Soothe that baby

Let’s face it: Before this kid was born, you had no idea that babies were so clueless about how to relax. Well, now you know. Your new roommate would like nothing more than to get back in the confines of the womb and forget this whole “birth” thing ever happened.

If there is one piece of advice I would give new mothers in their baby’s first month of life, it is to watch The Happiest Baby On The Block. Due to the convincing presentation on DVD of Dr. Harvey Karp, we are both big believers in the 5 S’s of the Happiest Baby on the Block ”“ if you don’t have time for a book (and who does?), take the time for the InstantVideo or DVD!

If you watched it before baby was born, watch it again now. According to Dr. Karp, the tools you need are:

Swaddle
Sideways/ stomach
Shush/ white noise
Swing/ jiggle
Suck

Both Julian and Holden were swaddled for sleep, per Dr. Karp’s specific instructions, beyond their 3-month birthdays. Julian was held on his side and jiggled by every visitor who we trained on this technique. Update: at 17 and 11 months old, they both still sleep with white noise on for every snooze they take. It works!

Try it. You’ll like it.

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Whitney

RookieMoms.com co-founder Whitney lives with her husband, son, and daughter in the San Francisco Bay Area where she writes about parenting, crafts, and activities that moms can do with babies in tow. She and Heather also publish 510Families.com, a site for East Bay parents.