I don't know about you, but bedtime at my house with my toddler is as close to a nightmare as one can get.
On most nights, by the time I finally am able to get her to sleep, I am ready to get totally trashed with my friend Jack Daniels. (I don't even drink)
I joke all the time that my kids bedtime is 8 pm, because that is the time I am done parenting. Well, that is where my words come back to bite me. The youngest is as strong-willed as they come. It seems to take FOREVER to get her down.
I use to think a bedtime routine was about a 20-minute task that started after dinner. BOY was I wrong our bedtime routine now starts before dinner.
Here are a few tips that have helped us make bedtime routine just a little easier.
1) Eat dinner as close to the same time every day. Afterward allow your child to play for a little while to get the last wiggles at out their system. Before the real work begins.
2) Go ahead and get your diffuser going with an essential oil that promotes a calming environment. We need to stick together and set the tone for the rest of the evening. Some of my favorites essential oils for this are Stress Away, Peace and Calming, Bergamot, and Lavender.
3) Give your toddler/child a warm bath. For an added benefit add some Epsom salts to help remove toxins that may be building up in your child's body. For an extra added dose of relaxation, add a few drops of Lavender Essential Oils to the Epsom Salts.
4)After the bath, rub some essential oils on your child. I like to use Young Living's Relaxation Massage Oil on my toddler. Another great option is to use Sleepyize which one of Young Living's Kidscents blends, formulated just for kids. I add a rollerball fitment to my bottle of Sleepyize, and swipe one roll on behind her ears and on her wrists. The feet and spine are great places to apply Sleepyize also.
5) Have your child pick out a book to read, and make yourself a warm Lavender tea. Snuggle up and read to your child for 20 minutes while sipping away on your warm tea. It depends on the mood whether I read my toddler in bed or if I read to her in "our" chair where I can rock her.
6) Also take into consideration how much sleep a little booger should get, and adjust your schedule as need be. A child between the ages of 1-2 years-old should be sleeping for 11-14 hours; a 3-5-year-old should be sleeping for 10-13 hours: a 6-13-year-old should be sleeping 9-11 hours; a 14-17-year-old should be sleeping 8-10 hours.
