Daylight saving lets us have fun outside later, have a bit of sunshine after work, and saves energy! But those of us who have kids needing to adjust to this new schedule know that daylight saving isn't all sunshine and smiles. Being up before the sun can cause a lot of grumpy mornings!
To help with this transition, we've put together a list of tips and tricks to start NOW so you're ready for the time change! Comment your daylight saving tricks below - we would love to hear them!
1. SLOWLY ADJUST BEDTIMES by 5 minutes each night. It doesn't sound like much of a change, but after 10 days, that's a whole 50 minute change! For example, if your little one goes to bed at 7:00 p.m. these would be your new bedtimes:
Thursday (today!) - 6:55 p.m.
Friday - 6:50 p.m.
Saturday - 6:45 p.m.
Sunday - 6:40 p.m.
and so on! You can even make the change in a shorter period by adjusting by 10 minutes a night, etc...
2. PLAYTIME. Since you'll be putting your little ones to bed earlier and earlier as you transition for the time change, they will need plenty of exercise to tucker them out. Adding a bit of outdoor play rather than the usual 30 minutes of TV can work wonders!
3. KEEP ROOMS DARK. Blackout curtains or any kind of darker color curtain can help with this! Keeping your little one's room darker makes sure that daylight and nightlight changes don’t interfere with their sleep.
4. CONSISTENCY! Make sure to keep your bedtime routine the same. Bath time, brushing teeth, read a few books and a diaper change are all small routines that tell kiddos that it's time for bed!
5. TRY OUT WAKE UP LIGHTS instead of alarm clocks. These lights replicate the sun rising and wakes you and your little ones slowly. By using this type of alarm clock, waking up before the sun will feel more natural!
We hope these tips can help you and your little ones prepare for the time change! We would love for you to share your ideas as well - Comment below!
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