Five Baby Sleep Tips and Free Giveaway
Guest Blog Post
When baby isn’t sleeping well, it can wreak havoc on the whole household. Not only is your infant or toddler probably cranky, but you are too. We are all more effective and patient parents when we are well-rested and your baby or toddler will be able to learn new skills and be happier when he’s getting the rest he needs so much.
Here are five baby sleep tips that can help your whole family get the rest they deserve and need:
- 1. Sleep Routines – Children thrive on routine and with a proper nap and bedtime routine, your child will begin to know what to expect and likely start welcoming the next part of his day with open arms.
A typical nighttime sleep routine might include diaper change, a quiet game, breastfeeding/bottle/cup (for babies younger than 1 or 2), brushing teeth, potty (if applicable), book (or 2), singing and cuddling, and then lights out. A nap routine is usually very similar to the bedtime routine, but usually shorter (about 10 minutes). - 2. Early Bedtime – An early bedtime is often crucial to a good night’s sleep for your baby or toddler under 2 years old. When babies and toddlers are overtired, he will have more difficulty falling asleep and, most importantly, staying asleep and often wake up too early in the morning. It’s counter-intuitive, but an early bedtime will lead to a more restful sleep and a later waking in the morning very often. A typical bedtime is between 6-8 p.m., but mostly based on when the last nap ends and it is important not to allow too much wake-time. When a baby does not nap well, usually bedtime needs to be even earlier.
- 3. Naps – The better your child naps during the day, the better they sleep at night. Again, this is counter-intuitive, but the better he naps, the less likely he will be overtired and can settle down and sleep better at night. A good nap is at least one hour. Moving sleep (such as in the car, stroller or swing) is not as restorative and should be avoided, if possible. Short naps are common up through 6 months of age and thereafter may need to be encouraged. You may be interested in knowing ways to help your baby nap or toddler nap.
- 4. Sleep Associations – We all associate certain things when we fall asleep such as sleeping on a pillow. If you woke up during the night and your pillow was gone, you would most likely have a hard time going back to sleep. If you become your child’s “pillow” such that she needs to call out for you to “find her pillow” whether it’s a pacifier, bottle, nursing, rocking, etc., she will have a much harder time sleeping through the night. If she associates going to sleep a certain way, when she wakes up periodically through sleep cycles (that we all have!), she will be able to go back to sleep, because she won’t be “looking” for anything. Sleep associations are a key problem for babies having trouble sleeping through the night or napping well.
- 5. Lovey – It is sometimes helpful to introduce a baby lovey that your baby can find comfort in while sleeping in his crib/bed. A lovey can really be anything that comforts your baby, but you also need to be safe. Any item in the crib or bassinet, before your baby is at least one year old, should be smaller than his head and should not have anything that can come off that he can choke on. I usually recommend a small blanket that he can also suck on (particularly if he does not take a pacifier or you wish to break the habit). One of Ambajam’s Mini Cuddle Up baby blankets is a perfect size for younger babies and the Cuddle Up baby blanket for toddlers.
Whether you co-sleep or your baby has been in a crib since birth or whether you breastfeed or formula feed, your baby’s sleep is essential to her growth and development. Sleep deprivation has been shown to lead to obesity, behavior problems, and other health problems. But, sleep strategies that work for you may not work for everyone and what works for many people might not work for you! Everyone’s situation is unique, but when chronic sleep deprivation gets the best of you, it’s very difficult to even think straight never mind come up with a plan you can implement. Beginning with the five items above is a great start!
To help your baby sleep, Ambajam and Pick Nick’s Brain are hosting a co-giveaway! You have a chance to win a Cuddle Up baby blanket (Jumbo excluded) or a copy of Pick Nick’s Brain’s Help Your Child Sleep Step-by-Step Guide. Simply enter a comment on this post about your baby or toddler’s sleep by Monday, September 15th, 2008. Sleep tight! *Bonus*If you help spread the word and link to this post and to Nicole’s blog you’ll receive an extra 5 entries. You must link to your post in your comment. Winner will be announced Wed 9/17/2008.
Nicole Johnson is the owner of Pick Nick’s Brain - www.picknicksbrain.com - specializing in sleep products and consulting services for children. Nicole is a wife, mother of two, Full-time work-at-home IT consultant and now, an entrepreneur. She attended UC Berkeley where she received her B.A. in Computer Science and received her MBA from Ohio State University after the birth of her first son. She received her Master’s in Sleep Deprivation when her first son did not sleep and made it her mission to help other parents help their children learn healthy sleep habits, too.
