Initially, when we got home from the hospital, we tried swaddling. Mads would freak out, scream his head off and make it very clear that tying his arms down was NOT OKAY.

Seven weeks later, Jon ran into one of our neighbors and mentioned how Mads wouldn’t sleep unless he was being held. The neighbor suggested swaddling, and Jon decided to try it. Mom sewed together two little blankets (he’s outgrown all the summer-weight blankets we have) and Jon wrapped up Mads like a little burrito.

Success! It takes some maneuvering: for best results you have to wait until he’s sleepy, wrap him, rock him to sleep and then gently set him down. But, Mads will take a nap or two on his own during the day and he will sleep in his bassinet during the night. (During at least part of the night, that is. Sometimes at 3am it is just not worth attempting Baby Origami and I just let him sleep on my stomach.)

It’s very hard for Mom to put Maddox down when he’s snuggly. Sometimes we don’t make it past the wrap and rock him stage, and we end up sitting together for awhile. Overall, I think letting him nap on his own sometimes will help me to not feel so exhausted all of the time, though, which will make playtime more fun for both Mads and me.

Cross your fingers – right now he’s in between falling asleep and deciding to Houdini his way out of the blankets. Once his arms are free, all hell breaks loose and there’s no way you’re getting him back to sleep.

To wind up, here’s a happy baby for you photo junkies out there. Every morning Mads and I (and Dad if it’s the weekend) play for awhile, and Mads smiles and smiles and tries to giggle. He’s socially smiling now, and will respond to silly voices, Mom and Dad’s faces, and his Bear Parade mobile.

Tags: mobile, sleep, smiling, swaddling