An extra hour in bed this halloween!
With the clocks falling back an hour on Sunday 31st October, its unlikely that us parents will get the benefit of that extra hour in bed. The reality is we will all likely be having our first cup of coffee at 5.30am.
It can be tricky to keep babies and young children on track with their routine when the clocks change so here’s a few ideas and tips to try and help make the change as smooth as possible.
- Some people adjust bedtime a little the week before by making bedtime 10 or 15 minutes later every few days. By the time the clocks have changed backwards, hopefully your little one will have altered their sleep pattern and stay in bed until their usual time the next morning.
- If this seems like too much work or doesn’t fit with your family’s routine, another suggestion is to accept you are going to have an early wake up call on the first morning the clocks have changed but maybe adjust their routine through the day by 10 or 15 minutes each time. Delay breakfast by 15 minutes and do the same for lunch by delaying it for 30 minutes and dinner by up to 1 hour. Also delay any daytime naps in line with the other time changes. Then the only thing left is to try and delay bedtime for as long as possible. However, if baby is just too tired don’t fight it, its more important that they get a good sleep. They will hopefully naturally adjust over time, it just might take a little longer.
- Cut down or remove screen time completely about 1 hour before bedtime for those older children
- Black out blinds can help disguise the brighter mornings
- Stick to the same bedtime routine to keep things as normal as possible
- Create a calming atmosphere before bed
- Using a nightlight or playing soothing music at night can help soothe them at bedtime. The Shnuggle Moonlight is perfect for creating a calming setting for bedtime with its soft glow and low blue light levels for promoting sleep.
What is best is to find a way that works best for you and your family’s routine. No matter what you try its likely to take a week or so for everyone to adjust to the clocks changing. Sticking as much to your usual routine while still being flexible will help with that adjustment.
