My baby smiles, now what?

Once a baby smiles (not from gas), the baby is starting to make associations.

The connection is being made that hey I know this person and when I smile it makes my person happy.

So what does this mean for sleep?

It is time to start laying the foundation for sleep.

A good sleep foundation can be established by:

• Utilizing a consistent sleep space. Having baby sleep in the same place allows baby to correlate the correct place to sleep. Introducing the crib and nursery to baby for naps , it is still recommended at this age to have baby in the parents’ room for night sleep, is a great way for baby to learn this sleep space.
• Lessen your props such as using the swing, car ride, bouncy seat, etc to get baby to sleep.
• Ensure that the sleep environment is cool, dark and quiet.
  • Great time to invest in black out curtains and a white noise machine.
• Learn babies’ sleepy cues. Some examples of sleepy cues are: zoning out, rubbing eyes, pulling on ears, and turning the head side to side.
• Institute a soothing routine. The goal of the soothing routine is to let baby know it is time to sleep, not to put baby to sleep.
  • Great time to work on putting baby down drowsy, yet awake.

Continue working on these skills until baby is around 16 weeks of age. Setting the stage for a well rested baby.