My friend and parenting expert, Julie King, had a rookie baby who would not sleep once he reached the toddler age. Once he figured out that better things were going on in the other room, he resisted.
Together with her friend and co-author, Joanna Faber, they created Asher’s Dance and Rest Tape to trick the savage toddler into napping.
Julie told me:
Joanna came up with the concept and then made the tape for me (and Asher) years ago, when I was having trouble getting him to calm down and nap (and I had his new baby brother to juggle). As a classical pianist who only listens to pop music when someone force-feeds me and have no idea what I’m hearing, I was at a loss when it came to picking actual music, so she came to my rescue.
It has about 30 to 45 minutes of music, and it goes from very lively dance music, to calmer dance music, to soothing, ending with Gregorian Chants.
I would always do it with Asher (or else he wouldn’t do it), and we would start off with wild dancing, and then get slower and slower, and by the time the Gregorian chants came we’d be lying on the floor on a blanket, and he would take his nap on the floor.
Inspired by your comments last time I posted this scenario, I created a Rookie Mom’s Dance and Rest Playlist on spotify. It starts with fast songs (like the move it, move it song) all the way through sleepy songs and chants.
I’d love to hear your feedback if you try it. I tested it on my seven year old and about halfway through, he got bored, so, there’s that.
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