Hi SN,
You said your mum will carry bb upright and then later do cradle carry.. and then bb ok? My bb also the same. She will not cry when she is upright.. so that she can be kpo and look at things. But after a while, i think this tires her out (provided no one go play with her at the shoulder). Then she will accept cradle carry and then slowly drift to sleep.
I think for mummies with bb who dun wanna sleep (just wanna play) but appear to be 'slower' in reaction (not as excited, not as responsive to play, gives only weak smiles), trust your instinct. They need to sleep soon so that they will not be overtired and cry big time. Can start by playing mildly with them - the main idea is to slow down their pace and mood. once slowed down, their tiredness gestures will be more obvious and then they can be put to sleep more easily. At least this works for my girl lah..
Some ways I have tried with success to slow my bb down:
1. put my palm on bb chest and move it down towards tummy. at the same time, try to talk to her (after getting her focus on me) with speed getting slower and slower.
2. show her something to catch her attention. I have used fingers and books (less colourful ones) so far. once she focus on the object, she will start to feel tired. then either she falls asleep on her own or she sleep with my light patting.
Hee.. not sure if it will work for other babies. But my main focus is always ensure that she gets enough sleep. The longer she nv sleep, the more cranky she gets. And the louder cries my neighbours will hear.. And the bigger my headache will be. LOL..