Mama and Papa Bedtime Routine: Fun new product to soothe YOU to sleep

I have recently found a handful of pampering products that make you feel relaxed and ready to drift off to sleep. You can make them a part of your bedtime routine.

Begin the wind down of your evening an hour or so before your actual bedtime.

Isn't it nice to wash away the worries of your day and soak in silence as you get ready to sleep. I highly recommend DANI bath's Lemongrass Lavendar vitamin bath soak. It has a wonderful and calming fragrance, a skin nourishing feel, and gives you a wonderful reason to relax in a hot bath. It is made out of sea salt, aloe vera, mango seed oil, and vitamins A, E, and C


Ole Henriksen makes invigorating night gel that "contains a concentrated complex of alpha hydroxy acids, this powerful treatment gel will help you wake up to a brighter, more luminous complexion." It also has the benefits of being an all natural product that can help smooth and refine the texture of your skin. A great addition to your nightly bedtime routine.


I like to follow up the night gel with the best smelling night cream. I fell in love with this product the first time I used it. Sweetsation Therapy makes Organic Aqua Tica Botanical Night Cream. "This cream feels like thick water on your face, with Sea Kelp, Spirulina and Cucumer, providing continuous hydration to your skin all night long." It also contains a combination of essential oils that add nourishment, elasticity, suppleness, delay the aging process, take away dead skin cells and speed up renewal. "The relaxing blend of essential oils will put your mind in a happy place therefore helping you relax and drift to sleep." This is a wonderful organic product for before, during, and after pregnancy. (For a 20% discount on products use Code: 112093109 at checkout, expires 12//31/09).

After washing your face and brushing your teeth, light a candle, sit back with a book, and let your husband massage your feet.

DANI bath also makes a 100% soy wax candle that also comes in the calming Lemongrass and Lavendar scent. Continue your relaxing bedtime routine with this wonderful aroma wafting through the air.

And Sweetsation Therapy has an aromatherapy citrus scented massage oil. Baby Sweet Kisses Bottoms Up organic after baby bath soft massage oil can be used on your feet or your sweet baby's feet or whatever else needs massaging. It is made to moisturize, regenerate, and condition the skin with a blend of Sunflower Oil and Coconut Oil.

The Kids are Down, My Teeth are Brushed, and I Slip into My Sheets

I love new sheets, freshly laundered sheets, crisp sheets, soft sheets. Isn't it the best feeling to lie down after a guaranteed tiring day onto a bed freshly made (probably by you). And isn't it better when you have good quality, crisp sheets, that smell like they were just laundered (by you too). I have recently reviewed some top quality sheets that I absolutely adore!

Pottery Barn's Organic 400-Thread-Count Supima Sheet Set is wonderful. Nice, soft organic fabric in three tasteful colors is just what you want to cuddle up with as you drift to sleep tonight. It also has a wonderful feature that I love as the primary bed maker in my house. This special little inner pocket that your pillow slips into, so no more pillows falling out of the opening- it keeps it "concealed and in place".

Coyuchi also makes great organic sheets. They come in a variety of styles and colors. I personally love their white lace sheets- with a very simple row of lace incorporated into the 7 inch attached hem. They also offer a standard pillow case or envelope style pillow case. These sheets have a very crisp and linen feel that I love. Use the coupon code: lullaby luna at checkout and receive 15% off your entire purchase.

Karen Neuburger also provides a luxurious sheet set. 100% Cotton Sateen leaves you drifting to sleep in some of the smoothest sheets I have ever experienced. Soft, durable, and breathable- what more could you want in a sheet. They also come in bamboo fabric.

YOUR Bedtime Routine

You have your kids bedtime routine down: bath, pajamas, teeth, story, kiss and hug, and lights out. Then, you race off to clean up dinner, throw a load of laundry in, check email, and before you know it, it is 10pm, and you haven't taken any time for yourself. So, you sit down in front of the television, and watch Gray's Anatomy for an hour. And scurry off to get ready for bed, where you skip flossing because you are beat and you want to try and get your needed 8 hours of sleep.

