Infant Sleeping Problem

Depending on the hotel you are staying at they may have a crib you can use. Call the hotel today and see what they have. It may not be hers but if you take her blankets and her stuff to put in it it may work for the trip. Maybe you could see if she will sleep on the mattress by itself on the floor and take it if you have the room(I don't know how you are traveling or if this is possible). Hope this helps!!

Julie,

I think it helps if you try to make the pack 'n play as much like her crib as possible -- if there's a music or movement toy on the side of her crib, bring it and attach it to the side of the pack 'n play. If she sleeps with certain things in the crib, bring them. Transport as much of the atmosphere of what she knows as possible. Also, you could set it up right next to your bed so you can just hang your arm in there so she knows you are near. If you aren't going to bed at the same time, at least pull your covers back and put your p.j.'s on the pillow where you'll be sleeping and say -- "you sleep here and see, here's where mommy will sleep." It will be comforting to see something familiar that you where at home.

Hope this helps. Good Luck!

Hi, J. ~ Like you, I had this same problem a few months ago. My daughter is a little older, though, (17 months at the time) and had never slept anywhere but her crib. We made a trip out to my sister's house in Indiana and she set up her Pack N' Play. I brought some of my daughter's stuffed animals and blankets that she sleeps with and also this light up Pooh bear that plays music and glows when you press its tummy. And like you, I was extremely worried about her going to sleep. But, we kept with the bedtime routine and because my sister didn't have a rocking chair, I just sat her on the bed and rocked back and forth and also brought a couple of her books that we read before she goes to sleep. Surprisingly, she went right to sleep with no problem! She slept with my sister (my husband snores and I didn't want him waking her up) and she woke up once during the night and kept pressing the tummy on the Pooh bear, but went right back to sleep. That is something she does at home here when she wakes up in the middle of the night so I was glad she found comfort in it even though she wasn't in her crib. I hope some of these suggestions help and good luck! L.

I thought Trish had a FABULOUS idea. Even her bed sheets right off bed so it smells like home! I also agree with your relatives. She'll probably crash. I traveled three times with my little man and every time he's not only slept thru the night (which he never does at home) and he slept later than usual!!!! Go figure.

Good luck,

M.

Hotels often have cribs you can borrow/rent. You can also rent cribs (and rockers!) through baby equipment rental companies. Just be sure to check the crib over very carefully as I've heard that you cannot assume the people know how to put them together correctly, and you want to be sure it's safe for your baby. I would also bring my own crib sheets. Good luck to you, and have a fun trip.

I know there are places that rent cribs (just bring a mattress pad and sheets. Unfortunately I don't know one in Indi but I'm sure you could try calling a BABIES R US or somewhere like that and ask. Try to google crib rentals in Indiana.

Good Luck

L.

You might check with the hotel...they sometimes have cribs available for a small fee.

I thought it imparative that I answer you seeing as my oldest daughter is J. and my youngest daughter is Natalie.

Depending on how long you are spending in Indiana, if it is only one night, does your Nattalie sleep in a car seat? If it is only for one night, perhaps you can try this. She will be surrounded by familiar for the evening. It will not hurt her for one evening. If you are staying longer, perhaps allow her to sleep in the car seat for one evening then work her to the port a crib for the next. It is just a suggestion. My best to you. K.

Julie,

I feel for you because we had sleep issues with both of our kids (boy and girl three year olds).

What I did with my daughter when we went anywhere is I had to bring her stuffed animal and the Winnie the Pooh Music night light thing that attached to her crib. When we got to the hotel, we set up the pack n play, put her crib sheet on the bottom with her little blanket, attached the crib music box and layed her stuffed animal on the bottom so it was similar to her crib. By the time we put her to bed, she was so wiped out from the day that once we turned the music on she went right to sleep. My son ended up sleeping with us (he always slept better if he was cuddled).

Good luck with your trip, hope it goes well :)

K.

I noticed that you wrote that you were leaving "tomorrow"...it's already Sunday. I'll respond just in case you check this out from your destination. We have just finished up a lot of traveling for the summer. I faced the same concern as you. By the way...my two little ones are 2.5 years and 4 months right now. I prepared for the trips by making sure I brought something from home that they liked. Something that I kept in their crib/bed with them. I brought a nightlight for the room and a CD of classical music to play softly. My advice would be to not rely on the "so tired, she'll crash" theory. That always seems to backfire. Try to stick to her schedule as best as possible. Bring her familiar items. Also bring or use something for white noise. It could be the bathroom vent on, a CD playing soft music, or an air purifier. If she's to be in your room with you...strategically set up her pack n play. For instance, don't set it up right next to the door. If there's a walk in closet...you can set it up in there. That has worked wonderfully for me this summer for my 2.5 year old. I pulled the frig and safe out of the walk in closet at the hotel and set it up like it was his own room. I put his music CD in there along with his favorite blankie and stuffed animals inthe pack n play. He loved it. The next hotel I wasn't so lucky with the walk in closet. So, we put a blanket over the top of his crib in the room and told him it was his own tent. I can't see that working very well with a 11 month old because she's probably pulling up if not walking by now. So you can rearrange chairs and furniture to try to make a wall with a blanket or sheet to help block out her own space. Some hotels have music channels that repeat the same soft music. You could try that if you don't have a CD. Make sure no one calls on the hotel phone (let them know) when she is sleeping. Those phones are so loud. Hope you get this in time...hope something helps.