Babywise & Beyond: Okk so what is Babywise?... Babywise Basics

Thursday, January 9, 2014

Okk so what is Babywise?... Babywise Basics

Babywise is a practice you can use to 'train' your baby. By train, I mean sleep, eat, and play on a regular schedule so life with a newborn or infant doesn't seem so chaotic!

The basic principle of Babywise is: FEED, WAKE, SLEEP

So, the reasoning behind this is that you feed your baby, then you play with them, or they play/hang out by themselves, then they go to sleep. Essentially you are trying not to get your baby dependent of food (formula/breast) to go to sleep. I'm going to break each section down so it's easier to take in- because there is a ton to take in!

FEED

Getting a full feed in!

Whether breast or bottle fed, the goal is to give your baby a full feed. It was only a few months ago that Chatham was born and when they are first born, it seems impossible to try and keep your baby awake to eat for more then a few minutes. So the goal is, do whatever it takes to keep your baby awake to try and get a full feed in. Adam and I have done cold paper towels on their foreheads, tickling their toes, changing their diaper, holding them up and letting them hang for a little bit (suggestion by NICU docs). We knew that the hard work would pay off if we could get them to try and eat as close to a full feed as possible to prevent SNACKING. Ugh... the dreaded snacking. I just stopped breastfeeding Chatham so I've done breast & formula but ugh snacking either way is a nightmare. You sit down with your boppy and your iPhone, pull your shirt and bra down, finally get the baby latched on, they suck for a few minutes, and zZzzZz. It's the worst! Same with the bottle- the baby is screaming their head off as if they have never been fed- so you are rushing around, new moms have the bottle warmers going, trying to speed up the process of warming it up, mix it, and give it to the baby, same thing, a few mins later... ZzzzZz. Only to have the same process happen again 45 minutes later. So, do whatever it takes that when you are going to feed them, make sure it is a full feed!

Once you get the full feed down, your baby should be satisfied for 2.5-3hours (or you are at least working towards it).

WAKE

Tummy Time

Wake time is essentially the time from when the baby wakes up, is fed, to the time to baby falls asleep. (Essential to know that for calculating time) Don't start calculating wake time from when you're baby is done eating or you will be expecting to much and have an overtired baby. So, the baby's done eating, you are doing whatever activity with them, holding them while doing the dishes (me), letting them lay on a mat, chilling in the swing or the rock n play or whatever it is. There are multiple chapters in the Babywise book on wake time and all the benfits and different activites you can do. I can go into them in a different post- how they benefit the baby, you're bonding experience, etc. But for now, just know that that is what considered wake time is. During the beginning of your training, no matter how old the baby is (up until 12 months), you want to watch them. You are looking for your very first signals of them getting tired. And with my 3 kids, it varied for each one. Hudson rubbed his eyes, Yardley's eyes got really lazy and she would just stare, and Chatham just does longgg blinks. But the only reason I know this is because I watched intently at the beginning to know these signs. When you see this, it is your cue your baby is tired- time for naptime or bedtime. If you think your baby's signs are they cry, whine, start falling asleep- you missed their first signs. Those are signs of the baby being overtired.

The reason you want to know those cues is because it's WAYY more difficult to get an overtired baby to sleep as opposed to a baby who is just heading into being tired and ready for a nap. (I know from LOTS of experiences!)

SLEEP

Sleep with a traditional swaddle

Sleep, for all of us parents, is the most important! When you and your baby are getting sleep- the world is right. And the opposite is also true. So, you just saw your baby's first cues that it is time to go to sleep. From my experiences, the number one thing I needed to give my babies the best chance of having a full nap was a swaddle. At the newborn stage it was a blanket, and when they could get out of it, it was a woombie. I know a lot of people that say their baby hates a swaddle but it's because they didn't start right away doing it from birth. I'm sure you know all the reasons why we swaddle- it prevents the moro reflex when waking up your baby, it acts like the womb, etc. But, whatever the reason- it works! A baby likes to feel secure and bundled- not flat out laying on a mattress. Which is why products like swings, bunny seats, rock n plays, cradles, etc. exist. But, I can do a whole other post on swaddling and woombies later.

One of the turning points for me with the twins was a naptime and a bedtime routine. I was much better about the bedtime routine (in fact, I never let a night pass without doing it... more on that later, haha). It's a little jarring for a baby to go from bouncing in their exerciser to swaddled and placed in the crib. That's where the routine comes in. It signals to your baby- okay, it's time to get prepared to fall asleep. Decide on some small routine for a nap- ours was turning the lights off, the sound of the zipper and being put into the woombie, light music, mobile on, and I would sing them Twinkle Twinkle and then peace out of their room. I tried to do this every time before their nap. They would absolutely fuss when they first were placed in the woombie/swaddle/even now when they first get put to bed. But they soon learned and time got shorter and shorter of the screaming/crying to basically fussing for about 3 minutes and passing OUT. And as the time got shorter for them to fall asleep, the longer they slept. GOOD SLEEP BEGETS GOOD SLEEP. Being overtired and finally falling asleep does not make for a good sleep.

Our nighttime routine, I was MILITANT amount. Absolutely positively didn't miss a night for fear they wouldn't sleep well. Only when they were 13 months old, did I finally skip the bath before bed (and they slept just fine haha). It was similar to the naptime schedule but we started with a bath- every single night. I mean, we would leave my parents and it would be 40 minutes past their bedtime- I would literally put them in the bath, splash warm water on their head and put them in their pj's and put them in bed. Totally not necessary to be that TYPE A. But, try and set in place a good routine and your baby will sense it and prepare themselves for sleep.