Thanks for all the kind words on Teddy’s arrival last week. We’re home now and settling into life as parents to a newborn again (anyone have tips for getting one to sleep between the hours of 10pm and 4am?), so we’ll definitely be on a lighter schedule, but one project that we rushed to check off the to-do list around 48 hours before Teddy was born was finally sealing our kitchen’s recently Ardexed counters.
We’ve shared a few other “how to seal” tutorials (like this one about de-hazing & sealing tile, this one about sealing grout, and this one about sealing cork) so here’s what we settled on for protecting our Ardex counters.
We read a bunch of the-sealing-step-could-make-or-break-them posts when it comes to Adrex, so we resisted the urge to rush into anything, and we used some of your input on our March 24th post to help select which sealers to research a little more and eventually track down (we had to order one from Amazon). In the end, our method of choice was two coats of 511 Impregnator Sealer which we bought from Amazon followed by three coats of Safecoat Acrylacq which we had on hand from ordering it previously (those are affiliate links).
The Impregnator’s job was to seal the concrete – against staining and moisture absorption – and it was very easy to apply. The water-like consistency made it easy to spread, so I poured a bit in a bowl and then brushed it onto the clean concrete surface liberally.
The instructions say to wipe off any excess after a few minutes, but I found most of mine absorbed into the concrete pretty quickly. But as a shameless rule follower, I wiped nonetheless. It looks darker and splotchier than it did after it dried in this picture (since it was mid application) but after it all soaked in it was pretty much back to its original color.
We applied that twice (24 hours apart) and then gave that last coat 24 hours to cure before moving on to the last step, which was top-sealing with the Acrylacq. The great thing about using Safecoat as a top-coat in a kitchen environment is that it’s non-toxic and 100% food-safe. This would also seal the counter against stains and moisture (liquid would bead up on the surface instead of absorbing and making rings) and create a nice polished look that’s protective against chipping or scratching. I went rogue with this stuff and just poured a small puddle onto the surface and spread that thinly across the counters with a brush.
We use Acrylacq a lot, so we’re familiar with it (I’m no longer alarmed by the blue-ish tint that it puts on the surface while it’s still wet).
We applied a second and then a third coat of the Acrylacq, just to be safe (letting it dry about 12 hours between each one). Then we let it cure for three full days before putting anything on it, even though it was dry to the touch much sooner than that. Although the Acrylacq was just a “satin” finish, it made the surface significantly glossier than the chalky finish the original Ardex had left. I realize that sounds like I was disappointed, but it’s great.
Not only does the glossier finish make it feel more like a shiny stone countertop (and less like a chalky DIY job) it also protects the counters much more from spills/stains. No longer do drips leave longstanding discolorations on the surface (picture water soaking into a concrete walkway outside and looking dark for hours). Now spills and splatters just bead up and can be wiped away without any trace.
We also read that some sealers show a lot of scratches, but so far we haven’t had any show up, even after cooking some big family meals and sliding some heavy dishes around to serve things. So it seems as if this mix of sealers yields a nice stone-like look that’s food-safe, scratch-resistant, and makes liquids bead up instead penetrating – at least so far.
My only complaint about our sealing results is that the glossier finish makes it slightly easier to see imperfections in the counter’s surface, namely areas where I should’ve sanded things a bit smoother during the Ardex application step (just like how glossy paint will accentuate imperfections in walls, this follows the same principle). Sherry is quicker to embrace these imperfections as par for the concrete counter course (“they’re supposed to look like that”) but the perfectionist in me just sees areas that I could have smoothed out a little more before sealing. Either way we’re both ecstatic to finally have everything back on our counters and be able to use our kitchen again like normal people. And it’s definitely a huge step up from the old yellow laminate that we had before.
Note: There have been people who’ve asked if we’d like to paint those bottom cabinets now that the counters are done, which is always a possibility, but for now we’re a lot more distracted by things like that faux brick linoleum flooring – so that’s at the top of our list.
There are still some things I’d like to improve about my Ardex-ing technique (namely sanding more smoothly) but generally I’m really happy with how it all turned out. Especially how the sealing step turned it into a much more finished feeling surface.
Aside from a few the-family-is-in-town-to-meet-a-new-baby meals, we haven’t used the kitchen like crazy yet, so we’ll definitely keep you posted on how it wears. Whether stains get through and we get scratches galore, or things stay pretty darn similar to how they look now, we’ll definitely share some updated detail shots in a few months time.
