Our Evolving Bedtime Routine

When we first brought Keira home from the hospital we were lucky in that she already had an established schedule.  During her newborn phase bedtime wasn’t much of a problem although she never stayed down longer than 3 hours at a time.  During those days it was as simple as getting her up, changing her diaper, playing a bit, nurse awhile then back down for more sleep.  Of course this couldn’t go on forever.

As she became more aware of her surroundings  it got harder to get her down.  Soon our bedtime routine involved a lot of walking around and singing and then a whole lot of rocking her in the cradle and then trying to escape the room without waking her.

Things changed again when we transitioned her to the nursery at 6 months adjusted.  Now we had the challenge of not only a very stubborn and aware infant, we also had to deal with her adjusting to her new surroundings.  This of course meant more change to her bedtime routine. 

At this stage we had to differentiate for her the difference between naps and actual bedtime.  Naps still involved lullabies and rocking but bedtime became far more involved and hasn’t changed much since.  After dinner she gets a little playtime as she usually naps right up until dinner time in the late afternoon.  This is essential in making sure she is pooped out just enough to sleep. 

Next is her favourite time of day… bath-time!  Since I’m way too pregnant for bathing her, her father has taken on this responsibility with her.  She could honestly spend the whole night in the bath and gets worked up when she can hear the tub filling.  She loves to help lotion her skin afterwards as well and is quite proud to show me she can do it herself… every single night.  Complete with clapping and smiling for herself.

After this I used to nurse her but now that she is weaned she has a bottle of warmed milk.  Then it’s time to head to bed, but not without first waving goodnight to herself in the mirror.

The rest is pretty typical, we get her in a sleep sack, read her favourite book or sing one of her favourite songs then its kisses and hugs goodnight.  She gives the best hugs at bedtime, as if she doesn’t want to let go!  Before putting her down though, she just has to turn off the bedroom light for herself. 

We put her down and put her bear in her arms, then we turn on her sleep sheep and monitor and sneak out for the night.

Usually the bear is used as a pillow, and not the other way around. 

We’ve found that routine is very important when it comes to her bedtime, although usually a hot bath and warm bottle of milk will set her off to sleep without any issues even when we’ve gone well beyond her bedtime or on the odd night she is fussy.

 Disclosure – I am participating in the JOHNSON’S^® NATURAL® Blogger Campaign by Mom Central Canada on behalf of JOHNSON’S^® NATURAL®.  I received the above mentioned product to facilitate sharing my honest opinion.  The opinions on this blog are my own.