Share your pearls of wisdom about babies' sleep with Pampers and you could win a £200 John Lewis voucher NOW CLOSED

[AngelieMumsnet]

We’ve been asked by Pampers to find out what Mumsnetters’ pearls of wisdom are for getting your little one to sleep as much as they need.

Pampers say “Getting your baby to sleep as much as they need is the holy grail for parents, and everyone loves hearing their baby wake up in the morning with a giggle. Whether it’s teething, wind, or a damp nappy that’s disrupting those golden hours, every parent has their own tried and tested methods to help guarantee their little one has a restful slumber. Pampers Baby-Dry nappies with Micro PearlsTM stay up to 2 times drier than ordinary nappies, giving your baby the sleep they need to wake up giggling.”

Pampers are asking Mumsnetters to share their own pearls of wisdom for babies' sleep. They want you to post the useful nuggets of advice, the most valuable tips, which worked for your baby and which could help another baby to get a bit more shut-eye.

Whatever your top baby sleep tips are, Pampers would love to hear them.

Everyone who posts on this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one winner will receive a £200 John Lewis voucher.

Please note your comments may be included on Pampers social media channels, and possibly elsewhere, so please only post if you're comfortable with this.

Thanks and good luck,
MNHQ

PS: To be in with the chance of winning a pack of Pampers Baby-Dry visit facebook.com/PampersUKIre or tweet @Pampers_UK and use #BabySleep and nominate another parent to do the same to help more babies get enough sleep! See facebook.com/PampersUKIre for T&Cs.

One of the things that helped my kids recognise it's sleep time is a small routine before bed or nap, currently my daughters bum is changed and her eczema cream put on then into grobag and breast feed before being popped into bed. As she gets older I'll add in looking at a book but for now she's tired enough at bedtime. She just rolls over and goes to sleep. and now we've sorted the night wake ups she stays asleep

forget the routine in the early days. just let the baby sleep when it wants and I know it get says all the time but SLEEP WHEN THE BABY SLEEPS!

my best to would be to just co sleep. So much easier. But I know many will disagree.

For windy babies, prop the basket or cot up so that it is at an angle. Works like magic!

I think you just need to do what works for you, some people I know just let them stay up til they drop and put them to bed, that works for them. For us routine has always worked, my now 4 year old had routine from 6 weeks, that routine changed at each stage and we let one develop rather than enforce one and he is so good at going to bed at 6.30/7pm after bath and stories, he loves his bedtime routine. We have another baby now -9m and routine works for her too, though she does like waking up for cuddle at 4am but I just go with it and she settles back soon enough! They are little for such a short space of time I just enjoy those cuddles! Never would do controlled crying, feels so wrong and against instinct.

Cuddles and a bottle of milk before bed, with a little rock to a lullaby if the bottle wasn't quite enough - works most of the time for us!

Routine is important, but my youngest would scream the house down if we put her in her cot when she was very young. Rather than stress about it, we would let her fall asleep in our arms and then move her to her cot. She got the hang of it eventually.

Stick to a routine no matter how hard, if it doesn't work at first don't give up straight away! Try music, bathing and cuddles. Do what is best not only for the baby but you as a mother; trust your instincts.

Bath, massage and milk followed by a cuddle. Seriously though, try not to panic and force sleep-it won't happen if you do!! If they don't go to sleep within an hour or so, take them downstairs and try again a big later. During the day, nap anywhere they fall: pushchair, travel cot etc so they don't get precious about having it quiet. And if all else fails...out in the car!!!

Gro bag style bags are excellent as a sleep cue. Baby gets that when she wears one and the lights are dim it's "night".

Some babies will sleep badly no matter what you do. Some babies will sleep brilliantly no matter what you do. But there's a bunch in the middle for whom all the lavender baths and calm routine stuff will make a difference.

My big tip is to get them out in full daylight at least once during every day from the age of about 4 weeks. Or if you really can't, then get them next to the window in the brightest room in the house as the sun comes in through it. Helps set their circadian rhythm as the counterweight to the quiet dim nighttime room everyone else has talked about and helpful for your own postnatal mood as well.

