Does anyone feel sometimes it easier to stay home?

[waffle3]

My DS 15 weeks nearly has always been hard to get to sleep. Posted not that long ago that i was having to hold him for naps.
But in the last few weeks ive managed to get him to take long naps in his vibrating bouncer in the morning and then take him out in the pram after his lunchtime bottle and i then have been able to carry him up to his cot take him out his coat and he will sleep for 1h-2hrs.

But if i change that routine ie go out in the car to see friends he ends up falling asleep on me or not at all and getting ratty.
Then when we get home he will end up having to have his naps on me as he wont settle.

I fel like i would be better staying at home.

Also i have a bedtime routine and alot of my friends dont have one at all but i know this is what helps him to sleep.

Does anyone else feel like they have to stick to the same routine everyday in fear it going to disrupt their lo's?
Im not looking forward to our hol in june becuse i worry he wont settle.

xx

[ShushBaby]

I did reach a point where I thought it was better to stay at home. But I ended up feeling really down and sort of trapped and obsessed with dd's naps- after all it was pretty much the only thing happening in our day!

Eventually I realised (though am still neurotic about naps) that the world would not end if dd sometimes doesn't have great sleeps in the day, and that it was really important for me to get out and do things and see people. To be honest dd has crap naps whether I stay at home or not. So I may as well have a life!

However, if going out and about stresses you out and you would be happier at home, do it.
Whatever makes you feel more able to cope is what you should do.

[waffle3]

I have become a bit obsessed i must admit about it as he such hard work when it comes to sleep.
He a great happy little chappy and i can take him anywhere as all my friends love him and he doesnt cry until hes tired or hungry.

I feel that if i go to mother and baby groups im constantly comparing sleep pattern etc and i need to learn to chill about it.
But easier said than done

xx

[ShushBaby]

I feel your pain, I really do. It's so hard not to compare, and I also find it hard to know why I'm so bothered about it

A turning point for me was when dd started going to her childminder three days a week at 11mo (a few weeks ago). There she gets one nap a day, at a totally random time, which can be anything from 45 to 90 minutes long. This made my hair stand on end at first, then I realised that it made little or no difference to her mood or her night time sleep.

Now I still focus on giving her proper naps when at home (though she doesn't always go along with this, maybe she hasn't been listening to those other mums or reading the baby books eh?), but I don't avoid going out because of it.

Like your lo my dd is very happy and sociable. Who am I to deny her a good time for the sake of a nap?

I'm still a bit hung up about it all, but am much more relaxed overall. For example, I haven't cried about it for ages, which is something that used to happen regularly, if not daily . It is surprisingly hard, isn't it?

[waffle3]

Yes i get very down about it. Other ppl seem to be able to get their lo's to sleep but i cant!! lol

My DS will b going to a childminder at 12 months so im sure things will get better then.
I have noticed i think if he gets a decent ish amount of sleep in the day but not after 6pm for 8pm bed he sleeps best.
(Roughly 3-4 hrs)
He is a complete mystery to me though some days fab at self settling going to bed no crying which he did first time last night and slept till 3.30pm which was great.
But no doubt tonight will be the complete opposite. Hes very fickle.

Glad im not alone in my thinking!

xx

[AngelDog]

Yes. I spent a lot of time at home trying to sort DS's naps. It was worth it though as poor / no naps meant 1.5 hours wide awake in the middle of the night, and waking every 1.5-2 hours in between.

DS didn't sleep in the pram at that age, but now at 13 months he does happily. :)