Are you looking for ways to help your kids settle down in the evening before bedtime?
A good night’s sleep is something we all want and deserve, even if we’re only a toddler and can’t stand the thought of having to be still longer than thirty seconds. As the parent however, you know your child needs as much sleep as they can get, otherwise the crankiness will really rank up in the morning. So if you’re the kind of person who struggles to make sure your children stay in bed after you’ve tucked them in, this could be the right kind of advice for you. Here’s some top tips to try out to get the rest the both of you deserve.
Have a Good Run Around (or a late evening walk!)
Making sure your children are properly tuckered out before settling them down to sleep is essential. Kids have a lot of energy, and a lot of excess energy, so making sure they have no reason to keep using it even after a full day of playing is hard to do. Get plenty of exercise throughout the day with park trips.
You can even get the kids all ready in their pajamas, with their teeth brushed and their hair clean, and take them for a calm and quiet stroll around the neighbourhood. They can even take their stuffed toys around with them! It might seem completely counterproductive to take the kids out right before they’re meant to be asleep, but it’s a good way to get out any of that energy that keeps us awake the rest of the night.
Watch Something Calm
A lot of TV shows exist out there to help children fall asleep, such as bedtime stories and lullaby programs. However, there’s also a lot of programs out there that can make your kids’ energy even worse, so be careful with what happens to the remote.
So that might not mean you can put on some cartoons or anime, but tuning into a kids’ channel right before it goes off air is always a good plan to help get a child into the sleeping spirit.
Try Changing Mealtimes
This is point a lot of us miss out on our bedtime routines, but if your mealtimes are too soon or too late, your child may be going to bed too worked up or even too hungry to sleep. Try and have the final meal of the day about a couple of hours before bedtime starts, as this allows the digestive system enough time to get through most of what your kid has eaten. Then their bodies are more likely to be a little more tired, and thus a perfect time for resting heads on pillows.
If you’re finding yourself struggling to keep your kids in bed when all you want to do is recline on the sofa for the rest of the evening, make sure you try these tips. You never know what might work, and once you’ve got a routine, your kids are going to be used to needing to sleep at night.
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