I am all for tips that make bedtime settles easy. You will love these simple but effective tips that will get more sleep for your baby and set up behaviors and patterns that send positive signals that bedtime is coming.
WINDING DOWN BEFORE BED
I usually wouldn't recommend winding down little ones before bed. I find this can often lead to a problematic second wind. The problem with winding down little ones too much is it may mean you are playing a large role in getting them off to the sleepy/drowsy state, which will cause them to require you to play similar role when they wake in the middle of the night.
AVOID OVERTIREDNESS
The more overtired your little one is in the lead up to bed, the more difficulty they will have falling and staying asleep. I wouldn't generally use a set bedtime but rather base bedtime on their awake window. Bedtime should however fall between 6:30pm – 7:30pm. For example, a 6 month old may have an awake time of 1h 30m – 1h 45m before bed for the night, so if baby woke at 5:00pm I would make bed between 6:30 – 6:45pm on that particular day. Sometimes holding them out just to reach a particular time i.e 7pm can leave you with a very overtired baby.
BEDTIME ROUTINE
I recommend the routine of giving solids, bath/shower, feed (wide awake), quiet play, into their room for sleeping bag and song – then into cot for babies. For toddlers I recommend dinner, bath, milk or water, brush teeth, toilet, books (maximum of 2 books) then bed. You don’t always have to offer your little one a bath or shower every night, but it can be a great step in the routine to signify bedtime is coming.
BOUNDARIES
It is crucial to keep your bedtime routine consistent and make sure boundaries are kept in place in the lead up to bedtime in a confident and positive way. Toddlers are very skillful at manipulating bedtimes and it is not uncommon for parents to have to carry out a number of requests just to get their little ones into bed, even then having to remain in their room to achieve sleep. This often ends up being a very lengthy, tiring and drawn out process. Having a little sticker chart with each activity i.e brush teeth, milk, books that your toddler checks off is a great way to keep them distracted during the routine. This in turn may minimize push back and add a positive, interactive spin to the bedtime routine.
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