What keeps your child from sleeping? -FREE Sleep Session-

Learn the 5 things that hold you and your child from a well rested night of sleep. Get the “how to” help your child get the sleep they need and implement some of these changes immediately for your child- ages 6 and younger. Leave knowing some science of sleep and get your questions answered.There are gentle sleep solutions to help you and your family get good nights of sleep- and I can help.  

Have a sleep question or concern for your child? Send me a message on Facebook  or email at lovinglessons@yahoo.com and I will be happy to help you get answers to your sleep frustrations.  

Register for this FREE sleep session here at Smart Momma- April 18, 2012 at 5:30.  

The meaning behind Easter

Here's a little activity you could do with your little ones leading up to Easter!   It's a tasty treat that can help us all remember why we celebrate Easter.  I'm not sure where I found this originally, but My kids and I love it every year!

The Jelly Bean Prayer

GREEN is for the grassy blade,

YELLOW is for the sun God made.

ORANGE is for a flame so bright.

BLACK is for our sins not right.

RED is for the blood He gave.

White is for Jesus’ grace. He saved.

PURPLE is for the hours of sorrow.

PINK is for a new tomorrow.

An egg of jellybeans, so colorful and sweet,

is a promise, a prayer, and a loved one's treat.

Sleep? What's that?

Sleep?  What's that?   But believe it or not- IT IS POSSIBLE!

The greatest challenge I see parents facing with young children  is the quantity and quantity of sleep their baby really needs.  Most parents are taken back when they see how many hours their child really needs to sleep which will.  Learning our baby’s cues helps eliminate the guess work and allows you to follow their natural body patterns, timing, and anticipate your baby’s needs.   Well slept children will be happy, adaptable, and able to handle changes.

 If your child seems fussier, crying, and melting more than they’re happy it’s important to make sure they are getting the sleep they need.  It’s also important to refer to your pediatrician to make sure there are no underlying medical concerns keeping your child from sleeping like apnea, reflux, allergies, or asthma. 

Once good sleep patterns are established and baby knows how to put themselves to sleep- developmental milestones, illness, and life events may disrupt sleep.  Having predictable routines and consistent parental responses are key to keeping sleep habits in place. 

Here are 5 ways you can  help your child sleep through the night.  If you feel like you've tried everything and it's still not working then sleep training with a sleep coach could help you gain new perspective into your sleep situation, which can turn sleep around in 2 to 3 weeks if you are ready for the transformation!

Help, My baby won't sleep!

Are you wondering why your baby won't sleep?  of can't sleep?

Join me from the comfort of your home on March 16, 2012 which is International Sleep Day for a FREE teleconference to help your baby, toddler, or preschooler get the sleep they need.

Learn the reasons why your child might not be sleeping and what you can do to make changes to your child's sleep habits when you understand the science of sleep.

Have a sleep question? Bring it to the discussion.

Join me for this FREE event by registering at http://bit.ly/A6c4q0

What babies really think

Awake Training for Parents: 



Dear Fellow Babies,

OK, here's my situation. My Mommy has had me for almost 5 months. The first few months were great -- I cried, she picked me up and fed me, anytime, around the clock. Then something happened. Over the last few weeks, she has been trying to STTN (sleep thru the night). At first, I thought it was just a phase, but it is only getting worse.

I've talked to other babies, and it seems like its pretty common after Mommies have had us for around 5-6 months. Here's the thing: these Mommies don't really need to sleep. It's just a habit. Many of them have had some 30 years to sleep -- they just don't need it anymore. So I am implementing a plan. I call it the Crybaby Shuffle.

It goes like this:

Night 1 -- cry every 3 hours until you get fed. I know, it's hard. It's hard to see your Mommy upset over your crying. Just keep reminding yourself, it's for her own good.

Night 2 -- cry every 2 hours until you get fed.

Night 3 -- every hour.

Most Mommies will start to respond more quickly after about 3 nights. Some Mommies are more alert, and may resist the change longer. These Mommies may stand in your doorway for hours, shhhh-ing. Don't give in. I cannot stress this enough: CONSISTENCY IS KEY!! If you let her STTN (sleep through the night), just once, she will expect it every night. I know it's hard! But she really does not need the sleep; she is just resisting the change.. If you have an especially alert Mommy, you can stop crying for about 10 minutes, just long enough for her to go back to bed and start to fall asleep. Then cry again. It WILL eventually work. My Mommy once stayed awake for 10 hours straight, so I know she can do it.

The other night, I cried every hour. You just have to decide to stick to it and just go for it. BE CONSISTENT! I cried for any reason I could come up with:

-My sleep sack tickled my foot.
-I felt a wrinkle under the sheet.
-My mobile made a shadow on the wall.
-I burped, and it tasted like rice cereal. I hadn't eaten rice cereal since breakfast, what's up with that?
-The dog said "ruff". I should know. My Mommy reminds me of this about 20 times a day. LOL.
-Once I cried just because I liked how it sounded when it echoed on the monitor in the other room.
-Too hot, too cold, just right -- doesn't matter! Keep crying!!
-I had drooled so much my sheets were damp and I didn't like it touching me.
-I decided I was sick of all the pink in my room so I cried.

