SLEEPING
Sleep routines
Many parents find that thinking about the patterns they create during the day as well as night helps their baby develop a more regular routine. Six weeks is a good time to introduce a bedtime routine. In fact, many babies begin to sleep a lot better from this point without much prompting and many will have developed a definite pattern of their own by the time they are three or four months old.
A bedtime routine will include some or all of the following:
• Bath;
• Feed;
• Story or a quiet play;
• Cuddle;
• Kiss.
It will end with your baby asleep on their own or with you. A bedtime routine can be as long or as short as you like. Many people find saying goodbye difficult. A bedtime routine can be a good way of preparing you and your baby for the separation of sleep.
However, many parents find that whenever they put their child down to sleep they will cry out, so they sing another song or give another cuddle or drink, only to find that it happens again. A good routine ends with the baby falling asleep without you performing any encores. Inevitably there will be times when your routine has to go by the board, for example, holidays, illness, or visitors staying overnight. But the sooner you can reinstate the familiar routine, the more easily you and your baby will rediscover your sleep pattern.