We plan to use the SuperNanny Sleep Separation technique. This is a big change for Max, but we believe it will be a positive one, too. Up until now, I have always nursed or rocked him to sleep, so this will be very different for him. Our ultimate goal is for him to be able to stay in his toddler bed at the end of our nighttime routine, soothing himself to sleep.
DAY 1 (July 31)
Nap:
Our first try was at naptime today. Max had some warm milk and a story and then it was time to begin. It started off the way we knew it would. He cried a little, kept saying, "Ah dah!" (all done), he stood up several times, played with his curtains, and got out of bed many times. But as I sat next to his bed quietly, I could hear the signs that he was getting sleepy...he got quiet, yawned and rubbed his eyes. He finally laid down...with his head at the foot of the bed. He put one leg out to touch me, but since he was still laying in the bed, I didn't move. Then he put the other leg out and tried to get out. I put his legs back on the bed and he didn't move after that. He fell asleep after trying to get out of bed just 8 times, and the whole process only took a total of 30 minutes from start to finish. We were shocked and excited that he fell asleep so quickly! He didn't sleep a long time...just an hour, but when he woke up we praised him for taking a nap in his big boy bed!
I'm sure this is just a fluke, and that there are going to be much harder days and nights ahead in this process, but it was wonderful to have such a positive start to this transition! We are both encouraged and are so proud of Max!
Nighttime:
Well, it seems that Max may have been ready for this change. Surprisingly, tonight was even easier than naptime. After drinking his milk, brushing his teeth and having a story, Max fell asleep in 11 minutes! He only tried to get out of bed 3 times and ended up laying down in the same position that he did for naptime. Maybe we should turn the bed around...
I believe I'm having a little harder time with this than he is. I feel a mix of emotions tonight. I feel so proud of him and I feel comforted that he is transitioning so well. On the other hand, however, I feel a slight sense of loss for the baby that is disappearing before my eyes. Why, oh why, can't I slow down the clock?!
First night in his new bed...
The first night went really well! Max went down a little before 8pm and slept until 11:15. I changed his diaper and his pajamas because he was wet. Luckily he had been sleeping on one of his blankets so the sheets didn't get wet. I was able to get him back to sleep in 10 minutes, but he woke up 10 minutes later again. Travis brought his milk up, and after drinking the full 9 oz, he fell back to sleep, only trying to get out of bed once. He slept until 3:30. I changed him again and we gave him another 6 oz of milk. This time he rolled over and fell back to sleep right away, without trying to get out or crying. He actually slept in until 8am this morning...an hour past when he usually wakes up! At one point, I tried to get him to sleep with his head at the head of the bed, but he turned around again. I don't know why he wants to sleep that way, except that he sleeps that direction in his crib. I may turn the bed around for nap today.
Day 2 (August 1)
Naptime:
Well naptime went about how I thought it would. Today I moved my sitting position away from his bed a little. The move meant that I wouldn't be rubbing his back to soothe him to sleep. I also did decide to turn the bed around, since he liked that orientation better. We began at 11:27, and he promptly threw all of his blankets and animals out of his bed. Throughout the course of the next 50 minutes, he tried to get out of bed only 10 1/2 times, much fewer than I had expected. I say there was a half, because, at one point, he put one foot out, but then decided to stay on the bed. Our biggest challenge, this time, was the curtains. His bed was right next to the window, and while he only pulled the curtains back once yesterday, I knew they would probably become the source of a struggle at some point. Sure enough, they did. He figured out that if he pulled the curtains open, I would get up and close them. He also realized that I would lean over his bed to do this and would try to hug or grab onto me when I did this. So after this happened 20 or more times, I decided to just pull his bed away from the window so he couldn't reach them. He tried to get out and pull them open 2 more times after that, but when I just put him back in bed, he soon gave up. A little after 12 he laid down and played with his belly button, and finally fell asleep around 12:15. He fell asleep in the same position as before, but because I turned the bed, his head was at the head of the bed this time.
This time was much more challenging...and more in line with the way I thought it would be. I'm not surprised that today took longer, because he had to find a way to soothe himself to sleep, instead of relying on me to rub his back. The two things that he did to soothe himself were laying his face on his hands and rocking his head back and forth, and playing with his belly button. It will be interesting to see how tonight goes. I have a feeling it may take longer than naptime did, but I'm up for the challenge! Our plan is for me to get this routine established, since I've been the one that puts him down most nights, and then Travis will join the routine after that. I think he will definitely test the boundaries with Travis, when he begins, but that is a natural part of any child getting used to a new routine.
When he woke up...
