Help! Moms of many...

[mcleirigh]

I was going to post about how hard it is to get my baby to sleep and I see that there are many other similar posts. My DD (5 mos.) wakes up every hour or two and often takes over an hour to get to sleep. So here's my question- I want lots of kids but I can't imagine spending soooo many hours rocking, nursing, etc. if there are other kids to take care of. There must be a better way! I can't imagine that really attached tribal moms in other countries spend hours and hours trying to get their babies to sleep. It just doesn't seem natural. I know it's normal for her age to wake often but... I don't know. I'm not going to let her CIO, and I am implementing some of Pantley's suggestions... but any other hints?

[Peony]

I'm not a mom of many, I only have 3. For my family though, the more children that we have, the less they sleep. I'm not able to spend hours getting a child to sleep. They have to go to sleep easily or not. I stopped putting DD2 down for naps after DS was born because I couldn't lay there forever with her. Poor baby DS gets woke up all the time by one sister or another. It isn't ideal but it is my reality.

Will she fall asleep in a carrier? That is the only way DS gets any naps, I wear him around until he falls asleep.

[Anastasiya]

During the first 9 months or so, my kids have all fallen asleep at the breast when it's naptime during the day. I nurse them, they zonk out, I put them in their crib. There has never been any extended "trying to get them to sleep" thing..... At nighttime, when DH is home, he bounces the baby to sleep while I tend to the other kids.

[mcleirigh]

Thanks for the replies! I guess it helps with more kids too that the baby gets more tired since there is more activity. My DD last night wouldn't go to sleep till 11, but then she only woke up once and today she took 2 really long naps!

[mamalink4]

Not sure if I qualify as a mom of many (5) but I have noticed that with each new babe they have learned to either fall asleep nursing with all the noise or within a couple minutes of finishing or they just have to drift off themselves. I will have the older kids help to keep them entertained until they decide that they are ready for naps. Once asleep they are taken to the bed and laid down with a radio and womb sounds playing with the door shut. That usually does the trick for us. It's just that in my house of 4 older kids (2 yrs to 9 yrs) there is a lot of noise and we all have to make adjustments to it. So just keep in mind that not only would things change for the adults in the house with a new baby down the road, but also for any other children and/or pets.