Now in bed, you toss and turn as you try to quickly forget the trials and triumphs of the day and ignore the 'to dos' of tomorrow. Finally, you drift to sleep 45 minutes later as you try not to forget you are supposed to bring snack to preschool in the morning.

STOP!! We all need to stop. We are probably all guilty of this psychotic parent behavior. We need to create our own bedtime routine. We need to relax and calm down, take frantic down a few notches, and revisit the days when life was simpler. Don't remember? Well, let's start from scratch.

Some things to consider as you develop a nighttime routine:
1. What time do you need to get up? If you need to get up at 6am- figure out your bedtime by subtracting 8 hours... hmm- 10pm... yes, your new bedtime.
2. Turn off the TV, computer... an hour before bedtime- thank goodness for DVRs right?
3. Avoid exercising 3 hours before bedtime, especially if you are one to struggle with falling asleep at night.
4. Follow this routine weekdays and weekends.
5. What is your bedroom like? You want it to be dark, comfortable, and cool. You may also want to consider a fan, sound spa, or other white noise maker to help drown out outside noises and possibly your mind.
6. Plan your dinner time earlier- you want to be done eating 2-3 hours before bedtime.
7. Avoid caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol.

Now, what should you include in your bedtime routine- some things to consider:

• Bath or shower- use some nice aromatherapy bath salts
• Journaling to clear your full mind
• Reading a book- make sure it a relaxing book
  
• Playing a game with your husband or talking about your days
• Listening to relaxing music
• Taking the time you need to wash your face, brush your teeth...
  

Eating, Exercise, and Sleep

Q: I eat pretty healthy, at least try to, and I try to exercise... Why don't I feel good?

A: We want to feel good- good about ourselves, and just good. We want our bodies to feel healthy. No one wants headaches, backaches, leg aches... To feel good we need to eat well and exercise, but we also need to get a good night sleep. "One thing sleep specialists and doctors know is that adequate sleep is necessary for healthy functioning."

Q: I sometimes have a hard time going to sleep at night after exercising, when should I exercise?

A: "A good workout can make you more alert, speed up your metabolism and energize you for the day ahead, but exercise right before bedtime can lead to a poor night’s sleep. All the jumping jacks in the world won’t make up for a night of tossing and turning! Sleep experts recommend exercising at least three hours before bedtime, and the best time is usually late afternoon. Exercising at this time is beneficial because body temperature is related to sleep. Body temperatures rise during exercise and take as long as 6 hours to begin to drop. Because cooler body temperatures are associated with sleep onset, it’s important to allow the body time to cool off before sleep." (According to the National Sleep Foundation) You will have to figure out when exercise can best fit into your schedule- early in the morning, in the afternoon, a few hours before bedtime? There are many considerations as a parent: child care, getting dinner on the table, getting kids in bed, etc. It is no wonder how this ends up right before bedtime.

Q: I know I don't get enough sleep. I am always tired and I try to combat my tiredness with coffee? Is this okay?

A: It is very tiring and busy to be a parent. We always have things to do and then more things to do. Our 'To Do' is never completed, and we would always like to have some more free time to enjoy some of our own hobbies. But, we also need to listen to our bodies and stop. We need to realize that our 'To Do' list will never get done and chill. We need to make sleep a priority! By making sleep a priority- we are going to be able to stop relying on a caffeinated pick me up (or two or three or??) to get us through the day. "In fact, lack of sleep creates a vicious cycle – the more tired you are, the more caffeine you’ll consume to stay awake during the day; but the more caffeine you consume, the harder it’ll be to fall asleep at night. Not only are foods and drinks high in caffeine likely to keep you up at night, but they’re also usually replete with sugar or artificial sugar and not much else. When a healthy snack such as a carrot or granola bar is replaced with a can of Mountain Dew, you’re at higher risk for putting on weight and it becomes harder to sustain energy for a longer period of time." (National Sleep Foundation)

Take the time for yourself to exercise at least a few times every week, eat healthy (it is good for your kids too), and get the sleep you need to be the healthy, happy, and clearly functioning mamas and papas we need to be.

