Bedtime Blues: Ask Mrs. Pickle

Our bedtime ritual is too long! Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, August 18, 2008 in 4:07 am

Hello Mrs. Pickle!

My 2 1/2 year old has a bedtime ritual that last over an hour. He takes a bath, brushes his teeth, and gets on his pajamas. Then I read him 3 books, we sing together one song and then I sing a lullaby as he closes his eyes. I have to wait until he’s fully asleep or he will wake up. It is really cutting into my time in the evening. Is this too excessive? Thanks! Amanda, 29

…read more

My 6-month old wants to be held during napping! Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, May 18, 2008 in 3:38 am

Dear Mrs. Pickle,

I have a 6-month old daughter who has regularly napped since she was born- usually once in the morning around 10 (unless she wakes up very early and needs an additional earlier catnap) and once in the late afternoon around 3pm. She would definitely sleep around 2 hour stretches for both when I hold her. But the minute I put her down- Bam! She wakes up and can’t get herself back to sleep without me soothing her (nursing and or rocking). I am a stay-at-home mom and didn’t mind being chained to the couch
…read more

I can’t get my daughter out of my bed… Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, April 8, 2008 in 9:37 pm

Dear Mrs. Pickle,

My daughter just turned 4 years-old and we’ve always had sleep issues. Currently this is this situation: Every night at 1 am she comes into my room and I have to take her back to her room. She cries and asks for me to lie next to her. I say just for a minute but I’m an older mom and exhausted and I usually fall asleep. I know this is sending mixed messages but this way we both get sleep, otherwise if I leave she will cry and come out of her room and it will go on all night long.

We started doing a sticker chart where she earns a sticker every night she sleeps in her room
…read more

Should I take away my 4 year old’s nap? Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, March 23, 2008 in 2:49 am

Hi Mrs. Pickle,

My 4 1/2 year old still naps. He wakes up between 6:30 AM and 7:00 AM most mornings. He naps around 1:00 PM for an hour sometimes 90 minutes and goes to sleep between 8:00 and 8:30 PM. He’s very happy to go down for his nap so I haven’t stopped it and his schedule works for us. He is a very active boy and someone suggested that maybe he would calm down if he wasn’t sleeping so much. How can too much sleep be bad? Do you think I should phase out the nap?

Thanks,

Talia
…read more

How much should my baby be napping? Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, March 3, 2008 in 2:30 am

Help Mrs. Pickle! I have a 7 1/2 month old baby born 5 weeks premature. He is a great sleeper since we got a routine for him at 4 months (using the crying out method). I am confused however on how long he should be awake before needing a nap. I used to watch the clock and make sure that after 2 1/2 hours (at this age) he would be in his crib. He does nap for long periods of time but now I find that he isn’t showing any tired signs on some days until he’s been up for 3 1/2 hours. He isn’t cranky so is it okay to go by watching him and not the clock? He sleeps about 11-12 hours per night. How much should he be napping at this age and does it change at all till age 1?
…read more

My 11 week old is still cranky after napping… Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, February 9, 2008 in 12:15 am
My son will be 11 weeks this coming tuesday- I had a question about his daytime napping….I do not let him stay up longer than 2 hours after he wakes…after noticing signs of sleepiness i put him down - he only naps 45 minutes to an hour at a time-when he wakes up crying and i go to get him he still seems cranky and tired, but wont go back to sleep…..i feel like he isn’t napping long enough but i can’t MAKE him sleep- any suggestions???he eats every 3 hours…any suggestions would be great - thanks! Marnie
…read more

My 6-month-old has never slept through the night! Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, January 15, 2008 in 12:31 am

Dear Mrs Pickle,

Please help!! I am a single mom with a six month-old baby who has never slept through the night. He sometimes needs to be rocked to sleep and sometimes he doesn’t. It is harder for him to sleep during the day. Sometimes he naps 20 minutes and sometimes he naps for 2 hours at different times throughout the day. Could you please give me a good routine for both day and night that does not involve a daily bath? He is on solids and will only take his bottle at night (he does not fall asleep on the bottle).

Paula
…read more

Should I stop rocking my baby to sleep at night? Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, January 1, 2008 in 12:38 am

Dear Mrs. Pickle,
I rock my 19 month old son to sleep every night and now that’s become his bedtime ritual. A friend told me that I should just be putting him in his crib to go to sleep at night because he’ll become used to me and won’t learn to fall asleep on his own. I really enjoy our “rocking” time at night. Do you think I should stop?
…read more

My daughter’s naps are too short… Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, October 14, 2007 in 5:07 am
Hi Mrs. Pickle,
I have a sleep question. My daughter, Hailey, is 11 months old and takes two naps. Her naps are usually around 9am and 1pm. But, for some reason each nap is not very long. I have read that a “good” nap is at least one hour but Hailey’s are not that long. How can I figure out how to get her to take better, longer naps?
Frustrated,
Elysa

Dear Elysa,

Short naps are often a concern of many parents. First, it is great that you are putting your daughter in for her two naps at age appropriate times. Often poor timing can be the cause of a too short nap. Second
…read more

My 5-month-old just started night waking… Posted by: Mara Nusspickel, September 5, 2007 in 10:50 pm
Dear Mrs. Pickle,

My 5-month-old used to sleep through the night but has recently started night waking. His naps are pretty random, usually in the car or stroller while we’re out. His bedtime is around 8:00 PM. What happened and what do I do to fix this? Debra, 36

Dear Debra,

When babies are under 5 months old, they can still seem to get away with the random naps you are describing without becoming too overtired. As they get older, however, their sleep patterns change
…read more