i just joined a few minutes ago. i am in between feedings right now and had our first child on monday. what do you do when they are wide awake at this time? my husband and i feel so bad leaving him in his crib awake when all he does is sleep all day. so we stayed up with him in the living room watching tv. we are going to buy a mobile tomorrow and hopfully that will make us feel a bit better about it. but what do you do? stay up with them? or just let them be? he isnt crying, he is just content.

I know that feeling - It's hard to hold yourself back from picking them up and cuddling them. With Melissa, we rocked (A LOT) and I found that to be soothing for her and my nerves, but it's not the best advice... She still to this day has a hard time falling asleep on her own.

What worked for George was to make sure if you go in there at night to keep the lights as dim as possible, tend to whatever their needs are (changing, feedings, pj changes) and I found that avoiding direct eye contact and verbal stimulization was the key. It's a fact that when you make eye contact with your baby their heartbeat quickens - they are looking for your sign, signal or queue and if you make that type of contact they may react with an expectaion and even frustration when you put them back to bed.

Soft voices, no direct eye or facial contact, lots of kisses, snuggles so they feel safe and reassured and tuck them back in- they should figure out that night time is a non-stimulation time and the feedings will start to spread out.

If baby is content, then that is a great thing... I'm not a big fan of the "Let them cry" philosophy, so as you can imagine, I don't get much sleep myself! After two babies, I'm at the point where if they are content in their crib - then let them be! But of course, I check in often.

One other thing that I did was co-sleep with my babies for the first 6 months or so. You'll want to talk it over with hubby to make sure he is ok with it, but we bought an "Arm's Reach" Co-Sleeper that sits right next to my side of the bed like a little side-car. Baby is safe, right next to me, so I can reach over and feel, tuck-in, rub or whatever is necessary without getting out of bed. Nursing was great too with a co-sleeper and because you can hear every sound baby makes, you can rest easier at night. Plus, when baby smells me so close, they don't wake as much.

I don't advocate the snuggle nests that sit in bed with you but I have friends who love those too. For me, my husband sleeps too hard and practically steamrolls me at night! LOL! We wouldn't want him steamrolling the snuggle nest!

Remember, babies don't have a sense of "self" since they've been in the womb their whole lives so far, they feel like a little extension of you - so having them as close as possible is a good thing for both of you.

Good luck and rest easy - everything is going to be ok, follow your instincts and listen to your heart. God bless you and your new family.

Sincerely,
Sarah