Mommy Morsels

I'm reviving a newish series on the blog and it centers around my new title: Mom. While I don't proclaim to know it all - I can share with you the tips, tools and life savers that have made my life easier these past couple months. And...I'd love to hear from you, too! Anything that hushes a crying child is worth sharing!

Today's Mommy Morsel is from Anna of The Paper Road who has the most adorable baby boy: Rand! Olivia has had her eye on him so you can imagine how excited she was to hear that Anna and Rand were featured today! {guess who's already boy crazy?!} Anyhoo...enjoy this Super Mom's tips on how to get le bebe down for some beauty rest. She knows a thing or two!

Hi, I'm Anna from The Paper Road, but more importantly, mom to five-month-old Rand. Here's our new bedtime routine and the things that help us get some sweet shut-eye. Wes and I no longer use an alarm clock. We wake at the same time (almost) every morning to the sound of coos and raspberries. I attribute these fun mornings to our new bedtime routine - one that has led to nearly 12 hours of sleep each night for Rand and some much-needed evening time for us. After inching Rand's bedtime earlier (at 3 months he'd go to bed between 10-11pm), we realized 7pm was the magic hour. After we bathe and feed him, we try and get him down as close to 7pm as possible. Here's what we do:

1. Zip a sleep sack over his footie pajamas. Especially as we are entering cooler months, the sleep sack keeps Rand warm without risking a blanket that could cover his face/lead to SIDS.

2. Paci time. After his bottle, he usually takes a pacifier. We don't offer it during the day unless he's getting ready to nap or is overly fussy. We tried a few different brands and Born Free was the winner:

3. Crib/pack n play. After some snuggle time to pat out any lingering burps and a few rounds of Jesus Loves Me, into the crib he goes (although we're on vacation now and have been using this pack n play - he loves it and it is a breeze to set up/take down). He's usually awake but drowsy.

4. Gripe Water. Most nights, Rand goes right to sleep. Some nights he'll fuss for a few minutes and every now and then he'll get really mad because he doesn't want to go to sleep, or has gas, so we give him a few drops of gripe water (this stuff worked miracles for us early on when he was colicky) to settle his little tummy.

5. Monitor (aka new alarm clock). We use a monitor similar to this one by Avent and haven't missed a video monitor. We still prefer to sneak in and stare at Rand before we go to bed, marveling at him and the blessing he is to us.

I'm not gonna lie, once your baby goes to bed around 7pm and sleeps through the night it changes your life. However, most nights I secretly wish he'll wake up so I can go in and cuddle him a little more. We read several books about sleep habits and agree with some, but some just didn't work for us. You really have to keep trying until you figure out what works for your baby - or at least something that gets you by - because well-rested moms and dads can make a big difference! Happy sleeping! Check out the rest of my "top ten and some" list on The Paper Road.

Thanks Anna! I can't wait to follow your adventures with Rand in the coming months! xo