UPDATE: We shared how the counters are holding up here for ya!
Has anyone else used the same mix of sealers? Or had good (or bad) luck with another combo? Feel free to share those details here for anyone who might be tackling this soon. In the meantime, I’ll leave you with a photo comparison that a bunch of you guys have requested. Here’s Teddy at four days old:
And here’s Clara’s when she was around three weeks old in the same pose. They seem to have identical (extra long) fingers and toes, the same invisible blonde eyebrows, and the same tiny little chin – but Clara had a lot less hair. This Clara picture and this Teddy picture are probably the closest comparison so far (in real life we think they look related – but not quite like twins).
Now about those tips for getting a newborn to sleep between the hours of 10pm and 4am. We’re all ears…
Natalie says
I’m not sure about the sleeping thing (I have a hard time getting my six months old to nap consistently), however if you haven’t heard about it I wanted to mention that I used Earth Momma Angel Baby C-momma Salve after my c-section (I had an abruption with our little one as well), and it really does seem to help make everything heal up nicely. I just sort of dabbed in on gently after the first week or so, but now I’ll use it whenever I get that weird itchy/tight feeling around my incision. Hope y’all are doing well :)
Teresa says
I love the concrete look of countertops and your tutorial was wonderful. Looking forward to how they hold up to wear and tear.
I am a granny now and old-school when it comes to rearing children. I usually think most babies have to gain a certain amount of weight (fat) in order to sleep through the night. That only comes with time. Tag-team night time feeding with each other. Routine, quiet time and cuddling are the only thing you can do with infants.
After a few months you can “teach” them how to quiet themselves for sleep. The best piece of sleep advice for little ones I ever got was (this is for older babies) sometimes you have to let them “grump” themselves to sleep.
It usually doesn’t last long. :) Hang in there!
Leah says
troublesometots.com was a lifesaver! My baby was a terrible sleeper and we finally got her to sleep with a tight swaddle, lound white noise, and a swing. Yup, she slept in a swing until she was 4 months old!
Shareen says
I realized I must have skipped a paragraph or something (perils of reading on your phone) when I read “The Impregnator’s job was to seal the concrete…” and saw a picture of John applying the sealant. I was all, “huh, so they’re calling him “The Impregnator’ now?” This is how rumors get started! ????
Shareen says
(I am still laughing.)
Linda says
Your countertops look really nice. However, I really wanted to see more pictures of Teddy! Thanks for including a couple of them and sharing your family expansion with us.
YoungHouseLove says
Of course!
xo
s
sue says
Love the countertops and wish I were brave enough to try it. As for sleeping thru the night, I’m a grandma but I do remember trying to tank my kids up the last few hours before bed (I breastfed) and not letting them go any more than 2-3 hours without eating during the day. That way they didn’t wake up as often to eat at night and they didn’t get their long stretches of sleep during the day. Good luck! As you know, this too shall pass!
Kim says
Congrats! Sleep sack swaddle by halo. Keeps hips free so hip dysphasia isn’t an issue. Plus $$ from sales goes to SIDS research. Ship from amazon/ at target or sometimes in the baby section of marshalls/ Tjmaxx. Good luck!
Kristen says
I LOVE seeing cute little babies and kids, don’t get me wrong, but will you be sharing less of your private life now with two kids? I just feel like I honestly know more about Clara than I do about some of my friends kids and I think that’s scary for you guys! We’ve seen a picture or two of little Teddy every day since he was born. Oversharing just worries me!
Anyway, I don’t think any of your readers would be upset or offended at all if you pulled back on the kid photos for their safety and so that any stranger can’t document their entire childhood in photos when they’re adults. We’re here for the DIY projects! We understand protecting your own privacy and safety :)
YoungHouseLove says
For everything that we share about Clara, over 99% of her life goes unshared, and that’ll be the same method that we use with Teddy (a cute picture or short video is a moment in time, and the rest of their full and active day is something we enjoy privately). Of course the what-to-share line is different for everyone, but now that Clara’s almost four we feel like we have a nice sense of what we’re comfortable posting and what we prefer to keep close to the vest.
xo
s
Kristen says
Fair enough. I guess I just don’t think there needs to be so many photos of them in DIY/house-related posts. Do you think you guys will slowly transition to become a lifestyle blog?
