes me up in the morning.

To BBK one other question. In the book "what to expect to first year" they mention that swaddling can interfere with growth... thats why I had not been doing it...have you heard about this?

KH, how are you!!! Hope all is well! She was sleeping like this since week 3 where she'd wake up at about 4:30 but fall asleep right after nursing and diaper change till about 8. Then at about week 6 her schedule got messed up and went to bed at 9pm and woke up at 2am while she took long naps during the day for about a week. It was after a weekend of car rides, shopping etc. Now we just take her out no more than 2 hours total. Usually in the early evening we walk around (baby in the carrier) for an hour and that maybe a contibutor to her getting tired.

monica I know there is a faithful following of the "what to expect books" but much of their content is "crack science". I am a physiologist and I'll challenge anyone to even describe to me what kind of development that requires mobility goes on while an infant is sleeping. I read it too, and I can see lots of speculation, but little clinical evidence to back up that claim. I was swaddled (tightly I might add) and I am 6'3" and 230 lbs. I agree that infants older than 3 months should not be swaddled but young infants will find it soothing and you can contol the moro reflex that WILL wake them up. That said, a. you should not do it past 3 months b. do not swaddle too tight and c. work your way out of it by letting out one arm first then the other etc. BTW, my daughter is swaddled and her development is incredible. ......of course she moves freely FOR 17 HOURS every day :-)

he is being swaddled tonight. Do you have a special swaddle blanket? or you just use a any blanket....another question...what do you or your wife do to keep her awake for during the day?

monica we use those kidpopottamus blankets (cotton for the summer). They make life a lot easier with the velcro! Here, they even sell them at rite-aid (kinda like wallgreens over there). We use the large size so it's not really tight and we rotate freeing up her arms left to right as she's almost 9 weeks now :-) As for the day, putting her in a bright room, (she likes daylight) and the hanging toy gym or toy bar on her bouncer keep her busy. She does nap a lot, but no more than a couple of hours at a time.... diaper changes always wake her up too of she sleeps too long. My wife takes her to her morning errands and then we walk with her again just before dinner. She likes to look at trees so we go to a park nearby. Fresh air makes her sleep better, so try walking outside with your baby boy, even after dinner!

BBK, how does she sleep during the day when she isn't swaddled? My friend stopped swaddling her son at 18 weeks and he slept horribly for a while. Eventually, she would go in his room and find him on his belly. so, she let him sleep on his belly(when he was able to roll over). I fear that I will have to do this too. He will not sleep long unless he is swaddled.... I have "the Amazing Miracle Blanket" and I leave his legs out and only wrap his arms. I'm still waiting for him to sleep 6-8 hours. I was so exhausted today!

BBK and KH so I went and bought a kidpopattamus. I had a choice between that one and the miracle blanket. The kidpopattumus was $10 and the miracle was $30. The clerk told me that more people register for the kidpopattumus so tonight I will bath and fed and swaddle. wish me luck.... I am desperate. KH I have heard nothing but great things about the miracle blanket...

Monica, yeah the MB is good , but at 3 weeks, my son was getting his feet out of the pouch - argh! He's a character! The arm part is great - there is no way he could get out of that. I'm so worried about when I can't swaddle him :(

KH during the day she sleeps mostly on her swing (papasan). She does attempt to wake up at times but the rocking motion puts her back to sleep....well, most of the time. The cricket sound the good papasan designers put there also helps her. Well, there is a long way to 18 weeks for your little one. We free both arms only on Fri and Sat nights, so we can recover sleep if she wakes up; the other nights she gets to use only one arm. It's actually OK because she can now suck either thumb and soothe herself. Monica I didn't know about the miracle blanket, I'll check that one out too since we'll be needing a fleece blanket soon. I hope your son had a better sleep, but even if he didn't, give swaddling a couple more tries.... he may not get used to it with one try. BTW babies naturally resist swaddling. That's a normal reflex, but once tucked in they feel safer. Also make sure the room is not too hot or the baby is not overdressed because heat can wake them up too.

there's a papasan swing? I've only seen the chair.... Your wife is b/f right? Do you give her a bottle before sleep? Is your daughter 8 weeks or 9? oh so many questions :)

KH check out http://snipurl.com/hndx for the papasan. The swing is good but it was an acquired taste sort of thing. Feeding is almost all b___stfeeding except the before bedtime feeding where baby gets formula by yours truly, (now 4 oz of it) and she tops it off with some nursing that knocks her out (that's bad I know). My wife then pumps out the rest which she has in her 8:00 am feeding which I do before taking off (her 6 am feeding is light since she goes to sleep till about 7:45). So she gets the bottle twice a day, once with expressed milk and the other with formula, and the rest is nursing. The bottle has been a challenge in the past and she still won't take it if my wife is even in the room.... even if she hears her talk on the phone in the other room!!! She is 2 months today and 9 weeks tomorrow (long summer months :)