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Attachment Parenting: Nurturing a Secure Attachment with your Baby
That tiny little hand wrapped around your thumb. That indescribable scent of that downy-soft head. That feeling of warm, sweet breath against your skin. The sound of the little sighs and coos. As a first time mother, I couldn't get enough of holding my baby. I was amazed at how how deeply connected I felt to my child, how powerful my maternal instinct was, how strongly I desired to be near and nurture my little one.
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Attachment Theory: An Introduction
Have you heard that old advice: "It doesn't really matter, a baby won't remember that anyway"? It's ok, the baby won't remember being separated from you after birth. Don't fret, a baby won't remember crying alone in the crib for an hour or two. Don't worry, the baby won't remember that you left for that weekend getaway. Well, research has shown that while the baby may not consciously remember those moments of separation, they will affect her. How we interact with our newborns does matter, and, in fact, it matters a great deal.
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Attachment Parenting: How We Got There
These are some things I believed about myself and my children before I became a mom: I would breastfeed on a schedule, for my children needed to adhere to my routines and schedule. My children would sleep in our room for a short time, then sleep in their own room, and we would sleep-train them to sleep through the night. My children would never be allowed in on our bed, for our bed was sacred. I would discipline my children firmly and physically when needed. Then, I became a mom. My children were breastfed on demand their first year of life and well beyond. My children slept in our…
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Co-Sleeping: FAQs
If you would have told me five years ago that we would wake up in bed with two toddlers, I would have laughed, then probably cried. Our bed was a sacred space for the two of us; a place where we found a safe haven when we were at our most vulnerable, a place of rest and rejuvenation. It was not a place for little children. Or so I thought. We are a Co-Sleeping Family Co-sleeping (more specifically, bed-sharing) became extremely valuable for us because our firstborn was not what people would call a “good sleeper.” His frequent nighttime wakings and our decision not to sleep-train is ultimately what led…
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Co-Sleeping: Why We Do It
When I was pregnant the first time, I had expectations about where and how my baby would sleep. I had set up a pack-n-play across the room from us, a good 15 feet away from where I rested my head so I could easily access him in the middle of the night. Our baby would sleep in there a few weeks, then, before he got too used to being in our room, I would transfer him to his crib in the room next door, where he would sleep blissfully through the night. Oh, sweet naivety. A Brief Overview of Our Experience The night of Levi’s delivery, he slept…
