If your newborn falls asleep every single time you feed them, whether that's at the breast, the bottle, or somewhere in between, and someone's told you that you're creating a bad habit, I want you to exhale for a second. Feeding to sleep in a newborn isn't a mistake you're making. It's one of the most biologically ordinary things a brand-new baby can do. There's so much noise out there about not letting your baby rely on feeding to fall asleep, as if a two-week-old, three-wee

If your 5 month-old baby suddenly started waking up at night after months of sleeping well, or started taking very short naps, there's a good chance what's actually going on is a nap transition. But instead of starting there, I want to show you the part most sleep content skips: how I actually figured that out with a baby I worked with recently. I don't diagnose from a label and hand over a fixed plan. I watch, I test small changes, and I let the baby's real reactions tell me

If your calm, happy baby turns into a completely different, inconsolable little person every day right around dinnertime, you're not imagining it. This predictable stretch of witching hour baby fussiness has a name, and it's more common than you think. What Actually Causes Witching Hour Baby Fussiness The late afternoon and early evening are, for most babies, the tail end of a very long day of processing the world: sounds, faces, movement, feeding, all of it. By early evening

"Just let them cry it out, they'll be fine." If you've heard some version of this from a parent, in-law, or well-meaning friend, you already know how loaded that sentence feels. You're exhausted, you're doing your best, and now you also need to figure out how to respond to cry it out advice without a holiday dinner turning into a debate. Why This Advice Comes Up So Often Most of the people offering this advice aren't trying to undermine you. They parented in a different era,

Parents often come to me looking for the one technique that will finally fix bedtime. What surprises most of them is that the answer usually isn't a technique at all. It's the bedtime routine for toddlers itself, done the same way, in the same order, every single night. Why Predictability Beats Tactics A young child's sense of safety comes largely from knowing what happens next. When bedtime looks different every night, depending on who's home, how tired everyone is, or what

Somewhere between 12 and 18 months, most families face the same confusing stretch: the morning nap starts pushing the afternoon nap later and later, bedtime gets harder, and you start wondering if it's time for dropping to one nap. This transition trips up a lot of parents because it rarely happens overnight. It's messy, and that's normal. Signs Your Baby Might Be Ready Before making the switch, look for a pattern, not just one hard day. Signs it might be time include: The mo

If your baby was sleeping fairly well and suddenly started screaming the second you leave the room, welcome to the 8 month sleep regression and separation anxiety combo. And no, you didn't do anything wrong. Your baby just learned something enormous: you still exist even when they can't see you. What Is Object Permanence, and Why Does It Wreck Sleep? Somewhere between 8 and 10 months, babies develop object permanence, the understanding that people and things continue to exist

Your toddler was laughing five minutes ago. Now he's on the floor, red-faced, screaming because you cut his sandwich into triangles instead of squares. If you've ever typed "toddler tantrums" into a search bar at 11 PM, here's the short answer: you are not raising a manipulative or spoiled child. You are raising a small human whose brain is still under construction. What Is Actually Happening During a Tantrum? A toddler's brain is split, loosely speaking, into two parts that

If your day is starting before the sun does, you are not imagining it, and you are definitely not alone. So many moms tell me the same thing: "She goes to bed fine, sleeps through most of the night, and then is wide awake at 5 AM ready to play." It's exhausting, and it can feel like nothing you try makes a difference. Let's talk about why your baby might be waking up too early, because once you understand it, it stops feeling so random. First, Let's Clear Something Up Early m

Today I had a playdate with a friend who is also a nanny. She was telling me how every time she tries to put her toddler down, she dims the lights, turns on the sound machine, and creates a cozy environment. Yet, instead of calming down, he keeps running around, playing, and it takes him forever to fall asleep. She also shared that after this struggle, he’s been taking short, fragmented naps—which made total sense to me. So, why does a child keep playing and doesn't settle fo

The reason why your baby might still seem overtired after a good night's sleep is something I’ve learned through years of experience: sleep is cumulative. I’d like to share a real-life recent example involving a baby I’ve been watching. Before we dive in, I want to clarify that it is never my intention to judge parents. I am a specialist, and you don’t need to be. I often notice subtle cues that parents might miss, but this is certainly not a reason for them, or you, to feel

If you feel like you were finally starting to get the hang of this whole “parenting” thing, and then suddenly... bam! Your baby starts waking up every hour, you’ve probably hit the dreaded “sleep regression" (that I actually like to call sleep transition since it's part of the development and not a real regression). Don’t panic. While it feels like a major setback, these sleep transitions are actually a sign that your little one’s brain is doing some pretty amazing work. What

Does your baby wake up crying just 45 minutes after you put them down? You’re not alone! It can be so frustrating to finally get your little one to sleep, only to hear them crying before you’ve even had a chance to sit down and relax. The truth is: this is completely normal, and it's what we call a "false start." Understanding why this happens at different ages can help you make small changes to get everyone better sleep. How do baby's sleep cycles work? To understand why fal

Does your baby only sleeps while being held? Do you feel like you've already tried everything and nothing seems to work? I'm here today to give you the ultimate solution for this very common sleep challenge without leaving your baby to cry alone. Why does a baby sometimes only sleeps while being held? There are a couple of reasons why a baby might refuse to sleep in the crib, which is why there's no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to child sleep. Some possibilities c

One of the most common questions I hear from parents is: "What should I do when my baby cries? Should I pick them up immediately?" Right from the start, it’s important to acknowledge that there is no "one-size-fits-all" answer. However, when we understand the purpose of crying in infant development, we can respond with more confidence and empathy. Common Reasons Why Babies Cry Crying is a baby’s primary form of communication. Since they haven't developed language yet, they us

Most parents are familiar with the "fussy" stage of overtiredness, but there is a hidden phase that often goes unnoticed. Sometimes, a baby can become so exhausted that they suddenly appear happy, alert, and full of energy. This can be misleading, causing parents to believe their baby simply "doesn't need as much sleep as others." In reality, this is known as a Second Wind. A second wind is a burst of energy triggered when a baby has missed their natural sleep window, especia

Attachment theory was first developed between 1950 and 1960 by John Bowlby. He studied the emotional bonds between infants and their primary caregivers, showing that a child's early relationships shape their social, emotional, and cognitive development for years to come. Later, Mary Ainsworth expanded on Bowlby's work with her famous "Strange Situation" study, identifying four primary patterns of attachment: secure, anxious, avoidant, and disorganized. Of these four, secure a

Newborns look so fragile that it's easy to assume they're helpless. But they actually arrive with five innate abilities that are essential for their survival, wired in specifically because a newborn's brain is still so limited in what it can do. Dr. Harvey Karp, pediatrician and author of The Happiest Baby on the Block, explains that these reflexes exist precisely because the brain prioritizes only the most essential functions in those first weeks. These aren't just random tw

If your newborn cries for hours and nothing seems to help, it's easy to think, "My baby has colic." But what if most of that crying isn't actually caused by colic or tummy pain at all? According to pediatrician Dr. Harvey Karp, author of The Happiest Baby on the Block, in most cases, what parents call "colic" isn't a medical problem, it's a comfort and support problem. Your baby's intense crying might be less about gas or digestion and more about adjusting to life outside the

Maybe you've heard that exposing your baby to bright lights and noise can help them adapt to different environments, so they can nap anywhere, anytime. While this might sound practical (and let's be honest, incredibly convenient for busy parents), it's important to understand when this may actually be appropriate, and when it can backfire and disrupt sleep instead. In the first 2–3 months, babies don't yet produce consistent melatonin, the hormone that regulates our internal