Sleep "Product" Review

Any wall calendar or calendar that your whole family can see may help working moms organize their lives better. A calendar your husband sees may help him see all that needs to get done and where people need to be when. It may also help your older children understand when things are going to happen: soccer practice, family movie night, dinner, bedtime, etc. Anything to share the responsibilities and help keep a routine in place is helpful when you have so much on your plate.

Question for You

Working Moms: How do you get your kids enough sleep when they go to daycare?

Sunday Sleep Dilemma

Q: What do I include in a bedtime routine? I feel so frazzled at the end of the day- I need a plan.

A: Bath (unless you do this in the morning- maybe every other day depending on hygiene needs), PJs, teeth brushed, a good cuddle with a good book(s)- maybe you choose one and your child/children choose one (depending on what time allows for- more or less). Just enjoy being with your child and helping them wind down from the day. Make sure you leave enough time to go through the routine before they get tucked in and lights out.

Saturday Sleep Tip

Working Moms spend lots of good, quality time with your kids- it is Saturday- go out during non-sleep times and enjoy your children. Say no to as much as you can. Your kids are only young once.

Sleep Ponderings from Moms Who Work From Home

Katie: writer, mother of two boys (2 and 9 months) "Being a WAHM (work at home mom) means that when both kids finally go down for their afternoon nap, the "office" opens, and I know that I need to take full advantage of the 1 1/2 - 2 hrs. of work time I have. With two kids under 3, quiet time to work is a rarity, so I know I need to be as efficient and effective as possible when I have those moments. This means, I usually ignore the lunch dishes, bypass the basket of laundry that needs folding and focus on just getting work for the business done. In the past, when I've tried too hard to multi-task with house and work to-do's during that time, I've found that nothing really gets done, so I try to keep nap time set aside for the business. Sometimes, I'd like to just take that time to lay on the couch with a magazine, but I remind myself that it is a blessing to be a mom and a blessing to be able to do work that I love from home. Being productive and focused during my time for work means that I can be more present and fully engaged when my kids aren't napping. And those dishes and laundry....well, they'll get done eventually."

Mindy: Arbonne rep, mother of two (1 and 3) " I cram as much work as I can do into their nap times! I find I am much more regimented with nap time since I have been doing my Arbonne business. I used to be pretty scattered on times and that only made them cranky and irritable, and I was miserable! Since, I have been more structured with our time (because I need to be with my business) I find that my kids expect it and look forward to having routine sleep. My 17 mo. old is happy to go down with no problems, since I chose not to be so sporadic! With working from home, you have to be so much more efficient with your family’s time. Without a routine sleeping schedule, life would not be pretty for your family or your business!"

Kelsey: Designer/Business Owner, mother of a 4 year old son "Working a set period of time vs. working around nap schedules is a hard decision to make because for a lot of women, it means daycare, which for me, it did. And, for me, it meant daycare with a kid that already wasn't sleeping and an overtired mama. I was also breastfeeding and Beck refused to take a bottle from anyone. He was 7-8 months at the time. But, once we did discover what allowed Beck to sleep (unfortunately at 11 months), things were better. For us, routine was critical. Everything the same, every day, no deviations. Luckily, Beck was in a great home daycare that centered around routine, and eventually he got it, as long as I kept up with the routine when we got home things went pretty good. It was, and still is, a balancing act that is constantly changing, but the majority of it is the same. Sometimes it requires rules to be broken...especially if you have one with a sickness. And, sometimes it requires a bigger bed or compromises to be made at 3 am so that all can get sleep. Luckily, I have a flexible schedule, where if Beck was to get sick, I could take off during the day and have my husband cover during the night. But, the work is still there and needs to get done, so a lot of times, I work at nights or I wake up extra early to catch an hour to get e-mails returned...things that I can do easily from home or from bed with a sick kid near. I put a priority on 8 hours of sleep for myself, and work within that. Sometimes, I cheat myself if I've taken on too much, but that's life. As long as I keep the routine similar for Beck, who's now 4, things work pretty smoothly. Sometimes you just have to be flexible...on vacation last week, he slept on a pillow on the floor of a restaurant so that we could stay out. And, when we got home, he had an ear infection. I ended up rubbing his back to sleep while I checked work e-mail from my phone. It gave him the time he needed to fall asleep with a little extra love and me the time to catch up on work stuff before I got into work. And, I try and tackle things on a personal level at home and in spare time and try not to get down on myself when things just can't get done. And, if they can't, I start asking for help, even if it means paying the cleaning lady to come an extra time, so that we can get a little more personal time. I once heard someone say, in the end, you're not going to be remembered by how perfect your towels were folded in the linen closet. So, I try and concentrate on the majors at work and life, and then go from there. And, then see how much of the minor stuff I can fit in. Sometimes I even get to the perfectly folded towels...not that often, but it's been known to happen!"