YoungHouseLove says
We’ve always had a pretty heaping portion of “family” going on (we have personal posts in our archives about birthdays, vacations, pregnancy, breastfeeding, running, adjusting to having a kid, clothes shopping, what we were both almost named, etc). We also have longstanding categories like “kids & pets”, “road trips & travel” and “saving money” so this has never been a strictly-DIY blog. We’ll definitely tell you if we plan any major change in focus, although after almost seven years of this mix, we think it’s the sweet spot for us.
-John
Heather says
Congratulations! Sometimes lots of sun during the day time helps set their body clock for day/night time. Also a feed at dusk with the lights turned off helped me.
The countertops look great. Inspires me to try in my kitchen!
Susan M says
What a precious little baby! LOVE your photos. The ones in the hospital were so creative.. This is totally off topic (sorry!) but I’m ready to buy a new washer and dryer and wonder if you guys have been happy with your new set so far. Congrats to the whole family!!
YoungHouseLove says
Yes, we still love ours!
xo
s
AJ says
Read this book ASAP!
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0071381392/elizabethpantley
ellen says
Congratulations on the new arrival! Teddy sure has a shock of hair! I have an *almost* five week old, and thankfully she’s pretty laid back and sleeps pretty well. I think we were due about the same time, Sherry, my little one was impatient and arrived several weeks earlier than expected! The Halo sleep sacks have been lifesaving for me–they Velcro wrap her arms down, so I’m not totally paranoid about a loose blanket suffocating the kiddo, and the bottom half is a sack that zips from her chin down, so you can keep her arms zipped but still get easy access from the bottom for diaper changes in the middle of the night.
Is it getting teddy to sleep, or keeping him asleep, that’s the challenge? Bouncing on an exercise ball with a grumpy newborn has been amazing for getting mine to fall asleep!
Good luck, and hang in there!
YoungHouseLove says
He just seems to be really alert during the hours of 10pm – 3am or so (that might shift forward an hour or back an hour depending on the day) so it’s both getting him to sleep and keeping him asleep during that time (sometimes I can nurse him to sleep then but he pops back up completely awake afterwards and has no interest in going to sleep until around 3-4am). Love all the tips everyone is sharing though! We got him a lot of natural sunlight today and he already seems more awake during the day, so I hope it bodes well for tonight!
xo
s
Lindsey P says
Counters look great, Baby looks lovely, but the big question is…Where did you get that cute yellow radio? all the ones I can find are either giant or are made to fit an apple product (which I don’t have).
YoungHouseLove says
That’s by Tivoli (it’s a radio and an ipod dock) – got it through Joss & Main on sale a few years back.
xo
s
thedogsma says
OK, this is 30 years old, & not my own kid (I’ve never had any) but when I was living in the UK a study was published that said that (gently!!!) bouncing a baby 60x-70x times per minute would put any to sleep. I saw this work with 3 different newborns, one colicky, who otherwise did not sleep at all. We used one of the Stately Prams of England (it’s still common there for babies to nap outside, & just gently!! bounced the handle with one hand while holding a library book in the other. The babies were horizontal, usually in a sheepskin sleeping bag–it was winter when 2 of them were newborns. Worked a treat. I would guess that the Rock & Play works on the same principle. All of the babies had rocking cradles, but slept much better in their prams, where they could be bounced.
Love the counters. I feel my nerve building….
Susan says
Aww, I love that chest-sleeping stage!!
You’ve gotten a ton of good advice already, looks like. For sleep, both times it got a LOT better at 3 weeks, then again at 6 weeks. But I agree with a lot of your other posters: ultimately I think that wretched infant sleep is just a developmentally normal thing due to hunger/loneliness, and you don’t have to try to solve it, you just ride it out. I think it’s like morning sickness: definitely try everything, but it might not work. If you don’t get a sleeper it’s better to just figure out how to get enough sleep yourself. He’ll get there eventually, but it takes time.
I liked doing a sleep log for ME for the first few weeks. I’d write down all of the sleep snippets, .75 hrs here, 1.5 there, and I didn’t get up for the day until they added up to 7 hours. The second time around, I was mostly the baby nighttime parent, and my husband was the three-year-old morning parent (he was home on paternity leave, a blessing) for those first few weeks until things started to even out.
