Parenting

17 Weird Tricks to Get Baby to Sleep That Moms Swear By

ParentingPublished Apr 23, 2015
By Suzee Skwiot
mom baby sleepingiStock.com/CAP53

Getting baby to go to sleep is not easy feat. They're fussy, crying, and unwilling to get some shuteye, and seem like they'll do whatever they can to stay awake. So it's time to pull out any tricks from your parenting arsenal and get that little one snoozing.

We asked moms to dish on their tried-and-true methods to get baby to sleep to help you better put that little one to bed.

Some are classics, some are a little "out there," but they all seem to have done the trick. Don't knock it 'til you try it.

Take a look:

1. "The only way I can get my son to calm down and go back to sleep after feeding and changing him is to let him lay on his belly on top of me or my boyfriend! That's the only way! It works even better if I am shirtless and he is shirtless."

2. "One time I was having a little party at the house, and each person who arrived paused in the entryway, listened for a moment, and then asked, 'Is that your vacuum cleaner running upstairs?' At which point, I told them to just ignore it. It was in the hall outside my daughter's room because it was the only way I can get her to nap!"

3. "When my daughter was just a few months old and my oldest was in swimming lessons, we found that every time we went to his lesson she would fall asleep and nap the entire time. So at home, we downloaded a swimming pool white noise recording and she would fall asleep within a couple of minutes."

4. "With my son, every time I wanted to get him to sleep, I had to turn on the vacuum, nurse him, bounce him, sing to him, and pat his bottom. All at the same time for each and every nap and bedtime for a minimum of 15 minutes but sometimes up to two hours."

More from CafeMom: This Crazy Trick Could Put a Baby to Sleep in Just 40 Seconds

5. "Lavender! I put some drops on a tissue, and put the tissue on the floor near the crib, and it works its magic."

6. "Taking him outside, in the winter. Whenever he was really fussy and we couldn't figure out why, my husband would just take him outside in the cold air and he'd calm right down and go back to sleep! He was born in January and has always been a 'hot sleeper.'"

7. "Put baby in a hiking backpack and walked two-plus miles every night after dark."

8. "My oldest was two when *Monsters Inc.*came out, and he loved it but was scared of Randall. He was really bad about going to bed and would fight, and fight, and fight to stay awake. One night, I was stretching and my toenail scraped along the wall and he freaked out huddling down saying that Randall was after him. I looked at him and he was laying so still with his eyes closed tight and the horrible Mommy that I am told him, 'If you stay really still and go to sleep Randall can't find you.' Five minutes later, he was out. I used that trick for two years without fail and now that he's 13, he still laughs and tells his friends how his mom got him to sleep at night."

9. "I put her in her car seat, put the car seat on top of the dryer, and turned it on."

10. "The only thing that worked for her for quitesome time was singing 'BINGO' (was his name-o) while touching her face. You had to sit down with her facing you in your lap, sing the song over and over, and just run your fingers over her cheeks. No other song would work and you could not skip the face thing. Otherwise she would fight sleep and cry like you wouldn't believe."

11. "I don't do eye contact before bedtime. It always got her even more energized and excited, so I stop it about 20 minutes before it's time to put her down."

More from CafeMom: 11 Benefits of Co-Sleeping 

12. "We got a box fan, and he used that for years. When I wanted him to wake up, I'd turn the fan off and his head would pop right up."

13. "My husband had to lay my daughter on his chest, lay on the kitchen floor, and spin in circles."

14. "One of my daughters had her nights and days switched around. I told my mom and she said turn her (somersault style) head-over-heels three times. I was so desperate, I tried it. Sure enough, it worked. She was sleeping eight hours at night (most nights) by 6 weeks old." 

15. "I make painful noises, as if I'm so tired, it hurts. They always take to that, because that is how tired theyfeel! So they feel heard, and they know I am aware of their pain. Just rock them to those noises and they all fall asleep!" 

16. "When my son was starting to out grow his nap around age , the only way I could get him to sleep was to have him lay on a blanket and drag him around the house." 

17. "My youngest went through a period where she'd only sleep in her swing, facing the fireplace, with a fire going. We went through sooooo much firewood."

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