During the holidays, many of us enjoy visits with family and friends. The season is full of love, laughter, and joy! However, if you have children, you might be wondering how to keep the sleep schedule intact during the holidays. After all, a holiday isn’t nearly as much fun with a fussy baby or toddler! Here are 4 tips for keeping your child’s schedule on track during the holiday season:
Have a Consistent Bedtime and Naptime Routine
Do you shower or brush your teeth before you go to bed? Most of us have some type of routine before we go to sleep such as putting on pajamas and brushing your teeth. If you skip these steps, you might get into bed feeling like something is missing.
Children thrive on routines and predictability. Therefore, one of the best things you can do to keep your child’s sleep schedule on track during the holidays is make sure you have a consistent sleep routine established beforehand.
If you have a consistent sleep routine for both bedtime and naptime (if your child still naps), they will know exactly what to expect. In some cases, as soon as the routine starts, a child’s eyes will droop and yawns will begin.
A typical bedtime routine for children can include dimming the lights, changing into pajamas (including a clean diaper for babies), reading for 10 minutes, cuddling and saying prayers, turning off the lights, and getting in bed. Routines don’t have to be very long for babies (10 minutes should suffice) but tend to get longer as children get older (30-60 minutes).
Introduce an Attachment Object or Lovey
An attachment object, also known as a lovey, is a perfect addition to your sleep routines. When the chaos of the holidays might increase anxiety, your child can grab hold of their lovey for reassurance. An attachment object is usually a favorite teddy bear, blanket, or toy. Some children even have an emotional attachment to a favorite book. While some children might alternate which object they sleep with, most children will start to sleep with the same item every day. This can help a lot during the holidays because if they can’t have you to hold as often, they can hold onto their lovey. This usually makes sleep much easier as they feel more secure. However, if your child is under a year old, the AAP recommends you NOT put anything in their sleep space until after their first birthday.
If your child is under one year of age, or if you’re having trouble getting them attached to a lovey, spend time with the lovey when it’s NOT sleep time and during your bedtime routine. For example, bring the lovey along for your soothing activity, such as reading with them on your lap. If they are holding the object, they might start to associate the soothing activity with the object. It can often take several weeks for them to become attached to their object, so don’t give up too soon!
Adjust to Your Destination’s Time Zone ASAP
If you are traveling for the holidays, you might change time zones. Some people try to keep the schedule in their “home time zone” and this is a great idea if you’re only gone for a day or two. Usually, a trip that’s longer than two days doesn’t work out that well. Therefore, if your trip will be longer than two days, try to adjust to the new time zone at your destination as soon as possible. This will make your trip go a bit smoother and give you more time doing the fun activities!
Ignore the In-laws (and Maybe Your Own Mother!)
During the holidays, everyone wants to hold the baby or spend time with the children, of course! This is a great time for families to bond especially if you don’t see one another very often. However, this can wreak havoc with your child’s sleep schedule. Even putting them to bed 20 minutes late can lead to overtiredness, which leads to night waking, early waking, short naps, and not to mention irritability! So, when your family pleads with you to “Please keep the baby up a little longer. I never get to see them!” you might want to politely reply “I know and I appreciate that, but if they get off their sleep schedule, it will be so much harder for the rest of our stay.” Do everyone a favor and put the children to bed, so you can have your child wake up later (and happy) the next day!
The holidays can be a source of great happiness, but everyone is happier with adequate sleep. I hope these tips help you keep your children’s sleep schedule on track, so you can fully enjoy your family and friends this holiday season!
Nicole Johnson is a married mother of two wonderful boys and owner of The Baby Sleep Site. When her eldest son was born, he had a lot of sleep problems – he would wake every one or two hours, all night long! She got busy and thoroughly researched literature and scientific reports until she became an expert in sleep methods, scheduling routines, baby developmental needs, and more. She overcame her son’s sleeping issues in a way that matched her own parenting style, and knew it was her mission to help other tired parents “find their child’s sleep”. If you have your own sleep issues, Nicole and her team at The Baby Sleep Site® can help! Download the popular free guide, 5 Ways To Help Your Child Sleep Through The Night, to get started today.
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