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...
  

Product Review: Products for Newborns

It is hard to decipher what you need for your baby, many times you don't actually figure it out until after the baby is born.

Here are some products that can help you create the desired sleep environment:

Swaddling Blanket:

• Kiddopotamus Swaddle Me
  
• Petunia Pickle Bottom Swaddling Blankets
  

Sleep Positioner:

• Munchkin Cool Flow Back Sleeper
  

A fan:

• Fan
  

*Any fan (ceiling, portable...) works- new SIDS prevention tip.

Pacifier:

• Born-Free Paci Pack

Sound Spa/White Noise:

• Homedics Sound Spa
  

Black-out shades/dark room

Sleep "Product" Review

Magazines are full of articles related to sleep- some helpful, some not. I just read an article in Babble (on-line http://babble.com/Bedtime-An-expert-troubleshoots-your-sleep-training/). It summarized three of the most common bedtime mistakes according to Dr. Carol Ash (medical director of Sleep for Life).

1. Thinking 8 is enough- our kids need more than 8 hours of sleep. Our kids are not us and have different sleep needs.
2. Rocking or singing your kid to sleep- our kids need to learn to soothe themselves to sleep and the sooner the better. You are a guide in the process not doing it for them.
3. Putting a basketball court in the bedroom- we need to create an environment conducive to sleep- try dark, white noise, cool, no TV or other media

Sleep Ponderings from Me

I just returned home from a 12 day vacation with the family. Husband, wife, three kids drive 2000 miles in 12 days touching five states. It was quite the trip. And I would have to say that my kids (ages 4 1/2, 2 1/2, and 5 months) were absolutely amazing!

So, how did they sleep you wonder? They missed a couple naps when we were driving- just depended on what we did that day and where we had to stop, but overall their sleep stayed on schedule. My 5 month old took great naps on the road, and she would take 3 hour naps on the beach (in her pack'n'play, covered with a blanket, with her noise maker). She woke up at night some of the nights- but 4 of us were staying in the same room. It is vacation; you can't expect perfection.

My other two kids went to bed a bit later a couple of the nights- had to be flexible for the extra fun things you do on vacation, but they went to bed easily, took good naps and were amazing.
Thanks to them getting to sleep well on the trip they were able to keep great attitudes.

Sleep Product Review: The Ultimate Out and About Sleep Set-up

The best place for a baby to take a nap is in their bedroom, but let's face it there are times when we can't or don't want to stay at home so our sweet little babies can take all their naps in their peaceful bedrooms. Sometimes we want to go to breakfast or take our other children to the park. Or sometimes we just have to take the other kids to ballet or gymnastics or wherever. There are solutions to allowing your precious little baby get their nap and still be out. Here is one option a friend of mine came up with:

Description:
Inside of a stroller that has a bassinet type option or possibly inside of their carseat create a sleep environment as close to their one at home as possible:

The Stroller
She uses the Easy DuoWalker (http://www.easywalker.nl/usa/duowalker.html) with the CarryCot (GREAT set-up). I have used my Graco stroller- fully reclined with the feet part up so it turns into a bassinet (http://www.gracobaby.com/catalog/product.aspx?modelNumber=7B11CAD3&CategoryID=12).

Noise Machine: Put some batteries in yours and take it along- put it right inside the bassinet. She uses the same wave sounds that she uses in her sons bedroom.

Sleep Positioner: Grab the sleep positioner from their crib (If they are out of this now- skip it).

Swaddle: Swaddle your baby just like you would at home (If they have outgrown the swaddle skip it too).

Darkness: Lay a breathable blanket to create the same dark environment at home over the top- block out that sun.

Binkie/Paci: She gives her little guy his favorite, loves the sucking and sleeps longer with it (just like she does at home).

The Goal: to create the same sleep environment you have created at home- to maximize the nap on-the-go.

Thank you DeNai for sharing. And good luck creating your sleep environment on-the-go. Please share any other sleep set-ups you have created for sleeping on-the-go.

Sleep Dilemma

Q: How do I keep my independent three- year old in his big boy bed?

A: There are a number of options for attacking this problem... all of which you may have to try in an attempt to rectify the situation... and you will have to figure out what works for your child.

• Set an appropriate bedtime based on your child's age-appropriate sleep needs.
  
• Make sure that you have a calming, consistent, and concise bedtime routine- possibly a bath, a story (not a library but a couple and not TV in place of a story), and to bed- avoid long drawn out routines, lists of excuses, and whatever else your creative child may conjure up.
• Have children get a drink and go potty before you put them in bed- take care of those inevitable excuses before they use them.
  
• Take the sleep environment into consideration. Turn off the lights- a dark room triggers sleep. Other sleep environment pluses: cool temperature, quiet, white noise.
• Maybe your child needs something comforting to sleep with: stuffed animal, blanket.
• Development of nighttime fears is normal and common at this age- leave their door open a crack if that helps them feel better, but I would avoid leaving bedroom lights on or forming any other habits that you don't want to continue. Also, think about the things that they watch- we don't want to give them something for their fears to feed on.

So, that covers everything to do to help prepare your child to stay in bed and fall asleep easily.

BUT, what if they don't stay in bed?

• Create a list of sleep rules along these lines: stay in bed, lay still, stay quiet, go to sleep (suggested from Healthy Sleep Habits). Go over these with your child before they go to sleep. Maybe demonstrate what this looks like or coach them through each of these actions, "Show me how you close your eyes sweetie." etc.
• If they get out of bed, silently walk them back to their room/bed. Don't give them any positive or negative attention- anything to converse about or add to staying up later. Do this again and again if it happens.
• Create an award system. Possibly give them a sticker on a card each night that they stay in their bed and when they get five stickers they get ___. Whatever is motivating to them.
• Call me or another sleep consultant to help you and your child get the sleep you need.
  

Question for You

How do you create an adequate sleep environment for your child/children when you travel?