I'd also recommend Dr Richard Ferber's Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems if things do become difficult. You don't have to pay attention to the half chapter about controlled crying if you don't want to, and the rest is very solid. He's surprisingly realistic about "if non-standard situation X works for you and everyone's happy then fine - if not then here's what to do."

Keeping night time completely dark and day time completely light.

I'm talking night feeding by keeping the blinds open and only using street lights.

For naps, I find a combination of rocking shoogling shushing dummy in and stroking nose gently usually does the trick!

The best way of getting my bubba to sleep is to wake up at 5am play all day and give her a warm bath and a story before bed

White noise - absolute life saver with both my kids, it almost always soothed them and lulled them to sleep.

I wish there was a magic answer which worked for all, but babies/children are all wonderfully unique & as such, have unique needs around their evening routines! My little one was with me constantly until I went to bed (whatever time that was) for the first 5 weeks, in his moses basket - subsequently, in our bed. Co-sleeping was a gorgeous time & ensured we all got some sleep. He wouldn't sleep in my bed now for love nor money, he loves his own space too much so any arguments around never getting them out of your bed if you co-sleep hold no weight with me!
Now, it's stories (with mummy or daddy getting in cot!) lights off, cuddle & then sleep - bit of chatter over the monitor after & sometimes he;ll have a story CD on to soothe him too - but I love the bedtime stuff :) We have used controlled crying in the past, & it did work - fortunately we don't have to do this anymore.
Find something that works for all of you & ignore whatever anyone else says about, you know your baby/child best xs

Routine, routine, routine. Worked for me, as hard as it can be sometimes. Babies I feel need training a bit like a puppy. So naps are when they need them. Bedtime should be at the same time with the same routine every night when possible. Grobags are fab as are groclocks. Babies don't know when it's daytime or nighttime so need to learn from their parents. Patience is also helpful when you've been in and out of their room umpteen times!

routine :) & luck!

a pearl of wisdom that got me through some evenings of controlled crying

• remember that training your child to get a good night's sleep is giving them a tremendous gift

A good routine so they know it's time to sleep. A warm bath, a song and a story seems to work best.

My two boys have both been great sleepers at night and I have to say I think its just luck! I am quite laid back and don't worry too much about the stress of sticking to a routine. All kids are different and I really don't think there is any secret to better sleep.

Hot water bottle to warm the matress, whitenoise - free apps available and a bedtime bath seem to do the trick for our 4 week old, that and boob!

For my DD, I found that it's all about setting a routine and then she sleeps without a problem.
So dinner, bath, PJs/nappy, milk, tooth brushing, story and bed. She clutches her favourite blanket during the story and then goes off to sleep in her own time after I (or her dad) leaves the room.
The room temperature is also important, it needs to around 18C for her other wise she's too hot and can't settle. In the cold weather (like at the moment), I use a tog 2.5 sleeping bag with sleeves, so she doesn't get cold in the middle of the night. All this seems to work so far!

Winding down time is very important. A bath and bedtime story is a good way to prepare them and let them know that its soon bedtime. It gives them a chance to relax after a day full of learning new stuff as they always are. Then they should sleep easy.

routine. bath & bedtime story

I did routine, routine, routine from day one with both of my boys, no feeding to sleep, swaddling, dummy for DS2 (DS1 had no interest), ensured just-right temperature of bedroom, a stickler for daytime naps, used every gentle and not-so-gentle strategy going to 'teach them to self-settle' and you know what? They are in competition to be the worst sleepers ever to have graced infancy.

The way to get you baby to sleep is to get down on your knees and pray to every God and Goddess there is to make them a good sleeper. And learn how to avoid getting arsey when you hear people waxing lyrical about how their child's sleep is down to their marvellous parenting.

Also, use cloth nappies and reusable wipes. The Pampers you use on your baby now will still be in landfill when they're grandparents.