Q. Bedtime is chaos in our house. My kids are always getting out of bed and it’s usually 10 o’clock before they’re asleep. I’m exhausted! What can I do to get them to go to bed and stay there?
There’s a reason all the good TV shows are on at 8 and 9 o’clock! With the children nestled all snug in their beds, that’s supposed to be mama’s time to sit down and relax (or do laundry, make lunches…a mama’s work is never done after all). It’s time to reclaim your evening, for your sake as much as the kids’.
1) Pick a bedtime: Children need sleep. Some parents will argue that their children operate just fine in spite of an 11 o’clock bedtime, but in reality their little brains and bodies need time to recharge and grow. Bedtime should be between 7 and 8pm. (Some kids need to go to bed earlier if they’re starting to phase out naps).
2) Keep wake up times the same: Tempting as it is to enjoy your coffee in peace on Saturday morning while the kiddos sleep in, it is best to keep a consistent wake up time.
3) Bedtime routine: People think I’m crazy when I say ‘time for bed’ and my son is still bouncing off the walls looking wide awake. But five minutes into our bedtime routine and he’s curled up on my lap with his blanket and rubbing his eyes. Whether it’s bath time, stories or lullabies, your kids will learn that these things mean ‘sleep’ and will start to wind down.
4) Playtime is over: After a nice bedtime and everyone is tucked in, the fun stops. You’ve said your “goodnights” and “I love you’s”, now you mean business. If they’re climbing out of bed, go in and put them back to bed with only a “Stay in your bed, please” and then leave the room. Sure you may have to do it 50 times the first few nights, but consistency is key and they’ll soon get bored if they know you’re really serious and they aren’t going to be able to squeeze another story or glass of water out of you.
Nanny Carrie’s Tip:
For the little ones: Starting very young, have a certain song that you play just for bath or bed time. They’ll learn to associate the song with winding down at the end of the day.
For the bigger kids: After bedtime routine, start letting your child have some time to read quietly in bed by themselves. It will start training them to wind down independently and give them a sense of pride in being able to stay up later than their younger siblings.
RSS
RSS
I totally agree! My kids are in bed by 8 every night. My oldest is 9 and we will let him stay up a little bit later than his siblings however, he usually goes to bed on his own shortly after. He has to be at school by 7 and wake up is at 6 so we have to do an 8 o’clock bedtime for everyone to function in the morning.
My middle son can run and play hard all day and be bouncing off the wall but as soon as his head hits the pillow he is out. It is actually quite funny. He gets it from his Dad. My oldest used to talk in bed for an hour before he would fall asleep and he got that from me.
We just went through sleep-training with our 6 month old son with the help of a professional. In addition to the bedtime routine we have, we also installed a white noise machine in his room. Not only is this an audio cue for him that it is bed time, it drowns out the noises of the separate bedtime routine we have for our 7 year old daughter. It’s been very helpful.
this is great…I’m a huge fan of routines. I’m finding it hard now with the biggies….they have an early bedtime, but cubs and some other activities sometimes don’t end ’til 8pm. I find we get home and I madly try to throw them in bed ditching the usual routine. It doesn’t work so well! Thanks Nanny Carrie!!
oh, and that photo is adorable! Makes me sleepy looking at that baby!
Great post, Nanny Carrie! I don’t have any kids myself, but I remember as I kid I had a very strongly enforced bed time. A child’s life has to be predictable in order to minimize stress; especially the stress through preteen years!