We've had our ups and downs (to say the least!) with sleep but since 12mths old Bethany has been sleeping 11-12.5hrs overnight and approx 1.5hrs once a day. (This is bliss compared to the 12mths beforehand!!!) We have a set bedtime routine which she loves, and for most of the last 6mths it's finished with Daddy putting her into bed.
Last week she and I stayed two nights at my parents cuz I was working nearby, and since getting home she's cried whenever Daddy has taken her for any part of the bedtime routine. We still get him to read books but lately she's fallen apart even as he reads them (despite being an avid book lover already) so I've had to put her to bed.
The odd thing is that instead of settling quickly as she'd been in the habit of doing, in the last few weeks I've had to go in another 15 or so mins later cuz she's still crying (daddy isn't good enough then either), I give her a cuddle, sing a song and put her back to bed. This can happen up to 3-4 times in a row until she finally relaxes enough to fall asleep once I've left the room.
Being halfway along with #2, at the moment I find it quite physically exhausting to stand & cuddle her & sing. I've tried sitting but it just doesn't cut it! And I feel sad that she's not letting Daddy have his turn
To cut a long story short, has anyone else experienced this? Re. not letting Daddy puther to bed: do I just need to go with it for now and assume she - for whatever reason - just needs the reassurance that I'm there? Or is it possible that she's learning procrastination this early?!?! Do we just need to insist that Daddy puts her to bed some nights regardless? My heart says no but my head says yes, cuz it's taken so long and so much heartache to get this far with her sleep that I dread her going backwards.
As for taking longer to settle: again, do I just need to go with it and she'll grow out of it, or do we need to put our foot down and not go back in? (Which I hate with a vengeance cuz the crying always tears me apart, but it was the only way she could learn how to sleep like she does now. And believe me we tried everything!) Being in her room until she falls asleep isn't an option these days as it only makes matters worse if I stay there - so any ideas on that would be great too! Some days she cuddles her fave toy and other days she doesn't want a bar of it.
So sorry this is so long, hopefully it makes some sense?!?! Any advice would be appreciated, thanks so much
Kristy
Edited by kmarie