Rock-a-Bye Baby (16 page)
Authors: Penny Warner
Dads on Duty Game Plan
“Anyone who thinks the art of conversation is dead ought to tell a child to go to bed.”
âRobert Gallagher
While most people think it's mainly Mom's job to get Baby to sleep, Dad often has a magical touch that helps soothe the little one to sleep. Perhaps it's a different smell, a different way of holding the baby, or that low, hypnotic masculine voice. Whatever it is, Dad often has the solution, so take turns with Baby's bedtime. This chapter is full of ideas you can both try but dads say have worked particularly well for them.
What worked for us was just plain wearing them down with play time, but that usually wore me down, too!
âDoug D
.
Make up your own song and sing it to your baby.
I used to sing the words “Buddy Boy” over and over until my grandson fell asleep
âEd P
.
The door would squeak every time we opened it, which would wake the baby, so I oiled the door. No more noise, no more wake-ups.
âMike M
.
Put some of your baby's favorite toys in the crib so when he wakes up, he can play with his toys until he feels sleepy again. (Just make sure the toys are safe ones.)
âChad A
.
(
Even If They Don't Know All the Words)
“99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall”
“Who Let the Dogs Out?”
“Take Me Out to the Ball Game”
“Don't Worry, Be Happy”
“A Pirate's Life for Me” (from the
Pirates of the Caribbean
ride)
“We Are the Champions”
“Eye of the Tiger”
“Where Everybody Knows Your Name” (theme from
Cheers
)
Notre Dame fight song
“Stairway to Heaven” The Alphabet Song
Singing “99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall” often did the trick. It sometimes took 199 or 299, though.
âGeoff P
.
A vibrating toy, such as a teddy bear, will help a baby get to sleep.
âMike M
.
When my son was teething, he didn't sleep well, so I would put his pacifier in the freezer to get it nice and cold, then give it to him.
âGeoff P
.
To keep him from waking in the night, we fed our son more during the day.
âRay C
.
My wife and I hold our son differently. She holds him close, while I tend to hold him like a football, across my arm, to get him to sleep.
âLen S
.
We got a blanket-sleeper. You put the kid inside and zip it up, and when he kicks, he can't kick the blanket off and wake up. Seems to make him feel all cozy and warm and safe.
âDennis B
.
Turn down the baby monitor when you go to bed, so you don't hear every little wake-up sound. You'll still hear the big ones that mean “Come and get me!” but you'll sleep through the little ones, when your baby may be awake but he's content and will probably go back to sleep on his own.
âDave M
.
