Most parents dread Daylight Savings Time. It can take a while to get children adjusted to a new schedule. I used to dread anything that dealt with sleep and our kids. I protect their sleep like its our most prized possession – because it is.
Our kids need sleep. They’ve never been the type to get cozy on the floor and pass out. They never fell asleep in their stroller or high chair. And they certainly never slept when we were at someone’s house. Not even when they were babies.
Our kids are the type of kids who need to sleep in their rooms and they all still get 11 – 12 hours of sleep a night. When they were little, we’d combat DST by moving their bedtimes forward or back 15 minutes every day for the entire week before or after. This was easier than dealing with the crankiness that ensue the day the clocks changed.
Now that they’re a little bit older we kind of ignore DST. It’s a non-issue.
What does that look like?
In the winter the girls go to bed at 7 every night. We usually head upstairs between 6 and 6:30 for some playing, reading, and bedtime routines. They typically wake up around 6:30 am. In the spring and summer they go to bed at 8 and wake up around 7:30. Essentially, their bodies are on the exact same schedule.
This works well for s few reasons:
It’s lighter out in the evening in the summer so the girls can play outside later.
It’s darker in the evening in the winter so they go to bed earlier. This gives me more time to myself, which I need when we’re cooped up in the winter. (I’m aware this may sound selfish but I’m also aware of what I need to be a great parent.)
The kids sleep later in the warmer weather which means I may get to squeeze a run in before they wake up in the morning.
There’s no worry about changing bedtimes because we stay on the exact same schedule.
How do you handle Daylight Savings Time?
xoxo
–k
Kristina Grum is a Certified Parent Educator who has over a decade of experience working with children, including being a classroom teacher. She currently teaches parenting classes in her local area and writes about shifting parenthood from barely surviving to thriving.
My toddler never slept outside of his bed either! But he slept fairly well at night, so that's a good thing.
I never had too many issues with the change – but I know many parents do!
I am just thankful we don't have this! LOL
Wow, this is really brilliant! We struggle with it and can I just say that I'm so jealous that your kids go to bed at 7pm in the winter??? Seriously awesome. We do the 10 minutes earlier each night for a week to try and get back on schedule but honestly, it's just hard because my son struggles to fall asleep no matter what. I like the idea of staying on the same schedule all year long and making the clocks not matter.