Kimberly says
Counters look great! Wish they were mine! :D
Sleeping tips:
-Check out The 90 Minute Baby Sleep Program by Dr. Polly Moore. In a nutshell: b/t the ages of 2 weeks and 1 year most babies are primed for sleep 90 minutes after they last woke up, whether they just napped for 4 hours or 20 minutes or whatever.
-This coupled with the “eat-play-sleep” routine has really helped our 4-month-old Bea with her total hours of sleep every day. Weissbluth (mentioned above) talks about sleep begetting sleep, and boy has that been the case with Bea. Making sure she is getting enough sleep during the day with her naps has helped her to sleep longer at night. She sleeps in a pack-n-play in our room and currently wakes up 1 time most nights to eat (we breastfeed); about half the time (starting about 3 weeks ago) she sleeps right through that 10 pm-4 am window, waking up between 6 and 7:30 to eat and sometimes she wants to go right back down for a nap.
-I look back at my experience with my now 2.5 year old Madeline and realize she was chronically tired which for her meant she was crankier during the day and she woke up 2-4 times a night until she was about a year old…I didn’t know about the 90-minute secret back then. I am a total believer after seeing how it has worked with my second little girl!
-I realize this doesn’t help you at all right now as Teddy has a while to go until he is two weeks old…we coslept with Bea and when she did wake up we didn’t talk to her and we tried to keep the room dark so that she would begin to learn the difference b/t daytime behavior and nighttime behavior. I am hoping for a sleep solution for you all!
Amanda says
Things that work well for us: a consistent routine (ours is simple. Diaper, jammie, swaddle, nurse and burp then lay in crib) and being sure to swaddle well. My personal fav for swaddling is muslin blankets. They’re really versatile (unlike swaddling sleepers) and they’re nice and big and stretchy so they stay put well. Our boy sleeps longer through the night the older he gets so now he sleeps all of most nights in his crib. The first couple of months I usually brought him to bed with me after his initial waking to nurse. He slept better in bed with me and it was less tiring for me than getting up a bunch of times to nurse.
I know co-sleeping is often frowned upon but if you use common sense it should be fine (no soft bedding, no alcohol or meds that make you sleepy, etc). …though doesn’t burger sleep with you? I have no idea whether that could be a problem for co-sleeping.
Mrs. A says
This may be a repetition of other parents, but this worked for us:
1. The 5 S’s book!!
2. Swaddle (usually in rocker)
3. White noise
4. Separate bedroom
5. Transition to crib around 6-12 weeks
6. Nap/sleep when baby is sleeping!
Oh, and Teddy has a wonderful head of hair! My son was born with lovely thick hair and still has thick unruly hair to this day – it’s too cute (he’s nearly 7 and loves to have mussy hair for school). My daughter, on the other hand, was born with thin baby fine hair and at 1 1/2 years it is still thin and baby fine (although growing in some).
Enjoy!
p.s. The counters look great! I wondered about spills and cleanups, but it sounds like they are standing up to some good wear and tear.
courtney says
Love the blog!
I am on the verge of being a FIRST TIME HOME BUYER and I have been searching for a work up of your phased renovations. What do they consist of and how do you determine what should be in each phase? Do you guys have this listed anywhere?
Thanks so much!
YoungHouseLove says
Here’s a post that might help shed some light on that for ya: https://www.younghouselove.com/2013/10/are-phase-1-projects-just-a-waste-of-money-time/
xo
s
Amber says
With our second child, I put her in her crib as soon as we came home from the hospital. She was sleeping 5 hours a night by two weeks! I really think that helped…and age was almost nine pounds at birth so she had some chubs to sleep on. :) good luck with teddy!! He is a doll!!!
Tiffany says
Slightly unrelated, but I was wondering if you didn’t mind sharing the name of the infant car seat I saw that handsome little man in?
Thank you,
Tiffany
YoungHouseLove says
It’s a Chicco Keyfit 30.
xo
s
Mrs. A says
Oh, and here’s an interesting article which posits that the reason babies cry at night is to decrease the chance that mom and dad will conceive another child within the next year. Those devious little infants!! :)
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2014/04/14/302912419/why-babies-cry-at-night
YoungHouseLove says
Someone else shared that link too! So interesting!
xo
s
AnnieV says
LOL… when I first skimmed over your post, when I read, “The Impregnator’s job was to seal the concrete…” I thought you were referring to yourself (in 3rd person)!!! I totally chortled.
