DH and I were out shopping this past weekend with both kids in tow (DS, 15 months; DD, 2 months) when we were approached by a woman pushing a cart with what looked to be a four year old in her cart. At the time, DH was pushing DD around in her stroller/car seat and I had DS in the shopping cart. DH was a little ahead of me when the woman stopped him and told him what a beautiful baby he had, and asked how old 'he' was. (In the woman's defense, DD was in a green jumpsuit and had nothing that said 'girl' around her). I told her that 'she' was 2 months old and DH just smiled and started to move on.

The woman, however, stopped him again by telling us both that the girl in her cart was her fifth child. She then asked me if DD always slept like that and slept well at night (WHY DO PEOPLE ASK THAT?!). When I laughed lightly and said no, trying to move us along again, she said that she had a trick that would work. An old wive's tale, she said, that her grandmother told her that worked wonders on all her kids. Apparently, you swaddle the infant in a receiving blanket, leaving the feet bare. Then you cover the feet with a towel and on top of the towel, place a heating blanket/pad on low and just keep it turned on all night. She said that the heat would simulate the body warmth that emanates from you and that the baby would sleep longer. Works like a charm, she said, all her kids slept through the night.

After finally disentangling my family from this woman, we moved on and continued our shopping but her words stuck with me. And the more I thought about it, the more I could see it going horribly, horribly wrong. She did hazard us to make sure it was a new heating blanket and not an older one, but still - this sounds like a really bad idea. I don't think even at my most desperate that I would try this.

Would you try this 'old wives' trick?