OK...tonight was totally unexpected. I went upstairs thinking it was going to take at least an hour to get him down, based on naptime. We started our nighttime routine. He drank his milk, we brushed his teeth and put up the gate at his door. Max picked out a soft little bunny, that the Blahas gave him, to take to bed. We read his 2 favorite bedtime books, said prayer and I gave him lots of hugs and kisses. Then I told him it was night night time at 8:23pm. He cried for about 1 minute and then sat with his legs crossed, the bunny in his lap, looking at me. I was facing the bookcase, about a foot from his bed. For about 10 minutes, he quietly looked at me, and around 8:35, I saw him jerk his head up and realized that he had fallen asleep sitting up! I watched him nod and catch himself a couple more times, thinking he would lay down. However, I was afraid that he would fall backward or hit his head on one of the rails, so I laid him down and he was sound asleep. It was the cutest thing ever! I wish I could have gotten a video or picture of what I saw. It was SO funny and cute! It was a great second night and we couldn't be more pleased with the progress we're making! Praise God!
Sound asleep in a little over 10 minutes on the second night! You'll also notice that all of his blankets and the bunny are still on the bed. He didn't throw them out like he did at naptime...
The night went so well! Max fell asleep at 8:35 and didn't wake up again until 2:45. I changed his diaper, gave him 9oz of milk and he turned over and was asleep again in less than 5 minutes without a peep. He woke again at 5:25. I went in and he was sitting up in his bed. I laid him back down and put his blanket over him and he went right back to sleep again until he woke up for good at 7. I am so happy with the way things are progressing! Max is doing great!!!
Day 3 (August 2)
Naptime:
Today I positioned myself about 2 feet away from Max's bed, after his naptime routine, at 10:42. He didn't drink all of his milk, so I set it on his bookcase. Like yesterday he threw almost everything out of his bed right at first. During the next 15 minutes, he stood up 5 times and tried to get out of bed 10 times. Each time he did one of these things, I calmly put him down in his bed. He didn't cry at all at first. Then he saw his milk on the shelf and wanted to drink the rest of it. I quickly debated if I should give it to him or not, and decided to. He drank the rest of it and wanted to chew on the nipple, but I took the bottle away. This made him cry. When he wasn't looking, I set it on top of the bookcase so he couldn't see it anymore. A couple minutes later, he laid his head down and was asleep by 11:06...just 24 minutes after we began. That is a big improvement from yesterday's nap time of 50 minutes! I can definitely see improvement, but it seems that naptimes are going to bed our biggest challenge...
He took a longer nap than yesterday...about 1 hour 40 minutes, which is great!
Nighttime:
Tonight Max started out right away, trying to get out of bed. The only difference this time, is that every time I got up to put him back in bed, he'd jump back in bed. This makes it clear that he is starting to really understand what is expected of him...and he is testing the boundaries. He got out of bed 8 times and then sat up in bed for a few minutes. He laid down for a while, playing with his belly button, which is definitely his way of soothing and comforting himself. I thought he would go to sleep, but he sat back up for a couple of minutes and then laid down again, head down, and fell asleep that way. It really has worked out well, turning the bed around though, because he tends to stay in the area with the rails, whether head up or down. Tonight it took 20 minutes for him to fall asleep...a little longer than last night, but such a short time in the whole scheme of things. I'm completely happy with this technique and I really see it working. It is such a load off of our minds to know that he will soon be staying in his new bed and falling asleep all by himself!
The night went well. Max slept from a little before 9 until 4am. He got a diaper change and took 9 oz of milk and rolled over and fell asleep right away. He slept until 8 this morning and played in his room until 8:30 before he called for me.
Day 4 (August 3)
Naptime:
Today I am around 3 feet from Max's bed. We began at 10:59 and in the first 6 minutes, he got out of bed 16 times...each time jumping back into bed when I got up to up him back in. After that, he sat quietly in his bed and then laid down. He tried to get out of bed one more time and then stayed in. He was asleep by 11:15 and slept until around 1.
Nighttime:
Tonight, bedtime went pretty well. We began a little earlier than usual, at 7:53, so I wasn't sure if Max was tired enough to go down easily, but I knew I still had 2 hours of work to get through tonight. He didn't cry at all tonight...got out of bed only 5 times and then sat up in his bed quietly, until he laid down and went to sleep. He was sound asleep by 8:09. This is completely amazing to me. It is so different from how he was in his crib. We could never just put him in and sit in the chair while he went to sleep on his own. He would cry and cry. Maybe it's just the consistency of the technique, but whatever it is, it's wonderful! Hopefully he will sleep as well as he did last night! Only time will tell...
