DD has been a good sleeper for the majority of her 11 weeks in this world. Early on she was sleeping 12 hours at night and at least 5-6 hours at a time during the day. Now she is doing a good 5 hrs at a time both day & night. At first I used to rock her to sleep in her cradle and we co-slept for some really unsettled nights but she is now in her big cot and happily puts herself to sleep when I put her in bed as long as I've read her tired signs correctly and not delayed putting her down.

If you feel you need to pick up your DS when he is crying then i say go with it. I've been going with a "if the cry upsets me then I pick her up". I have luckily been able to distguish the majority of her cries and I know her "I'm tied, thanks for putting me to bed" cry which stops in less than 10 seconds so I ignore those ones, but i know her upset or pain cry and if I hear that, she gets cuddles till she is calm again and then I put her back down. If she wakes after a cycle and is crying (which isn't normal for her) then I know something is up like she has wind so i give her cuddles (and wait for the burps) and then put her back down.

I was told about controlled crying and did try it once but it broke my heart and only lasted 20-30 minutes, with lots of patting and rubbing trying to ease the crying, before I stopped. I say go with your instincts and give cuddles if you want or feel the need.

Today we were out and about alot so DD didn't get much sleep so she played up today (as well as not liking the heat) and I ended up giving her cuddles till she fell asleep on me and then back into her cradle to be rocked to sleep near us. I'm not going to deny her hugs when it is quicker and more calming for her to be comforted when she is really upset. I'd say if you can identify when the cry is genuine or when it's just a "put on" then that can help identify when a cuddle is needed and when it's just a little bit of a protest.

Good luck and happy hugging..