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I’ve got a confession to make: My daughter has always been a good sleeper. From the time she was about 6 weeks old, she was sleeping through the night. By 4 months, she was putting herself to sleep.
She always loved her crib and never fought going down in her nursery. Bedtime was easy, and she could be counted on for at least 12 hours of sleep a night.
Don’t hate me.
For what it’s worth, I believe most of this had very little to do with me. I truly think my daughter was just naturally a good sleeper; there was not a lot required on my part to get her there.
That is, until she hit a phase called toddler sleep regression.
Around 2 1/2 years old, my good sleeper started fighting sleep. She was crying and screaming at bedtime, waking up every few hours, and getting up for good most mornings by 6 a.m.
It was brutal. And I worked diligently to get my good sleeper back, doing a ton of research. I used many of these tools over the next few months, until she was finally sleeping well again.
Here are 10 products that helped get us there.
‘You Are My I Love You’
Bedtime routines are an important cue for kiddos that sleep time has arrived. Books (and songs, rhymes, etc.) are a solid part of that. Our routine consists of a bath, brushing her teeth, and story time.
One favorite story is “You Are My I Love You,” by Maryann Cusimano Love. For my girl, the two stories she gets at night are a big part of helping her wind down.
Buy “You Are My I Love You” online.
Frida Baby 3-in-1 Humidifier
Keeping bedroom air from becoming too dry is a great way to stay healthy and nosebleed-free. And this humidifier is also an oil diffuser and a night-light. It also has an auto-off function for bedtime.
Just make sure to keep any humidifiers in your home clean or it will have the opposite effect.
Buy the Frida Baby 3-in-1 Humidifer online.
Young Living Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender oil is known to have a
About an hour before my daughter’s bedtime each night, I put a few drops of oil in a diffuser to help her to relax.
Buy Young Living Lavender Essential Oil online.
Logrotate Moon Lamp
One of the issues we had when switching from the crib to the toddler bed was that my little girl didn’t understand how to use her newfound freedom responsibly. She had a difficult time differentiating between nighttime and morning. She would come out of her room at all hours to check if it was time to wake up yet.
A night-light solved that problem for us. This gives kiddos some guidelines on night and day and to know when it’s time to get out of bed. If the moon is awake, it’s time for sleep.
Buy the Moon Lamp Night Light online.
Baby Gund Spunky Huggybuddy
Toddlers might want to have a favorite toy or blanket in bed with them for self-soothing purposes.
This is especially so if they’re calling for you often.
Obviously, you want to be careful of choking hazards. But for us, I can say that having a friendly lovie to cuddle makes a huge difference.
Buy the Baby Gund Spunky Huggybuddy online.
Intelex Microwavable Hooty Owl
Another product that I love is this stuffed Hooty Owl. It’s microwavable and filled with lavender.
I stick ours in the microwave as my daughter is going through her bedtime routine. It cuddles with us at story time, then follows her to bed. The warmth is especially soothing in winter.
Buy the Intelex Microwavable Hooty Owl online.
Best Home Fashion Blackout Curtains
A cool, dark, and quiet room is the best environment for toddlers to sleep in.
If light is shining in your child’s room when you want them to be sleeping (this is often an issue where we live in Alaska in the summer), blackout curtains or blinds are the way to go.
Buy Best Home Fashion Blackout Curtains online.
Homedics MyBaby SoundSpa
We live in a condominium that’s often alive with the sound of neighbors with whom we share walls.
I’ve found that a white noise machine is essential for drowning some of those random noises out. This helps my toddler sleep without distractions.
Buy the Homedics MyBaby SoundSpa online.
Aveeno Baby Calming Comfort Bath
As part of our bedtime routine, I often use a soothing bubble bath in my daughter’s tub.
I tend to dim the lights in the bathroom at bath time, too.
This increases her relaxation.
Buy Aveeno Baby Calming Comfort Bath online.
Storkcraft Hoop Glider and Ottoman
One of the main baby products I was adamant I needed when I first became a new mother was a quality rocker/glider. Now that my daughter is nearly 3 years old, I swear that it’s the product that still gets the most use.
We rock in her glider every night as part of her bedtime routine. It’s definitely a big part of helping her wind down.
Most of these products are kid-friendly and ready to help you get the nighttime snuggle on. Others, however, should be used only by parents (like essential oils and humidifiers), so take care that these are safely stored.
Find the bedtime products that help your specific kiddo get the sleep they need. It may require a little trial and error, but you’re ready for the challenge.
If you find that getting to sleep is too challenging for your little one, talk to your pediatrician for some advice.
