Is it that Time Already??

(This was a piece featured by Zazoo Kids)

I know what you’re thinking, you just got your family transitioned to the school year schedule and it’s time to go through yet another nighttime adjustment as Daylight Savings Time comes to a close (here in Chicago.)
Since 1918 families across the country have been changing their clocks according to the calendar, and each year around this time parents continue to stress over one very important hour. While that single hour out of the day may not seem significant to those who do not have young children, it can shift not only schedules and routines, but temperaments and moods for those with toddlers on their hands.
Toddlers and young school aged children are not accustomed to sleeping and waking according to the time on mom and dad’s alarm clock. And for those of us who typically tell our kids they can get up “when it’s sunny” there may be a moment of panic when DST rolls around. Even parents who don’t mind an early wake-up call, should keep in mind that this one hour difference will not only mean waiting two hours for the Today Show to begin, it will mean that your entire day has been thrown a curveball. Meals and naps will be affected, as well as bedtime, due to the fact that your little ones are exhausted from rising with the sun.
Whether you have a new baby, a rambunctious toddler, or a child who has to wake to catch the bus, there are steps you can take to help your children through any transition, including DST.
Step One: create (and stick to) a bedtime routine. Kids catch on quickly to routine changes, so even when the time changes, keeping your path to bedtime the same will keep your little one’s anxieties at bay.
Step Two: install blackout shades. These are a must-have at any age, and especially for kids who have been told to “wake when they see the sun.” Room darkening window covers can be temporary, and are great if you’re on a budget. These can be found at almost any home improvement store in a variety of different designs.
Step Three: plug in loud sound machine.. Having continuous sounds play throughout your child’s naptime or through the overnight hours will help to create a sense of familiarity. The sounds allow for a calm to be felt during all those little nighttime stirrings. The sound of waves crashing or rain falling creates the same sense of comfort, similar to that provided by a special lovey or blanket. These calming noises also help to stretch nighttime sleep by drowning out all the outside noises of the world that tend to wake a little one’s curious mind. Once the shades have been pulled and that white noise fills the room your child will know it’s time for sleep.
Step Four: set your ZAZOO KiDS clock. The ZAZOO KiDS photo clock is one of my absolute favorite ways to teach your tots when to rise and shine,. These clocks are not only educational, by helping to teach your toddler time, but they actually give your child a fun reason to stay in their bed until the time YOU have chosen. ZAZOO KiDS employs the concept of “showing the kids the time before the kids can actually read a clock.” A moon image on the clock indicates “sleep” while a sun image indicates “wake up.” There is also an option to have your child listen to music or their favorite bedtime sounds while drifting off or once they wake. The concept of these clocks is easy for toddlers to understand and I have found that they actually enjoy watching the time change and waiting for the digital sun to shine.
If you feel that your toddler may be more ‘sensitive’ to changes in their schedule, it makes sense to slowly make alterations for a smoother transition. Beginning the week before DST (this week!), move your toddler’s bedtime forward by 15 minutes each night until you have reached that 60 minute mark. Or if time gets away from you and it is suddenly the day before DST, you can choose to move bedtime one hour later that night and within a few days you will be back on track.
The one problem that may arise with these two schedule change solutions is that they both have you stretching your little one past their prime at bedtime and that may lead to a second wind that is made of nothing but frustrated energy. The one piece of advice that I tell every one of my clients is that sleep begets sleep. From my experience causing a child to be overtired can lead him to have a night’s sleep that is restless and shorter than usual. So if you know that your toddler quickly becomes overtired and it’s difficult to get them back on track and settled at that point, I would avoid these methods and just stick to my steps above.
There really is no “right choice” when it comes to handling fluxes within your home, there is just the best choice for you and your family. DST is just one of many transitions that your youngster will encounter, and over time you will learn which methods work best. Whether your solution is a multimedia clock or scheduling out a gradual nighttime change, you will quickly see what alterations make life run a little smoother, and maybe next year you won’t find yourself saying “Oh no, is it that time already!?”