Have you ever noticed that your baby or toddler will sometimes struggle with sleeping by themselves but when you go to pick them up and cuddle them or bring them into bed with you they sleep soundly. 

When i was a room leader in the baby room of a day nursery i recall this one child who was a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde. He was 2 years old, adorable and so well behaved .... …..until his mum came to collect him.

When his mum brought him in for a settling in session she warned us that he could be very challenging. We were told to expect tantrums and meltdowns daily but they almost never happened.

Mum would drop him off to nursery and daddy would pick him up.

This one particular evening mummy came to get him instead of daddy. Daddy was held up at work and the little angel that we were used to seeing  suddenly disappeared and in his place... the Tasmanian Devil! 

Daylight Savings TIme (DST) is fast approaching meaning the clocks will be changing soon here in the UK and will be moving forward by 1 hour.

On the last sunday in March every year our clocks ‘spring forward’ an hour at 1 am ( making it 2am) marking the start of British Summer time. This year the clocks change on Sunday March  25th.

This means we lose an hour of sleep but  great news for parents of little ones who like to wake up ready to party at the butt crack of dawn!

So in anticipation of Spring forward should you plan ahead for the time change?

That all depends on you & your little one, your little ones personality and ability to cope with overtiredness and slight change will determine how you might  decide to prepare for the clock change.

How Hormones can help or Hinder Your Little One's Sleep

Overtiredness in your little one can turn bedtime, naps and getting them to sleep into a battle!

“ Surely if my baby or toddler is overtired falling asleep will be seamless and they’ll sleep really well, right?  Wrong!”

Overtiredness does to your little one what coffee does for you when your tired!  It keeps you going and awake but it doesn't stop the tiredness and if you have coffee too close to bedtime it makes it super hard to fall asleep and stay asleep. 

How To Help Your Baby Sleep

Part One: How I Approach A Sleep Difficulty

No baby or toddler wants to be awake at 3am! Not really.

Separation Anxiety and Sleep ( or the lack of it!)

Many mums ask me about separation anxiety and know and expect it to rear its ugly head at the 9 month mark causing crying clinginess crankiness and sometimes sleepless nights. A lot of mums don't realise that separation anxiety, while difficult to deal with in the short term ,  is a good thing and that it can rear its head during the toddler years too sometimes having an even  bigger impact on sleep ( or the lack there of) 

#NightNannyDiaries 

Sometimes they just need……

Coping During A Heatwave - Keeping Your Baby Cool Overnight

Summer is officially here in the UK but we are not used to such glorious weather very often!!  This heat is fantastic but makes life difficult for the older and younger members of the family. The sun feels glorious during the day but at night the stickiness and heat is no fun for any of us in particular the babies. Even babies who sleep through the night will struggle in this heat.  Here are my top tips to help make night times more comfortable for your little one and help them continue to get the sleep they need  despite the hot sticky weather. 

Hey mummies/mommies

My guess is, if you're reading this right now, is  you have a baby or a toddler who WAS a pretty good  sleeper but now seemingly out of nowhere their  former sleep habits have disappeared and they're now waking a few times over night, or the 2 brief wake ups overnight have become 5 to 6 wake ups overnight, you’re clueless as to why. They're not teething, they haven't been ill and Sleep and night feeding has been upside down for too long for it to be a growth spurt. 

So what the eff is going on? 

Well it's possible your little one is experiencing A SLEEP REGRESSION which is both a blessing and a curse. 

I Don't Care About Sleep, But What I Do Care About Is.........

An acquaintance  asked me the other day why I'm so passionate and obsessed with sleep. And it made me realise something….. I actually don't care about sleep all the much ( unless im at home and unable to nod off that is) But what i do care about is being a confident and connected mum. Being a mother  is the hardest most demanding  job in the world yet so rewarding but going to work on a job with no sleep and n real idea what to do is no fun, being a new mum  for many is  exactly that. Going to work at a new job without any training or experience  and no sleep  whatsoever on top of that. We all know we are not at our best without much sleep, imagine having to perform at a job with no training and no sleep. Welcome to motherhood!!