But then I read the post again and discovered that was the name of the sealer… kind of disappointed hahaha :D:D
As for newborn-sleep tips… I’ve no clue. Hire help?? I struggled majorly with my 1st and am not looking forward to doing it all over again one day soon. Surely second time round is easier……….. #deafinghornnoiseofdoomlikeonGOT
Rachel says
Wrote this post a while back > Quick and Easy tips to get your baby to sleep well
Hope it helps :)
http://amotherfarfromhome.com/2013/10/28/quick-and-easy-tips-to-help-your-baby-sleep-well-for-the-long-run/
Marisa says
Oh my goodness. I was glancing through the first through paragraphs but not reading every word. Came to the picture of John putting the sealant on and just above it read, “The Impregnator’s job …” I seriously thought you guys were referring to John as The Impregnator for half a minute! (Thankfully reading up another paragraph cleared that one up.)
As for sleeping, I generally love The Happiest Baby On The Block DVD and the 5 S’s, but for my 10 month old daughter’s 1st week, though, she slept in bed with us, head plastered to my chest. The closer she was, the happier. We borrowed an Arm’s Reach Co-Sleeper (like a bassinet that attaches to the side of your bed) to provide a little barrier to keep me from rolling her off of the bed and to give a place for her to sleep that was close to but not on me. I gradually (over that first week or two) worked her up an hour or two at a time to sleeping in that rather than our bed.
The first few weeks with a newborn blow. Hope you guys get some rest and sweet bonding in there!
AnnieV says
Sorry – another comment – but after seeing so many people recommend the Rock n Play I thought Id take a look. It does sound like a fantastic idea, so I’d definitely get this for my next, personally. But just in case you guys get it too, here’s a very good critical review of it (in case you haven’t already seen this):
http://www.amazon.com/review/R299ERYJNDHR1N/ref=cm_cr_pr_viewpnt#R299ERYJNDHR1N
Any of the negative feedback about it tends to be around the fact that a lot of parents blame the RNP for making their babies heads flat and subsequently needing to wear corrective helmets, but Id take a look at this review that addresses that concern but still recommends the product (limited use).
Jessica says
Counters look great! I recommended this to a friend with laminate who wanted an upgrade.
As for sleeping…my 2 year old didn’t sleep through the night until he was 18 months old when I was half way through my pregnancy with #2. Nothing worked. Not a thing. My 2 month old sleeps from 8 unti 2 every night. I try to make sure he goes to bed early (around 8). Staying up later does not mean longer stretches of sleep in our house…it means overtired, cranky boys that wake up constantly. :). All of that to say, I think personality plays a HUGE part. My two year old is still stubborn.
Also, as hard as it is to think about in the moment, it’s just a season. This newborn phase passes so quickly. Praying for some rest for you all!
Patricia says
got nothing on baby sleep but do have hot tip for toddlers that have learned how to climb out of bed and wander around the house in the middle of the night, severely testing your baby proofing skills. It’s crib pants! A stretchy band between the legs of footie pjs. They can’t swing their leg over the side of their crib or pack n play. I found this while desperately searching for help before our 2 year old grandkid came to visit…. it worked!
Keep Toddlers From Climbing Out of Cribs by @cribpants … – YouTube
Michelle says
Can’t resist replying to your plea for help with a suggestion – and if it works, let me know!? : If you’re breastfeeding, what you eat all day is what he digests all night. A mother’s diet has much greater impact on a baby – especially a newborn – than we are generally led to believe. If you can eliminate dairy, gluten, caffeine and too much sugar in your day time diet, his little digestive system will be peaceful at night . . . which may allow for better sleep patterns? (This has worked 100% for all our babies – 6-8 hours of unbroken sleep at night by 3-6 weeks of age. Honestly, I’ve never lost sleep at night to a wakeful baby!!) – Michelle. P.S. CONGRATULATIONS! Teddy is gorgeous!
Jakki says
Newborns are hard work aren’t they! My now 12 month old rarely slept until 4am! The only thing that did work was sleeping in our bed or on mine or hubby’s chest on her belly. My oldest was the same but she starts sleeping through at 3 weeks. Youngest slept through at 4 months. I ha both girls in a bassinet next to my bed and even that was hard work getting up and down recovering from c sections. Bub #2 calmed with white noise too. I’d never heard of it before but I now believe in ‘the 4th trimester’ – huge changes in bub at week 12 that’s for sure
Congratulations again!
