As the sky stays bright later into the evening, it can get more challenging to help kids find their way to dreamland. My best tip is to plan for bedtime to take longer so that you don’t feel frustrated when it inevitably does!
Also dark curtains or hanging a tapestry over the window makes a huge difference.
Here are a few of the strategies I use to smooth the transition year round, that could be helpful to add or adapt to your current rhythm:
- The night starts now—bedtime routine officially begins at 7am, by making sure kids get plenty of outdoor & big body play during the day. Depending on what spaces and tools you have access to—the park, a backyard trampoline or swimming pool, setting up an obstacle course using chairs, pillows (right before you wash the cases 😉) jumping over boxes… and at least 10-15 minutes of focused attention from you. If you haven’t spent this time, and bedtime is the first focused attention they get from you all day, they will of course try to drag it out as long as possible. (They’ll do the same earlier in the day, but you’ll be less tired and stressed so it’s easier to manage the transition when it’s time for you to get back to what you need to do.)
- Wildness – many kids need some riled up time before they can settle down, so creating time in your bedtime rhythm for that can look like wrestling with a willing family member, playing dance music while you wash dishes and they jump up and down as many times as possible or scrub the table (an especially helpful task for kids who are learning to use the toilet, because the motion of wiping with a cloth uses the same muscles as wiping with … other items)
- Once it’s time to settle calmly, brushing teeth, bathing and pjs – you can take photos of your child doing these actions to make a visual routine chart that they can follow
- Maybe a few more flips upside down or jumping off of the bed to get the last wiggles out, and then stories/books or podcast to focus their mind (I like Ahway Island because it starts with a meditation that helps kids connect with their bodies)
- One last trip to the toilet, fill a water bottle to keep by the bed (if they’re not in a stage where they’ll dump it out on purpose), set up some relaxing music or recorded stories and turn the lights off
- Depending on the age and temperament, it can be helpful to lie down with them for a little while until they’re asleep or close to it. You can do a silent meditation during that time, or plan tomorrow’s meals, or listen to a podcast on headphones while you snuggle them.
Every family is different so it may take some experimenting to find what works. I think the most important thing is to expect it to take longer, and not plan to get anything done after they fall asleep.
If you’re needing to get more done during the day that gets pushed back until night time, maybe there’s a neighbor or friend that you could set up a trade with so you have some quiet focused work time alternating with time when your child is occupied by playing with someone who’s not you!
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