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toy and science stores, or make your own.
—David R
.

A Little Shot
    My dad used to dip his finger in his whiskey and let us suck on it. I think a better idea is to take a shot of whiskey yourself.
—Greg P
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    DAD’S DISCS
    Sleep Songs Recorded by Men, for Men
    Papa’s Lullaby
by Ellipsis Arts
    Daddies Sing Goodnight: A Father’s Collection of Sleepytime Songs
by Sugar Hill
    Somebody’s Daddy: Lullabies for Dad
by Joe Milton
    Daddy’s Lullabies
by Re Bops
    Sing Me to Sleep Daddy
by Brentwood
    Good Night
by Jim Weiss
    Golden Slumbers: A Father’s Lullaby
by Norman Brown, et al.
    Songs from a Parent to a Child
by Art Garfunkel
    Bedtime with the Beatles
by Jason Falkner
    Disney’s Lullaby Album
by Fred Mollin, Greg Diakun, and Disney

Chapter 5

Old Wives’ Tales

    â€œThe only thing worth stealing is a kiss from a sleeping child.”
    â€”Joe Houldsworth
    Did you ever hear the one about getting your baby to sleep by placing an onion near his crib? I can only imagine that the noxious smell of the onion causes him to close his eyes in self-defense! Many old wives’ tales are based on superstition, but some have roots in long-standing knowledge and experience that’s been passed on from generation to generation, and offer well-established advice, such as breast-feeding. While I can’t medically guarantee the success of all of them, some parents and grandparents I know swear by these traditional methods. This chapter includes some of my favorites I’ve heard over the years.
Creeping Cats
    Rumor once had it cats can suck the air from your baby’s mouth. That’s just not possible, but the story persists, probably because cats are curious about the new addition, and they may smell the milk. You don’t have to put Fluffy up for adoption just because you have a new baby, but do make sure not to leave your baby unattended with cats, dogs, or other pets, because they can be unpredictable and even jealous of the new baby.

Thumb-Sucking Update
    In the old days, parents used to bind their babies’ arms so they couldn’t bend them at the elbow and therefore couldn’t suck their thumbs. Parents were concerned that thumb-sucking led to buck teeth and a dependency on the habit. But sucking is a basic need in babies, and most begin sucking their thumbs even in the uterus. Babies have distinct preferences and either choose their thumbs or a pacifier for extra sucking. Studies today indicate that sucking may help prevent SIDS and does not cause dental problems, so let him suck if he wants to.

Turn Up the Volume
    If you’ve ever been hushed around a sleeping baby, that’s due to the conventional thinking that baby needs absolute quiet to get to sleep. But this simply isn’t true for all babies. Some parents swear that their babies fall asleep when it’s noisy—at loud parties, restaurants, or with the TV on. One theory is that if baby is overstimulated, she “shuts down” and goes to sleep, so absolute quiet may not work for her.

Swing Fast and Low
    While many people recommend that you swing your baby back and forth to get him to sleep, some parents used to be a little too vigorous in the past, and shook their babies to quiet them. Now we know that this may cause Shaken Baby Syndrome, a disorder that can cause brain damage, so you need to be careful when swinging or moving your baby.

Upright Is Right
    Most parents are more comfortable feeding Baby while holding her sideways across the abdomen. But Grandma used to recommend holding baby upright while feeding her, saying it helped her process the food better, and therefore sleep better. While this position may be more awkward, it’s not harmful, and it just might work.

Breast Milk Is Better
    For a while, women were encouraged to bottle-feed their babies because their milk might not be rich enough or plentiful enough, so many mothers stopped breast-feeding and switched to bottles.