KarenH. says
Oooh, love the “new” counters :) They’re reading very much in your style aesthetic.
I’m curious to see how you deal with that awful faux brick linoleum. I have the same stuff, but I”m not really planning to get rid of it until I do the actual kitchen reno and then I’m planning to just lay a cork floor over it. But if you have any brilliant and semi-easy plans to hide it temporarily, I’m open to changing my mind :D
Carrie says
Congratulations!!!! He is adorable (-: I have 2 babies that were not amazing sleepers like your Clara, maybe teddy still will be but what he is doing sleep wise is totally normal newborn stuff. I tried everything for mine! Unfortunately the rock and play did not work for us, ah well. Just remember it’s normal and you got really lucky with Clara (-: not that it’s not super crazy hard when they don’t sleep, it is just such a hot button issue that when you start googling sleep tips it is like a black hole and there are many things to try and so many opinions and ways to second guess yourself. I let it get to me big time with my first and I wish I had just ” rolled with it” a bit more. Hang in there! He is beautiful and sleeping like a newborn (-: You have a lovely family!
Lauren B says
Hey, the counters look great!
We used Babywise for our kids. I know it’s not the first choice for everybody, but I was so tired and willing to try anything. I’d had friends who had tough babies and swore by it. Every baby is different and we found out that what works for one doesn’t always work for the other. Good luck with the sleeping.
Question about the counters…we have cultured marble in our kids bathroom that is white but very yellowed with age. We plan to replace the countertop at some point, but I was looking for a phase 1 option to tide me over. The sink is integrated into the counter top (so it’s one solid piece). Do you think I could use Ardex on marble? what about the sink? Maybe with multiple coats of Acrylac? Any suggestions for yellowed marble problems? Thanks for your thoughts.
Lauren B.
YoungHouseLove says
I would call or email Ardex to see if it would work in that application. Also, does anyone have yellowed marble tips for Lauren?
-John
Emily @ Life on Food says
The counters came out great. It looks like a completely different kitchen. I really wish we could go the concrete route but we have rotten boards under that counters that need to be replace and thus the whole counter is coming off too. Super cute baby photo. Congrats again!!
Mel says
How the sleep thing worked for my BFF when my niece and nephew were newborns was:
1. Have childless BFF (me!) come over to stay in the guestroom when sleep deprivation reaches critical levels.
2. Express enough breastmilk for nighttime feedings.
3. Put cradle in the guest room with BFF.
4. Put in earplugs.
5. Sleep through the night.
6. Sleep in the next morning while BFF gets up with the children, changes and bottlefeeds the baby and makes breakfast for the toddler.
7. Enjoy breakfast and coffee in bed that BFF brings you. Generously allow BFF to hog the baby as long as she wants and/or take toddler to the park.
8. Repeat as necessary to retain sanity.
If you don’t have a childless BFF, options include sister, sister-in-law, or new grandmother. They will quite enjoy the opportunity to snuggle the new baby and smell his head.
Ashley says
I’m so happy for you guys!!! Your growing family is so adorable and it’s really a comfort to see you guys doing it right in this crazy world. Congrats on wee Teddy– he’s already a stunner :)
emily says
How cute is it that even the fireplace is the same in the picture?!? (same but different, of course)
Amy says
Congrats on your sweet boy! Keep it dark, seriously…the room, his surroundings when he wakes in the night. Pitch black as you can stand. Sounds harsh, but keep the feedings and changes very business like and straight back to bed and he’ll adjust to your daytime routines in no time!
laura says
1 word…ROCK-IN-PLAY!! It ROCKS!:)
Molly says
I suggest checking out Moms on Call….SAVED MY LIFE! http://www.momsoncall.com I like how they incorporate principles from lots of other books but dumb it down so it’s easy to do. Can’t say enough about this.
Kate says
Our baby girl just turned one last week. We have had her in the crib from day one just like you guys with Clara. We don’t want a lot of baby stuff cluttering up our house so we avoided buying things with a short lifespan or those that would add transition steps for our baby. We wanted her to learn to sleep in her room in her bed and now she loves her crib just like how it sounds like Clara did.