Happy Birthday Cupcake Tee
Happy Wordless Wednesday
See more baby and toddler tees!
WW participants receive free shipping - use WWFS50 at checkout.
Erica Shaffer to Judge September’s Cutest Ambajamer Contest
We are so excited to be working with Erica Shaffer and that she has agreed to judge our “Little Ambajamers” photo contest this September. Erica has been seen in many shows including:
- CSI Miami
- Charmed
- The Young and the Restless
- Las Vegas
- and more…
Erica’s daughter Amadora is seen here enjoying her Ambajam cuddle up baby blanket.
This contest is open to babies either wearing Ambajam baby clothes or cuddling with an Ambajam blanket or quillow. We are looking forward to seeing all the cute entries. Contest winner will be announced the first week in October and the lucky winner will take home a $25 Ambajam gift card.
So, start sending in your entries so Erica has a lot of fun photos to pick from! Email your photos to info(at)ambajam(dot)com no later than 9/30/08.
Seven Dogs and a Baby Review
We’ve been reviewed! At Ambajam we rely greatly on word of mouth by our customers and blog friends to help spread the word about all things Ambajam. We just had another review posted by Angela over at Seven Dogs and a Baby. Angela has a son Connor and her blog is all about things that are baby related and she did an awesome review for Ambajam.
Oh and btw- she does have 7 dogs. Seven Chihuahuas (really 1 is a min pin, but doesn’t know it)!
Thanks again Angela for helping us spread the Ambajam love across the blogosphere!
Hip and Trendy Baby and Toddler Tees
Happy Wordless Wednesday
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Softest Baby Blankets Ever
They are cuddled up in their cuddle up blankets!
WW participants receive free shipping - use WWFS50 at checkout.
Cute Baby Photo Contest Winner!
A big thank you to Katja from Skimbaco for judging our first ever “Cute Baby Photo Contest”. For those of you who have seen all the entries you know Katja’s job was a tough one! So many cute, sweet and funny photos!
Well, Katja has made her decision and we are delighted to announce that Baby Zoe is the winner of our photo contest!
We were really excited to receive so many entries and had such fun reviewing all the photos and reading the stories behind the photos.
Thank you to all of you who participated in this contest. Since we don’t like anyone to go home empty handed we will be sending out a little “thank you” to all our photo contestants. Keep an eye out in your inbox for a message from us later this week.
Finally, if you are in the mood for another contest come check out the one we have just launched in conjunction with our friend Dawn at Coming to a Nursery Near You. All you need to do is guess how many gumballs are in the jar and you just might win a $75 Ambajam gift certificate. Click here for further details on our gumball guessing contest.
Mile High “T” Party!
We are excited to join a number of other local Colorado T-shirt designers in the first ever “Mile High T Party” benefiting The Children’s Hospital Foundation. Featuring lots of fun, food, tea and “tees” this should be a great event. Topping it all off will be a kid’s t-shirt fashion show which is bound to be entertaining with a bunch of 1-5 year olds walking the catwalk!
The Mile High T Party is the inspiration of our friend Olivia Omega Logan. In January 2007, Olivia’s son Gabriel contracted RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus). At 11 months old, he was admitted to The Children’s Hospital in Parker, CO for treatment over five days. Shortly after Gabriel’s release from the hospital, Olivia left her career in marketing to care for him and to launch her infant and toddler T-shirt line, Baby Candy. Since his treatment, Gabriel, Olivia and the rest of the family have been great supporters of The Children’s Hospital. The Mile High T Party aims to raise awareness of and support for all the important work done by the doctors, nurses and staff of Children’s Hospital.
Gabriel will join Holland, my good friend’s 2 1/2 year old daughter (a twin who underwent heart surgery at Children’s Hospital recently) as the Ambajam models at the fashion show. Holland and her twin brother Will have been modeling for Ambajam since they were wee ones. They have become great promoters of Ambajam as Will won’t sleep without his cuddle-up blankets (all 10 of them!) and Holland is obsessed with frogs thanks to all her Ambajam froggie tees!
Anyway, we’ll be sure to get some photos at the show and post them so you can see our adorable models. In the meantime, here are Gabriel and Holland - they are going to make such a cute pair strutting down the catwalk!
See below for more details about the event.
Wordless Wednesday
Cute Baby Photo Contest Update
Well our contest has finally come to a close and it’s time for Katja to pick a winner. Not an easy task as you can see from some of the entries below. Check back by August 10th to find out who Ambajam’s cutest baby photo winner is. Thanks to everyone who participated. We had a blast looking at all these cutie pies. The winner will be notified by email.
