Be the parent you NEEDED when you were YOUNGER

As we sail through the choppy seas of 18 months sleep regression ; that time in toddlerhood where they transition to only one daytime nap and the last hour of the day (or so) is the time for perfecting their newly learnt skill, control or ’ToddlerPiwer”

Bonnie’s being, to make her way to the top of the sofa, then shout “ready” and before I have a chance to reply “yes I’m ready” she takes her leap of faith!, even though she’s absolutely shattered from only having one nap! 😱

Her daytime nap is now around 12.30pm for one-two hours (so that is actually really good for this age (more details on my blog site about ”Baby Sleep Window”

Anyway, we experienced this sleep regression
phase at around ten and thirteen months (when Bonnie learnt to crawl/walk)- what I thought was her usual bedtime at 6.30/7pm, she was actually just having a #powernap to give her enough energy to practice her new found skill for a few more hours😩 As tiring as it was, like everything else it was just a phase, and it quickly passed.

I have always just followed Bonnie’s lead (#babyled) in most of what we do and cutting down to one nap was a natural phase for Bonnie. But she loves to learn, play, chat and move (like all other 18 months olds!)

What I have found that works during these sleep regressions is to;

• KEEP routine as normal as possible
  (Dinner, bath, quiet time, bed)

Our quiet time / wind down time is reading a book, or doing sticker books

• ENSURE they are absolutely READY for bed. Even if this means going to bed an hour or two later than usual, because once they learn the nighttime routine, you can bring bedtime forward earlier if needed. So Bonnie’s bedtime used to be 6.30/7pm, I now do the same routine but settle her (breastfeed) to bed at 7.30/8pm

Having two teenagers and now Bonnie, I cannot stress enough how impressionable toddlers are. Between 12 months to approximately 3.5years is the most important time to set a good example, that will take your child through the rest of their lives.

Structure (I use that term very loosely, because we are definitely not a regimental family), plays a massive part in helping our babies learn about daytime/nighttime, mealtime, playtime etc.

Although toddler years can be challenging at times, they are constantly thriving to learn through us as parents to teach them and set them up with skills for life to be;
kind, caring, empathetic, to share, to be in control, to be patient , to be a leader, etc.

❤️BE THE PARENT YOU NEEDED WHEN YOU WERE YOUNGER❤️