Sleep Ponderings From Us: As Her/His Head Hits the Pillow...

As Mom's Head Hits the Pillow: Most nights I am tired and ready to go to sleep, but some nights as my head hits the pillow my mind is racing. Racing with what I have to do tomorrow, what kind of parent I want to be, areas I need to work on, things I want to write about... Nights like this make it very hard to fall asleep and get the sleep I need so desperately to be the non-cranky, ready to deal with excited children, patient, loving mom I want to be. And yet my mind races as much as I tell it to turn off. Some nights I just pull out a piece of paper and write down all of my thoughts to clear my mind and expedite sleep. Some nights I get up- especially if the husband has started snoring- and go do something- especially if it is a something that is making my mind race. Some nights I just wait, or count sheep as I reach for the realm of sleep.

As Dad's Head Hits the Pillow: There is always something on my mind. If I'm not worried about work or bills or my children or other heavy life situations I get to dream a little. Dreams range from surfing to fly-fishing to farming, but they always settle me into a peaceful sleep. Having experienced the stress of owning a company and zero-income months I've become a pro at interrupting stressful thoughts and replacing them with good dreams. If I can't seem to shake a bad thought I get up and read or journal.

National Sleep Awareness Week Just Ended...

...And here are some resources and thoughts from the Sleep Foundation website:

• New Book Details How to Get A Good Night's Sleep
  "A Good Night’s Sleep, a new book by National Sleep Foundation Board Chairman Meir H. Kryger, MD, FRCPC, will teach you everything you need to know about sleep."
• Some results from the sleep poll that was taken, can you identify with?: "The quick polls, which were featured daily on sleepfoundation.org, found that employment concerns (24 percent) and personal financial concerns (24 percent) were two of the top reasons people couldn't sleep at night.
• Here is a link to Children's Sleep that reiterates the amount of sleep children should be getting. Are your kids getting what they should?
  

Sleep Product Review: "Nap26"

I recently tried a sleep product for adults. It is called "Nap26" by POWR NAPS sleep system. It claims to make you feel like you slept for 3 hours after 26 minutes; energized and refreshed without drowsiness; and more.

I have done this 26 minute nap most weekdays over the past couple weeks. And it really does work. I don't know if I feel like I took a 3 hour nap but maybe. I definitely feel refreshed and not drowsy.

You have to put this on something where you can wear ear buds or headphones. I fall asleep in the first few minutes each time and then wake up a couple minutes before the 26 minutes ends. It works the same time every time I do it.

I highly recommend it for anyone who needs a pick-me up during the day, but has limited time.

Their website is www.nap26.com

Saturday Sleep Tip

Although the time after your children go to sleep is such a sacred time where you get stuff done, relax, unwind... tomorrow will come quickly... figure out how you can get a nice 8 hours of sleep for yourself based on when your children wake you from your slumber. You and your children deserve it.

Sleep Ponderings from Me

Parents and Sleep: My kids are great sleepers. All three go to bed at seven and wake up at seven (give or take a few). They all go to bed fairly well- I of course hear the normal "just one mores" from my two-year old and four-year old... one more drink, got to go potty again... but really they go to sleep pretty easily.
But still, it seems like more often than I would like one of them is up in the night for some valid reason or another- bad dream, potty, sick, got stuck, fell out of bed, started rolling over and didn't like it, or whatever it may be. And although many times they go back to sleep without me even getting up, I still get woken up. This causes interruption in my sleep cycles, possibly causing the thoughts I had put to rest hours ago to begin again, the need to go potty, or whatever else adds to my sleep pause. Why is it that a mother's ears are so attune to their child's voices?
I love my babies, and I am so blessed to be able to take care of them full-time, but sometimes you just have to complain :). And I have been told numerous times by an amazing woman that this is the tiredest you will ever be. Sleep will come mamas.

Question for YOU

Do you get enough sleep?

please submit answers through comments