Halloween on a school night.. talk about scary!! š± But then, throw in Daylight savings just a few days later… oh my.
First of all, take a deep breath, this will be ok! Set your expectations of getting them to bed on time very low. They are going to be over-stimulated, over-served with sugar, and potentially over-tired. Here are my tips to have the night run as smoothly as possible:
1) Download this checklist (for free!) to give them a visual idea of how the night will go. Offer a prize the next morning if they get all the checkmarks on the list! This will help keep them on track after Trick or Treating when they are super excited and difficult to settle.
2) Get a good dinner in them BEFORE Trick or Treating. Offer them something that you know they will eat, this is not the night to make them eat something new.
3) Once home from Trick or Treating, remind them of the checklist and set a timer and let them sort/eat/play with all their goodies for 10ish minutes. Then, have them save the candy for tomorrow (maybe they can get a piece with breakfast as their prize for completing the checklist tonight!) and move on to the next item on the list.
4) Use the āread a book” time after pjs to either read or book, or just talk about the night with them! Take this time to help them calm/wind down and process the big night they just had!
5) Remember to HAVE FUN with them. Make memories! It is ok if they donāt get in bed until later, one off night will not hurt them!
*This applies to school-aged kids. 3 and under should be easier to keep on schedule, but feel free to use this chart with them as well!*
As for Daylight Savings..
Whether it is springing forward or falling back, daylight savings can be a time of stress for parents. There are A LOT of tips and opinions out thereā¦. all of which seem to be nothing more than a lot of extra work and math for parents! A common one is āstarting a week before the change, start moving bedtime up/back 15 minutes each day.ā Yadda Yadda. You certainly CAN do this. But, my solution on all things sleep is no B.S./make it as simple as possible/direct to the point answers. That’s what you are here for right?!
My take on Daylight Savings? Just dive into it. Keep everything the same. You may have one or two early mornings or rough bedtimes, but as long as you continue to set your expectations and hold your sleep boundaries, most kids adjust as quickly as adults do. Some kids donāt even notice the change!
This is why it’s so important to have a good independent sleeper. They can take these changes in stride because they have all the skills needed to go with the flow when it comes to schedule changes. Sleep training actually improves sleep flexibility and builds life long skills of healthy sleep habits! So, the only reason to stress going into Daylight Savings, would be if you were starting out with a crappy sleeper anyway! But, we can fix that, don’t worry! š
In summary, no need to pre-plan if you don’t want to. (I don’t) Handle any sleep disruption that may come like you would any other regression. As always, reach out if you need any extra support by emailing me here or messaging me on instagram.
You got this!
Elizabeth