Thursday, June 30, 2011
Do you have a bedtime? Routine? Freestyle? Am I being a stickler?
My 20 month old twins have been having some sleep issues that I believe started with teething and snowballed from there. We have put them on a strict bedtime routine/schedule for the past week, bath at 5:30, milk at 6, bed when asleep (mostly around 6:15). They always get up with the sun, no matter what time they go to sleep, and now it's at 530 or earlier. Tantrums have subsided, they are happy and playful and curious and carefree as they once were, but now I am scared to stop the routine! Shouldn't wee keep going to bed this early, at least till the sun decides to sleep in, too? Hubs is quite upset with me because I said we would not be seeing fireworks with the children on July 4th. He wants me to be more lenient. I think 10 is waaaaaay too late to be up! Am I being stubborn? Isn't it still too close to our "sleep funk" phase to start being that lenient?
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In our world, there is really nothing more important than sleep. So, if it were our family and we found something that was working, I don't think anything would get in the way! :-) But that's our family and yours is different. Are there any ways you could kind of have the routine but still enjoy fireworks? Ideas coming to mind include getting a babysitter and then going out for a romantic evening with just your hubby or having a friend video your local fireworks and watching them with the kids the next day (or maybe just youtubing fireworks before they go to bed on the 4th).I figure, there are a million times you get to watch fireworks with your kids. They aren't going to remember this time anyway (and they might not even like it). In my book, that's not worth ruining a good sleep stretch.
ReplyDeleteI don't see why you couldn't mess with the routine for a special event, but 10 is super late when they are used to 615. So, who's to say they'd even make it that late!?I'm a strong believer in the routine with my 3.5 year old and my 7 month and I are just getting into a good routine. I really don't like to break the routine so if I don't have to I won't but there are those special times when you want to do something different. If your routine is set quite well then one night out shouldn't mess it up! It just might make for a crummy morning the next day.Good luck!
ReplyDeleteWow! Did I write this??????? :) My husband and I just went round and round about this. My daughter goes to bed at 6:30 and on top of that has been really sick for the past week. NO WAY is she staying up late. What I think husbands find tough to understand is that young children really will not care if they do or do not see fireworks. Parents *think* that children need all of this exposure and will find it fun but in reality, they will not miss it. It is usually for our own selfish reasons that we want our children to take part in these sort of festivities. I am a strong believer in sleep, rhythm, and calamity, especially during the first four years of life. Stick to your routine! The 4th is not important enough to mess with a good thing. However, if they were to stay up a little bit late (say 7:30) it would probably not mess with things too much. So maybe you can just light a few fireworks in the street in front of your house and call it good.
ReplyDelete(answer from facebook)I'm starting miss 4 years on a routine.now I have miss 4weeks . Also conscious that with prep next year she can't be tired or grumpy. Previously no bedtime and would go to bed when tired or when nothing suitable on tv for her to watch. Her ...daddy gets home late so dinner is late but I'll consider getting bathtime routine to help teach her to comply with routine so the transition to prep everyday is easier. And I can have adult conversation of an evening
ReplyDeleteI'm lenient with bedtimes but if you have a child that reacts to a change in routine then I completely understand sticking to your bedtime! I would think DH needs to understand the effect sleep has on YOUR particular kids. Other kids might be fine but yours may really need that sleep!That being said, I'm a big advocate of a good marriage being the most important thing to your kids so it is kind of a pick your battles type thing. Is this one worth fighting or worth giving in?
ReplyDeleteI don't know if this would work for your family, only that it does with ours. We have a daughter not much younger than your twins and staying up till 10 is not an option... she would be a total bear. So if we need/want to do something that late I put her down at regular time (or even a little earlier), let her sleep for a few hours, then get her up to go. Those few hours act as a power nap so she's awake and happy for whatever else is happening... in her case at least getting her back down afterwards isn't a problem.I wouldn't do it all the time for the occasional fun late night event it doesn't seem to cause that much disruption.
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