What REALLY REALLY worked for us was “the pause.” I think it originally came from an American commenting on french parenting culture. All we did was pause when she started to fuss while waking up from sleep. It is not cry it out or any sort of baby sleep rules or scheduling. Just wait, give your baby a minute or two to decide if he really wants to be awake or if he is just in a lighter sleep stage and wants to go back to sleep. It taught our baby to go back to sleep on her own and she has slept so well since we started it at about a week old. Google search “the pause baby sleep” and you will get some more info on it. Good Luck with your new little guy! He is adorable!
Maya says
I just read about this in the sequel to Bringing up Bebe (the French parenting book you’re talking about) and really want to make sure I pause with my next baby! Thanks for the confirmation that it works!
We coslept from the start with my daughter, which made sleep really easy when she was a baby and absolutely felt like what we both WANTED. Now that she is a toddler… it’s more of a struggle. She’s JUST now starting to sleep through the night in her own bed, and I think she’ll stop nursing to sleep when she weans! So I don’t necessarily recommend what we did but I don’t necessarily NOT recommend it, since we both loved it when she was tiny and it enabled me to work from home easily with a newborn around. She would also nap on me in a carrier or on my lap while I worked on the computer.
Molly says
The Miracle Blanket is a great swaddle too!
Emily says
Congrats on the new bundle, my son was extremely colicky for the first three months as well as diagnosed with reflux. He also loved to be awake from 1-5am, screaming most of the time I may add. I highly recommend a schedule (during the day!) be consist as much as possible with feedings waking if necessary, though as mentioned previously sleep equals sleep, if he is getting good restorative sleep with a good amount of calories during the day, he will sleep better at night. Second, swaddle and third a white noise machine (which I believe you already have). I have found this site really helpful with tips and advice. http://goodnightsleepsite.com
Lara says
Congrats on your new Teddy!! He’s beautiful! (I almost hate to mention this, but not only does your daughter share a similar name to mine, our King Charles Cavalier is named Theodore and we call him “Teddy”. I just thought that was funny :o) As for sleep… babies only sleep so many hours in a 24 hour period; just make sure those sleeping hours are at night rather than during the day. We worked liked crazy people to keep our little angels awake during the day (with naps of course), and they slept better at night. And make night time feedings the most boring thing ever; feed and put right back to bed.
BTW, what’s the yellow box on your counter (it’s next to the honeycomb vase)? I’m just really curious.
Congratulations!!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s a radio by Tivoli that we got from Joss & Main about 2 years ago.
-John
Amelia says
Aaaaahhh sleep! Too much, too little, not at the right time, not in the right place, swaddles, binkies, lovies, white noise, rocking, swaying, parties till dawn, parties at dawn. The world of sleep advice is a whirlwind. I love this video http://youtu.be/OS60FHWUZp4
Love hearing about the Fam! Congratulations and hang in there!
Danielle says
The countertops look amazing! We just re-did our kitchen so I’m not planning on changing those counters anytime soon, but I’m now eyeing the rest of the house, wondering where we can try the concrete look. love it!
Hannahhenning says
The counter tops look fantastic! And your sweet little guy is just beautiful!
‘Bringing Up Bebe’ is a really easy read and has great tips for getting very small babies to sleep through most of the night. Without knowing it, I’d been using many of their methods with my three, and all of them slept at night (and only woke to nurse) when just newborns. I do breastfeed exclusively for the first year.
Praying that you all get much needed rest!
Ann says
One word: Babywise. It’s a book that will take you step by step to get your little guy to sleep through the night by the time he is 9 weeks old. No joke. It works. I’ve had four babies, so I’ve been there :)
P.S. Your counters turned out great!
Jane O' says
We used the fan in the kitchen And the vacuum cleaner …. the fan was much more quiet, but just as effective! Feed, feed feed during the day:)
Good luck
Cheers to healthy babies and healthy Momma too!
Jenny B. says
I don’t have any specific nighttime sleeping tips, but I loved the Baby Whisperer books when my boys were little. I read the original (Secrets of the Baby Whisperer) several times, and got the follow-up book when my 2nd was on the way (The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems). They were both great resources. I think the main thing for us was to keep to the routine of Eat, Activity, Sleep during the day time, and the night eventually worked out.