Surviving the Holidays without sacrificing sleep
The holidays are full of family, activities, good food, and plenty of fun. It is a season of happiness and joy. Unfortunately, it is also a season of meltdowns and tantrums for many with small children.
I look forward to the holidays each year. I love participating in the fun festivities in our community and especially enjoy how it brings people together. What I don’t look forward to during the holiday season is the overload of everything: sugar, activities, crazy schedules, presents, people, etc.
I’ve learned over the years that if I am not prepared before the madness happens, it overtakes my children, and rather than enjoying the season, I am simply surviving. And that’s just no fun.
At the top of my priority list is sleep.
Sleep seems to be the first thing that goes this time of year, and yet the thing we need the very most. Because of this, I have compiled your holiday survival list, so you can enjoy the holiday season without sacrificing your family’s sleep schedules (also less tantrums and more smiles).
Follow these key points, and I promise your household will run much more smoothly this year.
1) Understand family dynamics and how they might affect your child’s sleep
During the holidays, most of us have family and friends coming to us, or we are traveling to see them. Either way, there is a shift in the daily patterns and structure of your household, and blending of households is often inevitable.
If you are staying put this year and enjoying the holidays without visitors, then you might be smarter than the rest of us and you get to skip this part. Otherwise, read on.
When my son was a newborn, I got major anxiety about visits with family during the holidays. Don’t get me wrong, I love spending time with family and I was always happy to see them, but I just knew how stimulated he would get and how much it affected his ability to sleep.
What I realized was there were just too many people and noises, and despite their best intentions, they did not understand how that affected my baby.
I almost skipped holidays with my family the following year, but realized that if I simply had a conversation with them ahead of time, it might relieve some of the anxiety I was experiencing.
In short, I basically said, “I will do my best to participate in all of the festivities, but sleep has to take priority so I may miss out on a few things.”
The message I was communicating was basically that my child’s needs come first, and sometimes that means leaving in the middle of family game night to put him to sleep or to go to sleep myself.
Surprisingly, most people understood and respected my position.
2) Stick to your child’s current sleep schedule as best as possible
You might already be preparing yourself for nap times and bedtimes to go out the window.
If so, stop.
With all of the extra stimulation your child is experiencing around the holidays, they need more sleep, NOT less! Even though the holiday season is temporary, it is still important to keep your child’s sleep schedule as consistent as possible.
Here are some ways you can do this…
Plan travel realistically. My sister (bless her soul) booked flights at 6am for her husband, her, and their two boys to go out of state, and it was a nightmare, as anyone could have predicted. Maybe you get in later than you want, but at least your travel time won’t be completely terrible if you can plan for more realistic options.
Schedule activities around nap times. Sometimes this means you miss activities. Skip the family bowling outing rather than skipping nap time and dealing with a cranky child the rest of the day. OR, if you do want to participate, try and earlier nap so your child is still getting adequate day sleep.
Try for an earlier bedtime if a nap time wasn’t sufficient. It’s possible you might have several failed nap attempts, due to the simple fact that you might be in a new environment or your child is too stimulated. In this case, move bedtime up to ensure you reach your sleep goal for the day.
Keep your child’s bedtime routine. Sticking with the same routine you practice at home will help your little one feel more structured amidst the chaos.
3) Prepare a healthy sleep environment
The environment is quite possibly the biggest challenge when traveling for the holidays or when space is an issue. If your child is being put in a new environment for sleep, it can be overwhelming or very disruptive for healthy sleep.
Here are a few ways you can anticipate and prepare a sleep environment if you are traveling or hosting visitors:
Plan your child’s sleep environment ahead of time. This might mean bringing a Pack ‘n Play, preparing another room in the house, or borrowing a crib. If you have a share a room with your little one and aren’t used to that, a SlumberPod is a great option (use discount code MYSWEETSLEEPER$20 for $20 off).
Avoid bringing your child into bed with you if you can. Even though it may just be for a few days, if your child is not currently co-sleeping, while traveling isn’t usually the best time to start implementing this. If your child is older and that is the only option, that is ok! I would just try to communicate to your child that it is temporary and not something you will continue when you get home.
Ask family members and friends to be respectful of their noise level during nap and bedtimes. It might mean they need to leave the house during this time or plan a quiet activity during a scheduled nap or bed time.
Consider getting a hotel room, or encouraging family and friends to check out local hotels. If you are traveling and you are worried about noise interruption, a hotel or airbnb might be a better option. This could also be a good option if you are worried about your child crying through the night and causing disruption for others.
If traveling, try and bring a few things that are familiar to your child, such as a lovey or blanket. Bringing familiar items can help your child feel comfort and security and for children older than 12/18 months is perfectly safe to use during sleep.
4) Avoid sugar as best as possible
During the holidays there seems to be one thing there is no shortage of…sugar! Growing up, I always looked forward to making cookies, building gingerbread houses, and enjoying a large cup of hot cocoa. And don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy these holiday treats. But I have also learned that sugar and my kids equals significantly more meltdowns and sleep interruptions.
So that my kids don’t completely miss out, I have found a way to make some simple substitutions when baking and preparing treats.
Instead of…
Sugar- use syrup, honey, fruit juice, or applesauce
White flour- use almond or coconut flour
Cow’s milk use almond or coconut milk. Full fat milk is also great!
Canola oil use olive or coconut oil
Milk chocolate use dark chocolate or carob
Dyes- Fruits as natural dyes
In addition to these substitutions, these foods are off limits for my family before bed…
Fried foods, high sugar fruit, dessert, spicy foods, and other foods that are difficult to digest.
5) Consider whether you should adjust your child’s schedule if traveling to a new time zone
Last year we planned a trip to Disneyland around this time from the East Coast which meant at 7pm it felt like 10pm and our kids were falling asleep at the dinner table.
If you’re traveling for a week or less, it generally makes sense to keep your child in your normal time zone, and only make slight adjustments to their schedule. If you’ll be gone for more than a week, I suggest gradually shifting your child to the new time zone as soon as you arrive, which typically takes a few days depending on the time difference.
The holidays are meant to be enjoyed, and although a lot of us feel the stresses that come along with the season, lack of sleep shouldn’t be one of them. By following these simple steps, you are already on your way to surviving the holidays this year, all while getting the rest your entire family needs!
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