Tried And True Bedtime Routine

If there’s anything I’ve learned since becoming a parent, it’s that children thrive with structure.

They want to know what’s happening when and what to expect. I know I’m not the only one who hears a broken record all day repeating, “Mommy, what are we doing in the morning?” I say this knowing full well our family’s life has been anything but stable the last 2 years as we’ve spent it moving to and from 4 different living spaces due to a major home remodel, only to end it with a new sibling a few months after returning to our house.

That many changes can be taxing on such little guys, but thankfully our kids have been amazingly adaptable and flexible. I attribute much of that to the fact I try to ensure there are consistencies throughout their weeks and days. This helped immensely, especially when it came to our nighttime routine.

Honestly, I’m 95% positive that this is the main reason our kids slept so well regardless of where they were sleeping from month to month.

I can’t promise staying consistent with a nightly routine will resolve your 2 year old’s sudden “I don’t want to go to bed, I want to play” tantrums, but it will give you a good 45 minute schedule to get him to wind down and ease into the bedtime zone.

If you haven’t nailed down a routine of your own or are looking for some variations, I’m sharing our tried and true regimen in hopes it will help prepare your little ones for bed without any fuss and show any mini skeptics that bedtime really can be fun!

*Begin This Routine 45 minutes prior to bedtime (at least)

Bedtime Snack

Having a small snack prior to bedtime- unless you’ve literally just had dinner of course, lets us know our kids will not wake up hungry in the night. Sometimes the toddlers need a little something more to fill their bellies for the night- especially those where dinner was merely picked at.

Go Potty

Do this prior to putting on jammies. When your potty trained 2 year old is still wearing one piece pajamas it is extremely frustrating to take them on and off.

Pajamas On

Brush Teeth and Vitamins

My kids love taking their vitamins so much because they get to choose the colors and of course they are sweet. Sometimes I use them as an incentive to get to bed- “Who wants vitamins?!” My toddler falls for it every time.

Read Stories

We let each kid choose one book and we all get into a big bed and read together under the covers.

*Some nights we play a game as a family or let our kids play with their toys longer. On these occasions we tell them that this activity will take the place of stories and make sure they are alright with that before letting them continue. Communicating that always helps alleviate any issues that may arise when we get to this step and they realize there’s no bedtime story.

Lights Out and into Beds

Pray and Sing

If prayer is part of your daily life, adding it into your children’s bedtime routine is so sweet. I keep the prayer pretty much the same- again consistency, but I adapt it based on the events of the day. Then I sing songs. I wrote a song for each of them when they were babies, so I sing those and then a few others. Can’t sing you say? Listen, you don’t need to write your kids songs or even be able to sing for it to be appreciated. My MIL cannot sing on pitch, but my son still insists she sing to him the nights she spends at our house. Music is such a calming tool for children, especially rambunctious, unhappy toddlers- trust me- I’ve learned this firsthand.

Hugs and Goodnights

After songs we do hugs, kisses and say our goodnights and “I love yous”. Everyone gets a tuck in if requested and we shut the door.

We’d love to hear your tried and true bedtime routines in the comments! Please share!