Your Baby’s Sleep Over the Holidays
I love the holidays. The traditions, visiting family, the food, watching my kids get wrapped up in the season, it’s a special time of the year! Here is what I don’t love: a baby who is cranky because they skipped a nap, trying to decide whether to enjoy holiday festivities or prioritize a nap, road trips where my child is screaming the entire time, & room-sharing in a small hotel room with my baby.
Traveling with little ones will never be a perfect situation, but there are certainly things you can make your holidays a little less stressful (at least when it comes to sleep, I have no tips for dealing with your in-laws).
Traveling? Prep for Success:
- Pack the things that will remind your child of sleeping at home. This includes books, stuffed animals, PJ’s, sleep sacks, and even sheets!
-Short on packing space? Look into renting a crib or pack n play from places like Baby Quip. Most hotels will have a crib available to you.
-Don’t wait until you get to your destination to figure out your sleep situation. If staying with a family member, plan your sleeping situation ahead of time. If you’re staying in a hotel or short term rental, you can try to find something with a walk in closet that will fit your baby’s pack n play. You can also try to rearrange furniture in the room and strategically string up some sheets to block your baby’s view of you. A great solution to room sharing is the SlumberPod, be sure to use my code RESTTOME$20 at checkout!
-If you plan to bring a pack n play, SlumberPod, or portable toddler bed with you, set it up at home and let your child play and get familiar with it. Once they are comfortable with it, let them sleep in it at home for a few nights prior to you leaving.
Time Your Roadtrip:
-For car trips, try to align nap time with the time you leave, if possible. Most babies love to sleep in the car, even when it’s not nap time. Although it’s not the most restorative sleep, it definitely beats a screaming baby. Make sure that they are comfy in the car. Put them in PJs and take off their shoes. Use a travel white noise machine in the back seat. Remove any toys from their reach. Make sure that your back speakers are turned off. Make sure that the sunroof cover is closed and sunshades are up.
I realize that for families with multiple kids, it isn’t always possible to plan around every child. Try to plan around your youngest or most sensitive sleeper.
-If you have a short trip to a family member’s house, but leaving lines up with nap time, embrace a car nap. You can even extend the nap by allowing extra time to stop for coffee or drive around for a bit.
Sneak in Playtime
-If you’re on a long road trip or are flying, make sure you sneak in some time for play. Sitting for long periods of time is not fun for anyone, especially kids. They will need to get out energy. Some airports even have playrooms. If on the road, you can stop for a meal break at a park.
Once You’re There:
-Once you are settled at your destination, get your baby familiar with the room and let them play in the space they will be sleeping. For older kids, you can practice putting their stuffed animals to sleep in the bed.
-Enjoy yourself! Whether you’re away, your child’s sleep schedule will probably be thrown off a bit. That’s okay! You know the 80/20 rule for diet? Apply that to your baby’s sleep as well, maybe even allowing closer to 50/50 on a really busy today. Attempt to maintain their normal sleep schedule 80% of the time. The other 20% can be spent “off schedule”.
For those babies who are taking more than 1 nap, I like to make sure that at least 1 of the naps is in a dark, quiet room where your baby can get some consolidated sleep. Let the other(s) be on-the-go, held, or maybe let the schedule be off a bit. If your’e skipping a nap or naps weren’t good that day, prioritize getting to bed on time.
If you’re able to keep naps on track, you can always push back bedtime if you want some extra time with family.
If your toddler is on a 1 nap schedule, you can let the nap be short or on the go, prioritizing that bedtime is on track.
-Keep your bedtime routine the same. You may be tempted to speed through the routine or change things up while you’re away from home. However, this is definitely the time that consistency is key!
-Try to respond to wakings as you would at home. Most of the time this will work, but sometimes the unfamiliar environment may not make that possible
Give your baby some extra TLC if they're uncomfortable in their new sleep environment. I prefer to do this at the bedside instead of picking them up or bringing them into bed with you. You can sit at the edge of their sleep space and give verbal reassurance, hold their hand, or rub their back.
-Avoid two days in a row of fragmented sleep, if possible.
Dealing with Family Gatherings
-If you have an infant that will contact nap, even while there is chaos around them, let some snuggles happen for your family members.
-Set up a sleep space. Take advantage of a quiet bedroom and set up your pack n play. Let your baby get familiar with the room before you put them down for a nap. Go through your regular bedtime routine before hand.
-Communicate with family members. I know that Aunts, Grandparents, and long-lost relatives are all begging for some time with your little one. They may be pressuring you to let babe skip a nap so they can soak in all the snuggles. They may even criticize you for your parenting style being “too strict” with sleep schedule. I get it. Here is the thing though… is Great Aunt Mable going to wake up at 3AM with your over-tired child who can’t seem to calm down and fall back to sleep? I didn’t think so.
Your best course of action is to be upfront from the start, so family members know what to expect
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I hope that you have a great holiday season! Once everything has calmed down, you will probably be ready to get back to normal. Check out this blog post to find out how I get sleep back on track after the holidays!