Special thanks again to Katja from Skimbaco for agreeing to judge the contest for us.
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- 1 year old Jasper.
He just turned one last week. He loves anything with wheels and his big sister.
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- 6 month old Sienna.
Six month old Sienna took a break from playing to take some adorable pics (but only for a minute).
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- 17 month old Hunter.
Hunter was climbing a gate at his grandmother's with some other cousins. His mom allowed him to climb to the top. She was both proud and terrified!
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- 14 month old Nathan.
Born at 29 weeks weighing only 2 pounds, now at 14 months & 20 pounds is on his way to church!!!
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- 11 month old Abigail.
She was crawling around and came in for a close up.
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- 4 month old Liam Oliver.
Liam Oliver posing.
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- 15 month old Francesca.
Francesca was so excited about the flag and her new dress.
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- 5 month old Kendall.
She is wearing her Big D's (Grandfather's Daniel Boone Cap).
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- 8 month old Grady.
Grady smiling.
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- 12 month old Emma.
Emma is 12 months old and this picture was taken at bath time.
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- 4 month old Alan.
Alan smiling.
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- 18 month old Gracin.
He has the craziest hair of any baby his mom's seen, it goes all over and curls in the back.
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- 8 month old Grady.
He loves to play and flirt.
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- 2 week old Josh.
Grandma was making faces at him and since he couldn't smile yet he made this confused face. It was a priceless moment.
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- 8 month old Chloe.
Chloe loves to be outside and to pose for mama's camera. This was the first time she had been outside, on the grass by herself and actually smiled for a picture!
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- 24 month old Lilyth.
Mom's favorite pic of her cutie pie.
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- 18 month old Samantha.
This picture was taken in her kitchen. She likes to take all the tupperware out of drawers and tries to wear them.
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- 15 month old Esme.
Esmé at 15 months, depicting Joy in an African Rock Pile.
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- 10 month old Joey.
Joey smiling.
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- 7 month old Jonah.
This is Jonah, at about 7 months. Everything was so wondrous and amazing, his eyes would get so wide and bright! When he wasn't eating the grass, he'd just look with awe at the world!
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- 11 month old Paige.
Paige (aka Pea) eating corn on the cob for the first time.
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- 6 month old Sienna.
This is baby Sienna. She's 6 months old. She just got finished taking a bath here.
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- 6 month old Sienna.
Sienna is 6 months old and she loves helping mommy around the house! She's such a big girl, she's already standing up all by herself!
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- 20 month old Morgan.
Morgan is 20 months old and the picture was snapped at her big brother's soccer game. Her parents were laughing because she was posing like a little model.
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- 2 year old Stephanie
Here's a picture of my two year old daughter Stephanie. This pic was taken when she woke up and cried because I'm not beside her. As her mom, I think she has the most beautiful teardrop.
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- 15 month old Francesca looking very patriotic!
Here is a photo of Francesca, who just turned 15 months old. We wanted to make a patriotic scheme photo for the 4th of July. Francesca was so excited about the flag and her new dress that we got many nice photos, we are sending you the happiest one:)
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- Eric sleeping
This is a picture of my son Eric. He fell asleep while we were watching tv. He's sleeping like an angel.
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- Mom 29 weeks 3 days preggo with Helana
Helana - Sneak Peak at our Angel age: I'm 29 weeks 3 days preggo in this picture taken 7/2/2008, she's due September 14th, 2008 (scheduled to be born c-section on 9/9/2008 We wanted a sneak peak at our little angel so we went to a 4d ultrasound imaging studio and this is just 1 of many beautiful shots we got of our baby girl.
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- 16 month old Gabriel - King of Toyland
Gabriel - King of Toyland The story behind this picture is: I caught my son atop his big blue throne (actually its a big blue bucket, we use it for his toys) and he was just a grinnin' at his victory of being the King of Toyland!
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- 2 year old Deeder
When his mom was pregnant with his sister she worried that she would be too busy with her to pay Deeder due attention; this photograph symbolizes the new balance in her relationship with Deeder. Little sister is always in the picture and yet they do have special moments just between the two of them.
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- 2 month old Carly
This picture captures that super power of hers perfectly; she’s enjoying a deep satisfying yawn—one that only a young child can pull off without having to say, “excuse me.”
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- 21 month old Kenley
She was in the car waiting for her favorite cousin Jeneva to join us. Jeneva came out and surprised her by hiding behind the car.
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- 2 and a half year old Addie
Addie close up.
