Preschool boy in brown leaves

Time Change SLEEP Tips for your Toddler, Preschooler, or Big Kid

Help your toddler, preschooler or big kid adjust to the end of Daylight Saving time change with these Sleep Tips. Child Sleep and the Fall Back Time Change The leaves are changing colors, the air is brisk and I have my pumpkin spiced chai tea in hand. What’s just around the corner? The Fall Back Time Change, marking the end of Daylight Savings. The idea of an extra hour of sleep sounds dreamy, doesn’t it? But for many parents, there’s a bit of worry in the mix. Are wondering how this time change disrupt your child’s sleep patterns? Are you bracing for early morning wake-up calls, grumpy little ones, and a less-than-happy household? Worry not! I’ve got some expert sleep tips to help make the end to Daylight Savings time change transition smoother for your child. Circle November 5th, 2023, on your calendar – that’s when the time change happens, at 2:00 am. How to adjust your child’s sleep for the Daylight Saving Time Change Fall 2023:  SLEEP Tips How to Prepare your Child for the Time Change To help your toddler, preschooler or child prepare for the time change, start early! You can shift their schedule by 15 minutes …

Tracking Your Baby’s Sleep: Using Data from a Sleep Log to Help Your Baby Sleep Better

Is tracking your baby’s sleep the missing piece to solving your child’s sleep struggles? When it comes to navigating your child’s exhausting sleep habits, I’m willing to bet (perhaps with a bit of help) you can figure out why your child isn’t getting enough sleep or if a sleep association is why they aren’t sleeping, and maybe even see patterns from day to day and night to night if you are tracking your baby’s sleep. That’s the easy part…identifying the problem, right?! The more difficult part, though, is knowing what to do about it and tracking your baby’s sleep may help! [To help, get your free sleep tracker here!] If you need a cliff-notes version of the WHY, here it is: Your child is waking at night because of science, and they’re not able to put themselves back to sleep without your help because of human behavior. So, the question is…HOW do fix it so we can see positive change and healthy, sustainable sleep habits form? Lucky for you, by nature and by profession, I am a researcher. I like data. I love solving puzzles and I like figuring out WHY something isn’t working and HOW to fix it. This …

The Importance of Naps: A Guide to Better Sleep for Your Child

Mateo’s parents reached out when he was almost 6 months old. They were concerned that his short naps would start affecting his growth and development. According to them, his night sleep was not an issue. We discovered that part of the reason he was not able to nap well was because he was not able to self-soothe, resulting in 30-45 minute naps throughout the day. When they put him down at night, he was already asleep. His parents were so concerned about him getting the “right” amount of sleep during the day and would sometimes try to help him soothe between cycles to ensure the right amount of sleep.  The problem with this? It wasn’t quality sleep. When we started working together, I could see that he actually wasn’t getting enough sleep, and the sleep was fragmented due to him waking between sleep cycles. We adjusted his schedule, moved away from following his sleepy cues to prevent overtiredness (since he was now six months old, he wasn’t showing cues that he was tired even though he was actually quite tired!), and helped him learn some self-soothing skills. Ultimately, we were able to get him to yield solid, consistent naps which …

Safe Sleep Environment

Creating a Safe Sleep Environment for Your Baby

Your baby will spend a lot of time sleeping during their first year of life. At Little Sleepers, Big Dreamers my goal is to help your baby become a little sleeper, in a safe environment that is ideal for great sleep. Setting up a safe sleep environment for your baby is essential but may feel a bit overwhelming. To help, I created a safe sleep environment checklist to help your little one be a safe, little sleeper.  Pro tips: The American Academy of Pediatrics updated its Safe Sleep Environment Recommendations in 2022 to provide parents and caregivers with the most current information to help create a safe sleep environment for babies. Be sure to check out Table 3! The first year of your baby’s life is marked by rapid growth and development, and a safe sleep environment is vital to support your baby’s well-being. Allowing your baby to learn to fall asleep in a consistent and safe sleep environment can help everyone get the rest they need! Although the American Academy of Pediatrics Safe Sleep Environment recommendations were established for babies up through 1 year, it is important to create a safe environment for your little one even as they …

Summer Travel and Baby Sleep: 5 Tips and Tricks for a Restful Vacation

Traveling with a baby or young child can be an exciting and rewarding experience. But it can also present challenges when it comes to maintaining your little one’s sleep routine. When my oldest was young, we struggled with sleep! That made even short trips stressful and tiring. We don’t have family that live locally, so traveling was a must. Sometimes our sleep was so poor, I wanted to cancel the trip! I don’t want that for you! We knew we had to better understand sleep in order to help our family which is what we did! I want that for you, too! I have learned from experience that when our little ones sleep well (even when away from home), everyone is happier. Don’t let the idea of Summer travel and baby sleep make you a bit nervous! I’m here to help and share my secrets of Summer travel and baby sleep with you so your trip can actually feel like a vacation! From packing familiar items to adjusting your schedule, these tips will help you set your baby up for sleep success, no matter where you travel. Keep reading to learn how you can get your baby or child to sleep …