It took awhile, but it worked. She fed me at 4am. Tomorrow night, my goal is 3:30am. You need to slowly shorten the interval between feedings in order to reset your Mommies' internal clocks.

Sometimes my Mommy will call for reinforcements by sending in Daddy. Don't worry Daddies are not set up for not needing sleep the way Mommies are. They can only handle a few pats and shhing before they declare defeat and send in the Mommy.

Also, be wary of the sleep sheep with rain noises. I like to give Mommy false hope that listening to the rain puts me to sleep sometimes I pretend to close my eyes and be asleep and then wait until I know Mommy is settling back to sleep to spring a surprise cry attack. If she doesn't get to me fast enough I follow up with my fake cough and gag noise that always has her running to the crib. At some point I am positive she will start to realize that she really doesn't really need sleep.

P.S. Don't let those rubber things fool you, no matter how long you suck on them, no milk will come out.

Trust me.

Sincerely,
Baby B

I'm not sure of where I found this.. but whom ever the author is, did a brilliant job!  Thanks for sharing the baby perspective on sleep training!  

My newborn baby won't sleep!

Welcome to parenthood!  Those first few weeks of parenting are really, REALLY tough.  And, YES, you've gotten plenty of unsolicited advice about sleep, eating, and whatever else a baby needs.  But the bottom line is- you are tired!

What can you do to help your baby sleep?   First, relax and breathe.  When you are stressed or anxious- and we all get that way as parents- just stop and breathe.  Your baby will pick up on your feelings of anxiety or frustration  and sometimes that can cause more crying  for you and baby.

Create a healthy routine for your baby to get 15 hours of sleep in a day.   Newborns don't have an internal clock so you can't set it, but creating predictable routines calms your baby.  When your baby wakes up, nurse or bottle feed, then play and do some tummy time, and then put your baby down for sleep.

Create nap time and bedtime rituals that eliminate feeding to sleep.  Reading a book, singing soft songs, gentle tickling, touching to connect and loving  on your baby are wonderful ways to help you little one drift off to sleep.

Hold, snuggle, cuddle your baby during the day.  Don't worry about spoiling a baby, because you can't.  The more holding and snuggling you give your baby during the day- the better sleep your baby will have at night when they are away from you.

Remember a baby that sleeps 4-6 hours in one stretch is considered to be sleeping through the night during the first few months.  Newborns still have a need to feed during the night so don't withhold feedings. Be sure to discuss any changes to your feeding schedule with your pediatrician.

Enjoy, delight, and bond with your newborn baby!

Math- It's not so scary!

Math is so much more than numbers!  It’s about real life skills that we use every day! 

So what is the best way a parent can instill the love of math?  Start young and make it real.  Our children are a clean slate, a new sponge, and they are equipped to learn.  But don’t sit down with your child and flashcards or worksheets, just PLAY!

• A baby delights at the sound of your voice.  They love listening to everything you have to say.  So while you are counting your babies toes, fingers, pointing out their body features and saying “where are your 2 ears?  One, two.   Where’s your nose?  Uh, you have 1 nose!  Touch your knees, One Knee, Two knees… you are not only introducing math- but connecting with your child.
• Now your toddler and/or preschooler is ready to explore and learn all about the world around them.   Keep counting toes, fingers and body parts, but now it’s time to investigate.  Get on the ground and build with blocks.  Count, arrange, stack, sort, collect in a container or bag.  Use balls or other simple toys to repeat and reinforce the concept.
• Get your child involved with cooking.  Talk about reading the directions for the recipe.  Show them how to measure out ingredients and make something delicious.  This is an easy way to introduce your child to measurement and fractions without making it scary.  Involving them in the process shows your child how essential math is for everyday life.
• Identify numbers.  Addresses, phone numbers, price tags, or just count.  Kids love numbers. 
• Give me 5 or 10, or 100.  Skip counting is an easy way to introduce multiplication.
• Getting ready for a home improvement, involve your child in measuring out the room.  Introduce them to a ruler, measuring tape, and talk about the numbers and the importance of these tools. 
• Point out geometric shapes in your home and in nature.  Count the sides and identify the characteristics.  This flower looks like a circle, it’s so round. The stop sign is red and it’s an octagon.  What does octa mean?  Can you make a square with those rocks?
• As your child gets older they are ready for equations and word problems.  Set up the situation.
• I have 3 strawberries and you have 4.  How many do we have all together?
• Let’s eat our snack.  You have 10 pretzels.  If you eat one, how many will you have left?  If you eat another one, how many will you have left?
• Don’t’ forget to sing and dance about math too!  Those monkey’s on the bed and other finger play that introduces numbers, counting up and down.

Math is all around us and should be something easy to share with your child. Take a moment to explore your surroundings and think of all the math lessons you can share with your child!  They’ll be excited to play with you; you’ll be excited to teach your child simple math principles that lay a strong foundation for learning and enjoying math!  Through simple play during the first 5 years of your child’s life, it will become second nature to know and understand math and your child.  It’s not so scary!