Get that Perfect Bedtime Routine for Your Baby

A baby’s bedtime is most crucial, as it decides the end to his day. That is why, it has to be seen that it becomes as comforting as possible for your baby. To make this happen, get the right mix of fun and relaxing activities so that the baby dozes off to sleep effortlessly.

Why Should You Set a Bedtime Routine for Your Baby?

It is advantageous for both the parents and the baby if you set a routine at bedtime for him or her. Not only does it help to establish a unique bond between the child and parent but it also gets the baby’s mind and body used to a set pattern, so that sleep comes to him automatically. This will be particularly helpful if you are not around to put him off to sleep or you are in new surroundings, wherein the changed environment will not affect his sleep pattern.

How Do You Set a Bedtime Routine?

There are a few ways and means by which you can put your baby to sleep at night, with no great efforts on each one’s part. I have found them particularly useful and hope that you too would feel the same. Some of 
them are enumerated as follows:

·         Selection Of Activities

Before setting a routine, you need to decide what will be the activities going into it. It is advisable to choose those, which soothe the mind rather than excite it. From my experience, over excitement can drive your baby’s sleep away.

·         Provide Outlet for Stored Energy

An outlet has to be provided to your baby to expel all his excess energy. I have observed that it is best if you bounce your child on a bouncer or on your knees or let him have a ride on his toy horse. Once you realize he is cooling off, change to a more relaxing activity.

·         Give a Good, Warm Bath

Your baby gets a good ache reliever through a nice, warm bath and if you add some drops of aromatic oils which you feel suitable for your child, it could enhance the calming effect on your baby. However if you realize that your baby is not geared for a bath at night, then you can drop this from your bedtime routine.

·         Have a Quiet Sitting Game

You and your baby can have some fun, playing any of his favorite sitting games. They could range from anything like building blocks or any other floor game.

·         Reading Aloud

This is one of the must haves in any baby’s bedtime ritual. The baby learns new words and if you get phonetics to be included in your stories, he learns new sounds. Moreover it also takes him to a different world altogether. I still have a couple of my childhood stories with me, as permanent memories.

·         Singing Lullaby

You can use this technique to speed up the sleeping process of your baby. If you make this a regular feature, then the end of the song signals the baby to close his eyes and go off to sleep.

·         Saying Good Night

Before your baby closes his eyes, you can make a practice to bid good night to all his favorite toys and you can add additional items of your choice like the other members of your family as well as all his stuffed toys. This will help the baby to familiarize with the different items in the house and know their names.
Get your baby used to this bedtime routine and you will have no cause for regret.

Buying Cot Beds - A Comprehensive Guide

Cot beds are one of the first things in your list if you are planning a nursery. A nursery should always be planned with safety and comfort as the utmost priority.  Newborn babies do not need a cot bed immediately as a crib; a carry cot or a Moses basket will be sufficient for them, but a cot bed is opted for by most parents as it can be used for a long period of time, sometimes even till the junior years.

Basic Factors You should look for in Cot Beds

While looking for a cot bed, there are some basic yet facts that you should know.

• Safety features are the first things you have to consider, above looks.
• The convertibility is an important factor to consider for a longer lasting bed
• It should be durable enough to survive a lot of wear and tear
• The base should be adjustable
• The price should match your wallet - parenting isn't about how much you spend but how much thought goes into the buy.

Safety Features in Cot Beds

There are some immediate safety features which you should look for and they are:

1. The cot should be deep enough for keeping the baby safe
2. The distance between the bars should be appropriate, less than one inch to prevent the baby from slipping
3. It should not have steps or cut outs
4. The rails should have a soft plastic coating to prevent the cot from being damaged and also to prevent injury to the baby
5. If you are buying a second hand cot, ensure that the safety features are still all in place.

Types of Cot Beds

There are many sizes and shapes of cot beds that are available in the stores. Some of them are:

• Corner shaped beds that can fit snugly into a corner in the nursery.
• Oval shaped cots that are easily converted to a sofa, chair or even a junior bed.
• Bedside cots that can be fitted to your bed. This is very useful during night feeding.

Dimensions of a Cot Bed

The standard size that is available mostly has a length of 146 cm and depth of 77 cm. The height varies between 90 cm and 105 cm, and most of the cots have a height adjustable system. If you want the cots to last longer, going for the large sized ones will be the preeminent option.

Flexible Dimensions

Here are some of the options that are available with these beds.

• Some cot beds can be adjusted so that the ends become shorter, getting a child prepared for a proper junior bed.
• Base height can be altered according to the age of the baby.
• There are generally three base heights offered. The lowest is safe for the baby and can be used till eight months.
• The second height is safe to be used in bed mode.
• A four height model is also available, but the flexibility is not that much, as the mattress will anyway be lowered during the early stages of the baby’s growth.

Adjustable Sides

Cot beds usually are of two types based on the sides such as:

1. Fixed sides
2. Drop sides

The drop side enables you to lift the baby easily. There are cots that have this mechanism on both the sides. Though a fixed side is sometimes considered a safer option, drop sides in cot beds can also be safe provided the safety standards are met with.