Question for You

Do you work? From home or other? How do you balance your children's sleep needs with work?

Sleep "Product" Review: Calendar

As a working mom you need to be very deliberate and organized in the things you need to accomplish during the day. Take into consideration: time to spend with kids, time you and the kids need to sleep (don't schedule things during this time), housecleaning (try a house cleaner if it fits into your budget- they are really quite reasonable), exercise, any extra activities you have. Also, take the liberty to say no when your life is overbooked and you are not finding enough time to connect with your kids.

I have found a great planner "momagenda". It has plenty of space for planning, extra/individual spaces for your kids and/or husband, and extra planning spaces (parties, presents...), and a separate address book (with the portfolio planner). http://www.momagenda.com/products.cfm?cID=17&pID=24. Happy shopping!

Sunday Sleep Dilemma

Q: Some nights I get home from work after my kids bedtime? How do I find time with them and meet my work needs?

A: Each situation is different. I encourage you to set your child's sleep as a high priority at your home. It will make everyone happier to be well-slept. It is also important for school performance, behavior, good daytime sleep, brain development, and more.

Now, finding time for you and your child on the days you don't make it home. Ideas: spend some special time in the morning if that works out, go home for your lunch break if possible, try using Skype to talk and see each other over the computer or just use a phone, leave them sweet notes or pictures in their lunchbox/with their dinner/with their toothbrush... , ask them to write or dictate a note to you telling about their day, lay out their pjs and a special story or right them a little bedtime story to have read to them, tell them that you will come in and cuddle with them when you get home (and do it- you will both appreciate the physical touch- even if they are asleep- don't wake them), set aside a large chunk of time when you can to really connect with them.

Saturday Sleep Tip

Even when you work make your child's sleep (and yours a priority). Figure out how much sleep they need (see prior posts) and make sure they get it. This will make for a happier family and more productive. Set aside their bedtime routine as a special time to connect with them.

Ponderings from Who?

Who am I again?
My name is Courtney Graham. I am a mother of three wonderful kids (Mackenzie 4 1/2, Mason 2 1/2, Marin 6 months). I have a background in teaching- six years teaching elementary school, a Master's in Education.
Sleep became an interest of mine when my first child was not born sleeping whenever she needed to- I had an overtired, crying baby, few parent friends, and I was tired. So, I started reading like crazy. I read anything and everything. And tried anything and everything. A lot worked or helped, some didn't. But I learned a lot about sleep, infant and child sleep needs, etc. I'm very thankful to have gone through that experience- just thinking about it makes me tired :).
I finally figured out what worked when Mackenzie was five months old- after that she was an amazing sleeper for naps and nighttime sleep. I did things much differently from the day my other two were born and sleep was a dream with both of them. Now, I have three good and easy sleepers. That isn't to say that we haven't had bumps in the road- we have- but we kept getting the right amount of sleep as a high priority in our home and worked through them all.

For the month of October, I will be focusing on Sleep related to Working Moms, Halloween, and the upcoming Time Change.

Sundays: Sleep Dilemma
Mondays: Sleep Product (product is used loosely- book, technique, etc.)
Wednesdays: Question for you (you comment back your answer- helps other readers get different perspectives)
Thursdays: Sleep Ponderings from Me
Saturday: Saturday Sleep Tip