About to have 2 under 2 - The first of which is still a horrible sleeper!

[Wugz22]

Would love to hear about a similar experience. We are moving into a new house were our toddler will have a room right next to our newborn. She'll probably sleep in our bedroom for the first few months, but when she does move into her own room, will it be a problem that our 18 month old has the perpetual habit of waking up crying at least once a night? It's not hysterical and only about 5 minutes - I think most of the time he's still half asleep. He's been doing this forever. I'm wondering how I can make the sleeping situation the best for everyone. I don't want her sleep to be disturbed. Kind of hoping her white noise will be loud enough maybe she won't notice? What did you do?

 

[Button#]

I think it'll depend on your children. Mine don't wake each other up but my friend's LOs do. My DS was an awful sleeper but started sttn at 21 months so it might not be a problem by then anyway. He's always been good with noises, his room overlooks a train station and shares a wall with the neighbours bathroom and stairs, so lots of clanking and banging, but he's never woken up because of noise, just everything else!

 

[MumToEva]

Never worry, it'll be fine. Chances are the baby will hardly notice, even if they are in the next room - my 2 are right next door and never notice when the other is / was up. If you are going to be dealing with the baby overnight, Could you agree with your OH that it's his responsibility to get up and soothe the toddler in his room whenever he wakes at night - keep a baby monitor in the toddler's room, put the listener on his side of the bed and get him to silence it as soon as he gets up to see to the toddler. DS never even noticed when DD woke in the night, even though their rooms are right next door and she will only sleep with the door open.

 

[Googiepie]

I bedshare with my toddler and have my newborn in the room with us in her bassinet. They don't wake each other up. Toddler sleeps through the night usually but has days where she wakes up once or twice crying, it hasn't bothered baby at all. There's a good chance they won't even hear each other or that it'll bother them at all.

 

[star1]

My twins slept in the same cot on holiday and didn't even wake up to the other one screaming their head off, so you might well be ok!

 

[Wugz22]

Thanks all! That's very reassuring to hear. It is true that although DS is a horrible sleeper, it's not because of noises. We currently live in a pretty small house and he doesn't wake up from me banging around in the kitchen or even occasionally I'll hear one of his toys fall or go off in his bedroom without him waking. Hope baby girl is the same!!!

Our new house has the kids' bedrooms on the opposite end of the house from the master bedroom. Which will be nice once their older but not the ideal set up for babies! DH will be on toddler duty once I'm on newborn duty, but we have found that DS goes back to sleep much faster if we don't intervene. A quick 2-3 minute cry and he's back asleep, but if DH or I go in, he wants to hang out and get up. Hoping it just passes and he starts STTN before then anyway! He was STTN for 5 months straight before this weird waking started a few months back!

 

[george83]

I've got two older boys - one 17 months and one 3 years - who were both awful sleepers so while I was pregnant with number 3 I tried to get them in better routines. It worked with ds1 who now sleeps through and rarely is woken by the baby. Ds2 is still not great at nights and does occasionally wake when the baby cries but I think that is simply because he was already beginning to unsettle anyway