Baby Sleep Positions | My Mills Baby

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Okay, Heidi isn’t the most cheerful of babies. In fact, if she’s not asleep, she’s crying. Her brother (Dexter) might have learned to tune this out, but it’s well known that a mother’s brain responds differently to a crying baby. Although I like to think both Craig and I are really patient people, but after two full hours of Heidi’s cries, it’s very easy to get frustrated.

The one thing that has worked for Heidi that didn’t for Dexter, is swaddling. I put this down to the fact I’ve tried harder to breastfeed Heidi than I did Dex, and where is hasn’t gone to plan, she’s probably a bit miffed she isn’t held as closely as she used to be.

So when we kitted out her out with the Love to Swaddle UP sleepbag, the results were pretty spectacular. Brain-child of the Love to Dream family, this sleepsuit has been my star product since Heidi’s arrived.

What Love to Dream say:

The Love to Swaddle UP keeps newborns snug and secure without restricting movement or making them too warm. The unique “wing” design helps babies to sleep in a natural ‘arms up’ position, prevents scratching and calms the startle reflex

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First things first, when Heidi is in it she resembles a little grey slug. Inevitably she does still try to suck her fingers but quickly drops the idea when she figures out her fingers aren’t quite so tasty when encased in cotton. 040 All Snuggled UP: A Love to Swaddle UP Review

This aside she is so peaceful in her Love to Swaddle UP. It keeps her on her back which is great as otherwise she has a tendency to sleep on her side (which I’m all too aware is one fidget away from rolling onto her tummy). The fact that it ensures she’s completely covered also means I’m not worrying she’s kicked off her blanket in the night and might get cold.

The sleepsuit is also packed full of clever features. The attention to detail is really impressive and I love the concealed zip hood under her chin to prevent the zip from irritating her skin. Similarly, the Love to Swaddle UP is also entirely seam-free on the inside so there’s no danger of a cold zip coming into contact with her delicate skin. The two way zip is also invaluable for bum changes when she’s asleep - I spend so long cradling her to sleep that I hate the thought of undoing all that effort by changing her when she’s nearly there.

Style-wise I actually really like the simplicity of it. I hate busy patterns and character fabric so the simple grey (with grey piping around the seams) is much more to my taste. Also available in pink, blue, cream and white it’s lovely and clean-looking. The cotton material is also unbelievably soft and shows no signs of bobbling at all. If your baby has sensitive skin there’s also a Organic version.

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The best thing by far is the fit. Heidi might have long legs but she’s actually really dinky. At just 7lbs she’s really skinny and looks a little like Mr Burns from The Simpsons with tons of baggy skin and frail little bones. The Love to Swaddle UP has lots of leg room but is really snug around her body compared to other sleeping bags I’ve tried. This means it keeps its shape whilst Heidi sleeps and there’s no rolls of uncomfortable fabric behind her back. By keeping her so compact it also simulates the womb and promotes prolonged sleep.

Whilst I’m discussing how snug it is, it’s worth pointing out that the Stage 1 Love to Swaddle UP is recommended for baby’s aged newborn to 4 months (or up to 11lbs). I have no reason at all to doubt this will be the case for Heidi-bum as she’s so dinky, but I would question whether a 10lb baby who is gaining weight steadily would fit in the bag up until 4 months. The Love to Swaddle UP is supposed to be worn snugly but not tight.

My only other niggle would be the recommendation that you need two of the Love to Swaddle UPs in your nursery drawer. Heidi has been in hers for almost 3 weeks now and it still smells, looks and feels amazing. Okay, she may well be in less layers of additional clothing (so there’s more risk of accidents) as the weather get nicer, but for winter babies I wouldn’t bother.

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You can get yours from Cheeky Rascals where the Original version (as reviewed here) is just £19.99 (the Organic version is £25). This is incredible value for money. I’ve reviewed several premium products on this blog and have had my mitts on several sleepbags that are 3x this amount and are nowhere near the quality of the Love to Swaddle UP. When baby is ready to move onto the next stage (4-8 months) there’s also the Stage 2 Love to Swaddle UP* priced at £25. Finally, there’s the newborn Lite version for the warmer weather priced at £21.99.

You can find out more about the Love to Dream range on the Cheeky Rascals website where there are also several videos and FAQs about the brand. If you haven’t heard of Cheeky Rascals before, where have you been?! Cheeky Rascals have won numerous parenting awards as a result of their commitment to partner with the very best pregnancy, baby and toddler brands on the market. They’re incredibly selective about who they endorse and it shows. There are too many cool products to list here but you can visit the site homepage for more information or say hello on Twitter and Facebook.

*Note that the Love to Swaddle UP is only recommended for babies who cannot roll onto their tummies. It is strongly recommended you do NOT use these products when they are able to do so.

Linking up to #TriedTested linky as hosted by my buddies Kate at Family Fever and Colette at We’re going on an adventure. If you’d like to link up - here’s the skinny!

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Disclaimer: I was sent two Love to Swaddle UPs by Cheeky Rascals in exchange for my thoughts. They’ve been waiting incredibly patiently for baby Heidi to arrive but this has not influenced my opinion in any way. All the work you see featured on this Love to Swaddle UP review is my own.

I took Dexter to playgroup yesterday. In fact, my poor son has been dragged to various baby-friendly places this week in a bid to distract me from the knowledge his brother or sister would have been due this week.

The result? He gets a head cold. Yep, my poor little guy has the early onset of man flu.

So last night, we were up every hour, on the hour stroking his head to sooth him back to the Land of Nod. So whilst this mummy was on her 40th hour of no sleep (I’ve been struggling to switch my brain off recently) Dexter started a battle with snot and frequently fell short of his goal to stay asleep.

I know babies struggle to breathe through their mouths if their noses are blocked. This problem is only magnified if they insist, like my son, on sucking their fingers all night. This ultimately led to him dribbling all over his pillow, sputtering, and managing only short 15 minute stretches of sleep at a time.

Tired of stubbing our toes on skirting boards in a sleep-deprived haze, we decided to have him in bed with us. This was to be our first experience of co-sleeping with Dexter since he was 3 months old.

Now, 10 months on, he’s triple the length, and triple the size. Trust me, we might as well have invited another grown-up into our bed!

Unbelievably, my little man moved position every 3 seconds for at least 3 hours. Like a model on amphetamines he was pulling out all the poses non-stop. These included what I now lovingly refer to as the Christ position, the Lotus, the backward Lotus, and the Doggy.

Now, as my 5th consecutive day without make-up draws to a close, I’m a very tired mummy (once again) before Craig even gets home. Today has been characterised by a similar theme to the rest of the week “doing the bare minimum”. So with a house inspection by the letting agency due on Monday, a mountain of washing, and at least an hours worth of tidying due in every room, I’m sat here in a zombie-like state still in my PJ’s at 4.30pm.

So, my question to you all is… do you ever successfully co-sleep with little ones? Can anyone top Dexter on the fidget-stakes? As I’m guessing tonight will be more of the same, I need some tips!!!