our arsenal

I thought it'd be helpful for others who might be dealing with similiar to see what all we've tried to help Katie. I'm going to write a bit about them, what we thought of each and whether or not it worked for us.

One of the first things we got was Harvey Karp's The Happiest Baby on the Block. This man is like a baby whisperer. It is absolutely amazing how quickly and easily he gets babies to stop crying. He covers the 5 S's. While this wasn't an all out cure, there are definite aspects that helped and continue to help.

One of our problems was the fact that Katie apparently was a little incredible hulk. She could break out of a swaddle like you wouldn't believe. We purchased some of these. They are quick and easy to use, but they don't swaddle the legs tight. She is also able to manage to get an arm out of it sometimes. What we found most effective is the double swaddle. The are several slight variations on how to accomplish this, but the basic idea is to pin their arms down with the first blanket and then regular swaddle with the second. She has now been breaking out of this because she is getting bigger and we need larger blankets. Swaddling has been one of our most powerful tools. She still sleeps swaddled, although I look forward to the day when she'll sleep without it.

to be continued..