I am lucky because my son has always been a great sleeper, unless he's teething or sick. At 8 weeks old I started having him sleep in his room, I would give him a bottle and rock him. He would either fall asleep right away or I could put him in his crib and he would fall right to sleep.

He didn't really wake up until he started teething. I would give him Tylenol, maybe a bottle, and then he would go back to sleep.

I think being consistent and having a routine is key.

Absolutely Jennifer (should we call this the Jen Community since all three of us who started writing first have that name?) A big part of what I wrote in the article was the importance of routine and consistency. We did the same stuff with both kids and my oldest (girl) was sleeping through the night at 3 months but it took my boy 11 months to pull 10 hours.

It's so funny because right after I sent my message last night, my son woke up and started crying!!! I started laughing of course, but only for a second. He woke up at 9:30 and then 10:00. I think he may have been hot. We opened his window and he finally went back to sleep after I held him a while.

We have definitely started the Jen community ;)

That's funny. Yes, right after I wrote my article, my son started waking a couple of times a night and I started to wonder if I jinxed myself. Turned out he was teething again and had an ear infection, the poor little dude. I think it really does take an amount of just being in tune with your little ones as well as the routine and consistency.

I have a question. So my little guy falls asleep really easily...in my arms. We play, have dinner, bath, then snuggle with bottle and BAM...he's out and I put him to bed. I know it is ideal to put them to bed sleepy but awake - but this is SO EASY...am I setting myself up for future failure here?

With my first daughter we rocked her until she was sound asleep. I started transitioning out of that with her naps, and then she got used to just being put down. With my second daughter we did the cry it out, mostly out of necessity. She wanted to be held, standing up, in the middle of the night. There's only so long you can really do that. She hated to be swaddled and rocked, so it was our only choice. After about a month she fell into her new routine and is now a champion sleeper (at 9months).

My sons are grown now so I have to think back in time. They are 22 and 19. We also kept them on a routine. Nightly baths before bed were also very relaxing and a couple of books(sometimes stacks of books) before bed. I breastfed my youngest son Joshua for the first year. It seems he always fell asleep while eating and then I'd put him in his crib. I never let the boys sleep in our bed for very long. My first son Tony cried alot. It turned out he had a milk allergy, he couldn't have breast milk or regular formula. He ended up on a soy based formula. I also used homeopathic teething tablets for teething. They work great and are very safe. I have many new moms in my life right now and I know all the tylenol recalls can be very scary. Heligirl I love your profile picture!

Nice to meet you all. If we've already met I apologize now. It's hard to keep track of everyone in all the different forums.

I nursed my son (now 9) until he was 10 months. He was 10 pounds when he was born so he was always a champion eater and sleeper.

Carol, I too used Hyland's homeopathic teething tabs - a total life saver, especially when he was cutting several teeth at one time. We would also use is Calms Forte and/or some chamomile tea to drink or in his bath. As he grew older we've used a consistent bedtime and routine to keep him on track.

I love remembering his sleeping baby face. :)

Oh my, perhaps I should NOT chime in here lest I discourage anyone 

My daughter was 4 years old before she slept through the night. She was born 6 weeks early and was a very high-need, high-touch baby and we just did what worked for us. I'm sure it would have made some crazy but then I've always believed that's why she picked me - because she knew I would / could meet those needs and we'd both learn a lot along the way... and boy have we!