Last night, Max slept well again. He woke up at 1:45, had a diaper change, drank his milk and rolled over and went back to sleep within 5 minutes. He woke up one more time, just before 3 and Travis went in and laid him back down and he went right back to sleep. He woke up for the day at 7:30.
Day 5 (August 4)
Naptime:
Naptime was great today! Max only got out of bed 2 times, and only stood up 2 times. He didn't cry at all and the whole process only took 12 minutes and he was asleep! I am now about 4 feet away from his bed.
He slept for almost 2 hours again today.
Nighttime:
Max was melting down by 7pm tonight. My mom and I took him to Kangazoom to play and I think it wore him out. I quickly gave him dinner, a bath and his milk. We finished his story at 7:39. He only got out of bed once, to get Lambie after he dropped him out, and was asleep in 7 minutes! Woo hoo!
He woke up once at 4:45 but got quiet so I stayed in bed. 5 minutes later, he was by the baby gate crying for me. He had a block in his hand, so I think he was playing for those 5 minutes. I changed his diaper, while Travis went to make his bottle. While we were waiting for Travis, I held him and he bit my shoulder! It really makes me think that he's been so grumpy because of the 4 teeth he has coming in. 3 are poking through and the top left one is taking its time. His gum is swollen around it. I gave him his bottle and he only drank 7 oz and then rolled over and went to sleep within 5 minutes. I left his room and while I was using the hall bathroom, I heard something. If I hadn't, I probably would have screamed when I came out because he was standing at his gate quietly. I put him back in bed. Over the next 20 minutes, he kept raising his head to check to see if I was still there, and finally fell asleep again around 5:25. He slept until almost 8.
Day 6 (August 5)
Naptime:
Naptime went great. He fell asleep within 15 minutes without a peep and slept for about 1 1/2 hours.
Nighttime:
Tonight we set another record. Max was sound asleep within 6 minutes tonight! He only got out of bed one time. Awesome!
Day 7 (August 6)
Naptime:
Today we left for Chattanooga a little before 11, Max's naptime, thinking he would go right to sleep in the car, which would make for an easy trip.Well, he finally fell asleep around 11:40 and woke up when we took the Rocky Face exit, just 30 minutes later. So much for a long nap...and an easy ride.
Nighttime:
We left Gramma & Grampa's around 7pm...quite a bit later than we had planned. Max got into the toilet with a toy cup earlier in the day. We bathed him and put him in the change of clothes we brought. Around the time we were going to leave, I put my cup of water too close to the edge of the kitchen table and Max reached up and pulled it down on himself. Because of that, we had to wait for his clothes to dry before we could leave. So we headed to my sister's house around 7, but she told us that Tristen may be getting sick. We decided that we should just head home, instead, and Max fell asleep within 10 minutes. We thought he'd sleep the whole way home, but instead, he woke up around 8. He was obviously tired and was very fussy, so we let him look at a Toy Story book on the iPad the rest of the way home.
When we got home it was around 9. We gave him a bottle, brushed his teeth and read one book. He laid down with no problem and didn't get out of bed once, but it took 40 minutes for him to fall asleep. He kept lifting his head up to see if I was still there. He finally fell asleep just before 10.
He woke once at 3:40, took his milk and went back to sleep almost immediately. He woke for the day, however, at 6:30. I gave him a small bottle of milk, hoping he'd go back to sleep for another hour or so. He seemed to, so I went back to bed, but he got out of bed, and was wide awake. He played for a little while, but at 7:30 he had had enough and started crying, so I reluctantly peeled myself out of bed. :)
Day 8 (August7)
Naptime:
I put Max down for his nap around 10:45 and he only got out 2 times. He fell asleep in 9 minutes, but only slept for 1 hour.
Nighttime:
Max was super tired tonight, since he only slept for one hour at naptime. He fell asleep within 5 minutes and didn't get out of bed even once. Hopefully he'll get a nice long night of sleep and be fresh in the morning!
Last night went great! Max slept from 8:30pm-7am without waking!
Day 9 (August 8)
Naptime:
Max hasn't been his usual happy self. Yesterday I attributed it to being tired, but he slept so well last night, and was the same way this morning. It could be teething...it could be his age. I really don't know, but it hasn't been fun. It only took him 7 minutes to fall asleep for nap, but he got out of bed 7 times and cried some today. I gave him some Motrin before nap to see if it'll help, in case it is just because he's teething. He went down at 10:36...
I think the Motrin helped. Max slept until 1pm!
Nighttime:
Max went down in 5 minutes again tonight...he got out of bed only once. He ate a really good dinner and only wanted to drink 3oz of milk. Not sure what the means for tonight. I'm pretty sure he'll be up and want more milk before midnight...
