Short naps
Hi, everybody.
Does anyone have tips on how to get a baby to extend his naps? Miles has no trouble going down for a nap, but he wakes up 30 minutes later, almost exactly on the dot. Sometimes if I catch him right away, I can ease him back down again and he’ll sleep for another 30-45 minutes, but that doesn’t always work either.
Also, I want to do something to help the Obama campaign, but it’s hard for me to physically get away and do anything. I will not make phone calls; I hate getting political calls, so I’m not going to be a part of that. However, I want to do something. Do they need envelopes stuffed or something that I could do from home?
I suppose I could call my campaign headquarters and find out, but you guys are smart.
http://pol.moveon.org/obama/remind/training.html?office_id=93
Four years ago I volunteered a weekend for the Kerry campaign and I got stuck making calls. It’s not fun at all on the other end, either, and I vow never to do it (just the phone thing) again.
Anything on here you can/would do?
http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/actioncenter
Early voting has started in Iowa as well, so you can vote whenever.
As far as naps are concerned, we’ve learned (and this may or may not apply for Miles) that the best environment promotes the best naps. The bedroom is pitch black and we have 2 different sources of white noise going on, a fan and an A/C unit on fan-only. Both are directed away from the crib so he doesn’t get cold, but the point is that it covers up any weird whams and blams and so forth from the surrounding house and street and he doesn’t jerk awake randomly. He’s at the point where he retrieves his bottles by himself, so we leave one in the crib at all times, and about 98% of the time he finds it, sticks it in his mouth himself, sighs, and goes back to sleep. The other problem we’ve had is wetness, but we just make sure he has a dry Pampers diaper on before naptime and we’re good for several hours. Good luck — it’s more of an art than a science.
On the other hand, it could be a ton of fun to volunteer to make calls for the McCain campaign. I think you could be creative enough to pull it off.
Take election day off, strap that adorable baby on and go knock on doors! Who could say no to that?
Naps… white noise works well for us (we use bathroom exhaust fan), we also stick a couple pillows in there, and at this age, I like the homeopathic teething gel from Walgreens. I usually put Thisbe down on her side, since she’s past the major SIDS risk age and she can flip herself over.
My experience has pretty much been that the second I think I’m about to address a worrisome (to us) behavior in Ava, that behavior changes. Which isn’t to say you shouldn’t try, just that you should be prepared to have wasted some time. I’ve resigned myself to the following: Kids sleep when they’re tired and eat when they’re hungry. Whatever you do, though, don’t let your baby sleep in the bathroom like Ben does.
btw, here is a phone number (i don’t recall if the moveon site had that)…
What: Volunteer at the Obama campaign office
Where: 625 S Dubuque (in Iowa City)
Phone: (319) 338-5790