Here at PPB, we’re thrilled to have heard from so many of you about how well our schedules are going and we couldn’t be more excited that you’ve joined our “practical parenting” movement! We’ve also gotten a taste of the things you’re totally sick of hearing from those parents around you that are parenting differently. We totally get it. So, this post exists so that you can point the offenders to it — in hopes that it will explain to them why the following statements really get under our skin:

#1 “You got very lucky.”

Practical parents know full well that luck has nothing to do with the successful sleeping routine we’re establishing with our babies. We’ve got a serious plan and we’re rocking it out.  And we know just how hard it is to be consistent, consistently! We’re constantly having to adjust and tweak the schedule to meet the changing needs of our baby and to optimize our baby’s health and happiness.  Consequently, we’re gonna wince a little when someone wants to give luck all the credit.

Related Post: PPB Babyhood Plans: Year One!

#2 “Not all babies will do well on a schedule.”

This may technically be true in that there is always at least one exception to every rule, right?  But let’s say, for example, that a baby is seriously ill and in the NICU — even then, the nurses in the hospital are much, much more likely to put that baby on a schedule (like many of us know firsthand)! The point is that scheduling works, and works extremely well, for 99% of babies. So what’s particularly annoying to us about this statement is that it implies that many a baby will not succeed when the schedules are executed properly. And that is pure poppycock! Because the only reason a baby doesn’t succeed on a good schedule is when it’s not being carried out correctly. This means there are no exceptions made for babies that suffer from colic, gas, a growth spurt, an illness, or an almost anything! It’s the schedules themselves and the consistency with which they’re executed that produce the reliable results we get.

Related Post: Why Use Our PPB Schedules?

#3 “I’m sorry I can’t make it because my baby’s still sleeping!”

This excuse originates in “attachment-parenting” founder, Dr. Sears, and his coined mantra to “never wake a sleeping baby.” It’s become a seriously popular catchphrase in the parenting world. But practical parenting is the polar-opposite of attachment parenting and we know instead to always wake a baby up when nap time’s over. It’s a rare exception when it’s better not to. So, it’s particularly hard for us to hear that other parents’ daily agendas are dependent on how long their babies elect to sleep. To us, that sounds bananas!

Practical parents arrange and rearrange the schedule so that a baby can get an adequate amount of sleep in each day and night. We know that a newborn, for example, will sleep almost all day and stay up almost all night if the decision is left up to him!  So the mere thought of being ready to go somewhere and having to wait for your baby to wake up on his own before being able to even start preparing to head out the door is completely foreign to us. And to expect us to wait around with our baby while you wait on your baby to wake up seems a little rude, don’t you think?

Related Post: Tips for Waking Your Baby

#4 “Some babies just aren’t good sleepers.”

Not true. All babies have the ability to sleep well on a consistent basis. There are very, very few exceptions. Unfortunately, not all babies are given the opportunity to learn how to fall asleep and that’s where this common misconception grew its deep roots.  If parents aren’t training their baby how to sleep, they’re rolling the dice on whether their baby will ever be a good sleeper and in doing so, they are also inhibiting their baby from getting good sleep by establishing bad napping habits! Contrariwise, we practical parents have a plan, work at it, and therefore enjoy results quickly. We know the better sleep our baby gets, the healthier the baby (not to mention the whole family) will be…and that is ultimately why a practical parent is totally sick of hearing this myth.

Related Posts: Napping No-No’s

#5 “Babies shouldn’t be sleep-trained right away.”

Practical parents start sleep-training on the very first night home because we know there is no good reason to wait. We believe we should begin where we want to end…so, if we eventually intend for our baby to sleep in his own crib, in his own nursery, every night then we should start out that way, right away.  We believe it’s our job to teach him how to sleep because odds are he won’t learn to do it well on his own for at least a year, and many times, two years. Do you want your toddler to go through the traumatic experience of being kicked out of the “family bed” after teaching him to need it? No! So naturally we don’t want to delay (even by one night!) giving our babies the precious gift of good sleep.

Related post: PPB Plan: First 3 Weeks