Part of our bedtime routine...he LOVES "brushing" his teeth! He mainly just eats the toothpaste and chews the toothbrush.
Max slept really well last night again. He didn't wake up until 6am. We gave him milk and he went back to sleep for a little while, but ended up waking up a little after 7. He played happily in his room until 8.
Day 10 (August 9)
Naptime:
Max tested me at nap today. It only took 15 minutes for him to go to sleep, but in that small amount of time, he got out of bed 18 times. He finally gave up after that, and went to sleep. He slept for about 1 1/2 hours.
Nighttime:
Tonight, Travis shared the bedtime routine with me and then sat in the room while Max went to sleep. He fell asleep in less than 10 minutes and only got out of bed twice...both times jumping back in bed before Travis could put him back in.
Max slept through the night...from 8:20am-7am! He played in his room until 7:40 and then knocked the gate down and came to our bed. I think we need to make sure the gate is tighter. :)
Day 11 (August 10)
Naptime:
Today, for some reason, Max decided to test the system. He got out of bed 29 times in 20 minutes and finally gave up and fell asleep. This is how I thought it would be at the beginning...not giving up.
Nighttime:
Well, if I thought naptime was a challenge, I should have waited until night...out of be 44 times in 14 minutes. I normally sit on the floor, but he was so quick that I just took a standing position by the door instead, at times, during the 14 minutes, I even got a little winded because he was so quick. He kept getting out on one side and then the other. I really think that tomorrow will be better, and that he's just in a testing mood today...I really hope so!
Today is 3 days that he's slept 10+ hours a night! So happy about this!
Day 12 (August 11)
Naptime: Thank goodness! It was easy sailing this time. He only got out of bed 3 times and was asleep in 5! He slept for about 1 1/2 hours.
Nighttime: Easy again! Only got out 2 times. The second time I put him back in bed, I laid him on his back, and that's where he stayed. He fell asleep in 5 minutes again. Tomorrow will be more of a challenge because I'll be moving outside of his room. We'll see how it goes!
Max didn't sleep through the night. He woke at 3:45 but then slept until 8am.
Day 13 (August 12)
Naptime:
Just as I suspected, nap was a challenge today. I moved my station to right outside his door. He got out of bed 29 times in 12 minutes and then took another 8 minutes to fall asleep. He slept about 2 hours.
This week has been busy. I got approved to work 30 hours instead of the usual 20 so I have been feverishly trying to get in as many hours as I could. Because of this, I haven't be diligent about recording the sleep training process. I'll do a quick recap...
The past couple of days haven't gone well. I've moved outside of Max's room, and because of this, I think he's testing the system. He's gotten out of bed many times, taken longer to fall asleep, and been more stubborn than usual. I have continued on with the plan, staying calm and placing him back in bed every time he gets out, and eventually he goes to sleep. I'm not sure what happened last night, but it was exhausting. All I know is that he woke up about an hour after I put him down, and then I think he woke around 1, but I can't remember. He woke again at 4:30, was wide awake and wanted to read books. Travis and I took turns with him, but he didn't go back to sleep until 6. He then slept until 8. Travis got up with him and let me sleep until 10. So nice!
At this point, I'm really not sure how this will all play out. I'm starting to think that we may have to continue sitting/standing outside his door until he falls asleep. The way he reacts/doesn't react to timeouts and being told not to do something, makes me think he may be a little too young to comprehend fully what is expected of him. I was going to try to use a video monitor that was given to us, from our room, so I could see when he gets out and place him back in his bed, but it doesn't work. The only thing I can think to do is to just stay in our room and if he comes out of his room, I'll take him back to bed. I just don't know if it'll work or if he'll just start playing with his toys if someone isn't on watch. We'll see. I'm getting very close to not being able to see him in his bed from where I stand in the hall. So it'll only be a few days until I'll try it out. And so, here we are with today's entry...
Day 15 (August 14)
Naptime:
Naptime took about 20 minutes and he got out of bed 7 times...and stood up in bed 3 times. He only slept for about 1 hour.
Nighttime:
Tonight went smoother than it has in a few days. He got out of bed 1 time and then laid in bed, very still for about 5 minutes. Then he got out of bed again, twice, and then stayed in bed after that. I stayed outside his door for about 10 more minutes to make sure he was asleep and then covered him with his blanket. Hopefully he'll sleep better tonight than he did last night! I gave him a dose of Motrin because he was very fussy today and didn't sleep well last night. I think it could be caused by teething, since he's getting 4 teeth in right now.
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