Gramma Barb: Child Therapist Extraordinare

Anyone reading this blog probably knows we have had sleeping troubles with Lazlo. Things have been much better for a couple of years, but putting him to bed was still unpleasant because he fought it every single night. No matter how great our day was together, it ended on a grumpy note, which was disheartening for everyone.

When my mom visited we picked her up at the airport and traveled to the South Island, all of us sharing cabins/hotels, so she saw first hand what went on at bed time. Without us asking, she took it upon herself to become Lazlo's personal sleep coach. Almost every night for the month she was here she spent the hour before bed time alone with Lazlo. She talked quietly, kept the lights low, kept him calm, taught him how to relax himself, told him she believed in his ability to cooperate with bed time and promised him a reward in the morning of one mint. During the day she gave him pep talks about bed time and we all piled on the positive feedback. Brad and I had tried many of these things before, but not all at once for an hour before bed every night for a month.

Amazingly, it worked. Even more amazingly, it continued after she left. While Lazlo will never be like Liska, who asks to go to bed when she is tired, he cooperates for bed time almost every night. We still can't believe it. Thanks mom!