Thanks, Brew27:
Mushy foods began around five months, and now she's fussy about anything that doesn't require chewing or have flavor. Loves salmon, beef, pork - etc. She never batted an eye on her sleep schedule (it didn't change a bit). The pediatrician told us that a little tough love will go a long way ... two months ago ...
I know there will be many decisions that my wife and I both must agree on, so even if I have to yield now, it'll serve me well in the future on things I don't want for our daughter - but, isn't a regular sleep schedule healthy for the baby?
This is my wife's second child, so she is no beginner. But her first slept through the night after solid (mushy) foods were introduced. Now she's just counting on mother nature figuring it out. I'm not ALL about the tough love, but I have real problems with blind love. There are character traits in her first that I can see are a result of this approach and I don't want them for our (her) second.
I dunno?! Anyway, thanks for the reply.
There's no science nor is there a manual for raising a baby... a lot of it is knowing that your child is an individual and what suits the individual. If you take the individuals needs and wants and factor in what you and your wife want to teach the child you can come up with actions that are based on how you want to raise your little one. Things like sleep habits and feeding schedules are huge for an infant. On one hand your must make sure they are well fed and well loved... no doubt. But on the other hand you don't want to teach them early on that mommy and daddy come running every time they let out a howl of displeasure. I know that, for me, I learned quickly the different between the "I'm hungry" cry, the "I'm tired" cry, the "I'm lonely" cry and the "I'm mad at you" cry. If you can distinguish between these four basic crying fits it will go a long way to a more peaceful home as the little one gets not so little. And experience counts for a lot when dealing with little ones. But it's not everything. The stronger your bond with your baby, the better you'll be able to know what they want and encourage them in the right direction. A parent who has raised four children poorly is not in a better position to be a parent than one who is on number one.
And it sounds like she has a good healthy appetite and love for food -- which is awesome! Two out of three of mine were like that... and to be honest, I think the one that isn't was too spoiled as a baby with eating only what he wanted to eat. My, now, ex-wife would keep putting food in front of him until he chose what he wanted instead of just putting the cheerios down and that's what's for eatin'...
It's great to hear she's sleeping through the night now!