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- 2 and a half year old Addie
She thinks she is Ariel (The Little Mermaid) and every time she leaves the house she plucks and tucks one of her mom's orange daisies from the pot and puts it behind her ear.
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- 1 year old Colin.
Colin, on his first birthday. He received a Retro Rocket by Radio Flyer, and he thought that that was the coolest, most exciting toy EVER! He had so much fun climbing on and off of Rocket and clapped with glee everytime he pushed a button to hear "3-2-1 BLASTOFF"
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- 10 month old Jason.
Showing mommy how big he is.
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- 6 month old Zoe.
Just a Sunday in the exersaucer at Grandma's house.
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- 6 month old Zoe.
Just a Sunday in the exersaucer at Grandma's house.
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- 22 month old Truett
He is a real cowboy. He was intensely watching his 14 yr old brother shoe a horse. Perhaps studying to do it himself one day!
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- 2 year old Thomas.
He is a natural in the water and while he was at the beach in May with his parents he repeatedly threw himself in the pool even though he doesn't know how to swim. By the end of the week he learned!
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- 16 month old Sophia.
Wearing an adorable patriotic tutu & onsesie that her mom made for her. :)
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- 16 month old Sarina.
Sarina gets a kick out of playing with the mail box.
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- 3 month old Myleigh.
Myleigh posing.
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- 3 month old Myleigh.
Myleigh happy.
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- 3 month old Myleigh.
Myleigh smiling.
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- 3 month old Myleigh.
Myleigh holding a flower.
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- 21 month old Morgan and 6 month old Blake.
Mom was just trying to get a picture of them together, when they started laughing.
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- 5 month old Lyric.
She was traveling through Europe visiting her daddy's family and caught this great picture.
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- 8 month old James.
His daddy took the picture. James loves his evening bathtime
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- 7 month old Jake.
Jake. He is 7 months old and this was just taken last week -- it was his first time ever in the pool ;)
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- 18 month old Jacqueline.
Jacqueline is 18 months old (Born Christmas morning 2006) This photo was taken after she had been teased by her 16 year old sister. Every time her mom sees it she just wants to hug her!
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- 10 month old Jackson.
His parents say he is the happiest baby and seems to make everyone smile! He will be 10 months old in August!
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- 6 month old Jeremy.
This photo is of Jeremy, 6 1/2 months old. This picture is of the first time his parents gave him avocado to eat. They call it "Inspector Avocado." (They think he looks like a French detective with the avocado moustache.) We think so too.
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- 4 month old Haven.
At Wal-Mart shopping for some toys and her mom pressed a toy that played music and she started dancing and laughing in her car seat.
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- 1 year old Hannah.
Hannah Jane will be 1 on July 25th, she received that flag at her very first parade.
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- 4 day old Melody.
Melody was just a few days old and her mom took her to the park. She slept the whole time.
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- 19 month old Delaney.
Delaney, the sweet baby babywearer wearing her doll, Panga. She was about 19 months old in this photo and thoroughly enjoyed wearing her little baby while her mom was wearing her little brother.
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- 15 month old Charlotte.
This is Charlotte, aka 'charlie.' She's 15 months old was pretending to "drive" her car. Charlie had just finished eating lunch, so her face was a bit messy. But, that smile!Those eyes! :)
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- 6 month old Cameron.
Cameron posing in his blue bunny ears.
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- 8 month old Caden playing with his toy.
Caden is holding his favorite toy.
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- 6 month old Buckly.
Baby girl Buckley.
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- 7 month old Bo posing on sheep skin.
Bo posing on sheep skin.
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- 7 month old Bo being messy with chocolate syrup.
Bo having some fun eating chocolate syrup.
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- 7 month old Bo posing.
Bo posing for a picture for his mom's blog header.
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- 18 month old Andrew splashing in a puddle of water.
Andrew is 18 months old and had a wonderful time splashing in the puddle from his neighbor's over watering.
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- 18 month old Andrew splashing in a puddle.
Andrew is 18 months old and had a wonderful time splashing in the puddle from his neighbor's over watering.
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- 18 month old Alexandra riding her horse.
Alexandra loves riding her horse.
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- 10 month old Alex being a messy eater.
Alexander, or Alex as we call him, is 10 months old, and the messiest little eater his mom has have ever known!
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- 1 year old Aaron eating cake.
Aaron is 1 year old. This is an attempt at a "trash the cake" session in his kitchen for his birthday pictures. He had so much fun, and this nose crinkle with his head tilted upwards is a classic face he makes when he's being silly.
