Hi! Are you struggling on how to sleep train your little one throughout the day and night? I will share my tips and routine on how I sleep trained my 18 month old son. I’m not a professional just a simple mom sharing what works for my family.
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How I sleep Trained my 18 month old
Starting the day early is by far the most important step on how I sleep trained my 18 month old son. Remember, you want them up in the morning so they can fall asleep later. Knowing exactly when to wake up your child matters when sleep training.
Wake them up in the Early Morning
There are ways to wake them up without the need of immediate physical contact. Allowing your child the opportunity to wake up on their own is better in my opinion.
- Let in sunlight. This pretty much wakes up anyone lol. Open the curtains just enough to let some sunlight into the room (not too much & not too little). Try to avoid brightening their little eyes or skin with too much sunlight.
- Open the bedroom door. This will allow them to hear voices as well as any TV or radio playing.
- Walk inside their bedroom & call their name softly. Ex:”Zachy wake up” or I also say “Wakey, Wakey” in a sweet and gentle tone-this is very important.
Repeat if necessary.
Keep in mind that children need a set amount of sleep hours for their growth and development.
My son Zachary begins his day around 7:35 am. I make him a bottle, get him ready and then we are off to dropping his big brother Alex at school.
Afterwards, we come back home to have breakfast. Once we are done eating we leave to get some errands done or attend a toddler class.
Having some outdoor time allow us to get fresh air and exercise. When I mean exercise I mean simply walking. Taking steps to the car, walking the aisles at the supermarket or searching for a book at the library.
All of these everyday movements will eventually help to tire your toddler out. And, as a result, it will make the process of putting them down for a nap easier. This is just another tip for sleep training your child.
Give Them a Satisfying Lunch
Toddlers at this age typically nap twice or at least once a day and by having a healthy fulfilling meal helps to keep them asleep longer.
I like to make lunch for my son right before his naptime (12:00pm-2:30pm). You definitely want to make sure that they eat most of their food. Having a nice full belly helps in the process of sleep training your toddler. Keep in mind, that it doesn’t always need to be a full meal, just enough to satisfy his/her hunger.
I recommend letting them relax a bit after eating lunch. Perhaps put on their favorite television show, I usually put on PBSkids or the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. After some time has passed by I will pick him up and lay him inside of his crib.
However, this part can get very tricky. Most of the time I get lucky and he falls asleep within minutes, no crying involved. But other times he will whine and cry. I let him, but if it gets too intense I just take him out of the crib.
If this sounds familiar to you, my advise is to let them cool down. Give your toddler time and then try again in about 15 minutes. This usually works for us.
Take Them a Bath
Sometimes a simple bath before a nap can make a huge difference. Remember, they play a lot and get dirty easily. An afternoon bath can help relax their mind and body. I’ve also noticed that when I give him one he will stay asleep longer!
On the other hand, if my son still gives me a problem to nap, I get him ready and within minutes we are out the door. I know my next step will put him to nap 99% of the time.
Drive if Necessary
This doesn’t happen a lot but when it does I say DRIVE. Staying home can be an option because I know he will fall out sooner or later. But, if you need them to fall asleep ASAP and you’ve done everything you can think off then just drive.
Because I need to be out the door at a certain time for school pick up I put Zach in his car seat, strap him in safely and head out. I drive with the radio music on. Not too loud of course but the car ride and sounds tend to help get my toddler sleepy.
For moms that pick up their older kids from school (like me) I suggest you drive there. Arrive 40 mins or 1 hour earlier than normal. On the bright side at least you’ll get a good parking spot and a sleeping toddler!
Having this extra free time allows me to head on over to a drive-tru first for some coffee or a quick meal. It’s why I love drive-tru. They are so convenient for moms. I then drive to his school, park and eat my meal peacefully.
Once it’s time to head on out I wake up my toddler gently or he wakes up on his own. We then processed and begin our short walk to my oldest’s school. Please keep in mind that I only do this as a last result. I try my hardest to mostly have him nap at home comfortably.
No Naps After 6pm
Naps are essential for a toddler’s growth development, however, I understand that not all like them. In that case, having some down time is nice too. You can let them play with puzzles, blocks or use this time and read a book to them.
If your little one likes to take two naps a day that’s amazing! Let them sleep is what I say. However, I would advise not letting it get too late.
Zachary used to take two naps a day. The first one was usually from 11am-2pm. It would last an hour or two. The second would occur around 4pm-6pm. The key here was to not him sleep pass 6pm.
By having Zach up around 6pm it allowed us to feed him dinner and enjoy some last of the day playtime. It’s how we sleep trained our 18 month old son.
Start a Night Time Routine
A bath at night is the perfect way to begin your toddler’s night time routine. Their little bodies are able to relax in the water and feel fresh/cool especially during those hot summer nights. My husband and I take turns doing this. Some nights I will bathe him and other times he will.
A night time bath is their last fun of the day. It will help get them ready for bed. It’s just another step in how I sleep trained my 18 month old toddler.
We begin bath time around 7:45pm and it has been the same since he was a newborn. Being consistent is a very important factor.
We currently use Johnson & Johnson’s Baby moisture Wash and Baby moisture Lotion. I love it! It keeps my baby’s skin soft and moisturized. I get it all the time.
However, I also use their bedtime products Johnson & Johnson bedtime bodywash and J&J Bedtime lotion. They smell really good and I recommend them.
After a nice warm bath we put his pjs on. Reading a book is a nice way of squeezing in any last minute reading for the day. Plus it gives both parents a way to spend some quality time with their child.
We then get his bottle ready. He currently uses the NUK Active cup.
I love it! The best transitional bottle out there. I used it with my first born as well. Once his milk is ready we all kiss him goodnight and off to his crib he goes.
Buy a Night Light with Melodies
I love sharing my bedroom with my toddler. When he gets a little older we will eventually move him to his brother’s bedroom but for now we are happier this way.
Once our toddler is in his crib we dim our bedroom lights and turn on the Skip Hop Moonlight & Melodies Nightlight. It has the perfect combination of light and sounds. I recommend every parent to get this item. We use it during nap time as well. It’s a life saver.
Since we have a baby monitor in Alex’s bedroom it allows us to see and hear all sounds coming from there. We use the Motorola Comfort Video Baby Monitor.
And because Zachary sleeps in our bedroom the baby monitor allows him to hear the melodies and natural sounds. This saves us from having to buy an additional nightlight. If you are wondering wether the melodies annoys us, nope they do not. Surprisingly, it actually helps us fall asleep quicker.
You can watch my full YouTube review video on it:
However, once your toddler is asleep you can always turn off the nightlight melodies and keep the nightlight still shining for them. This is why I like this product. You can put a timer or have it play continuously until you shut it off the next day. For us we just let it play.
Next, we then elevate his head with a pillow while he drinks. It has been said that by doing this it lowers their chances of getting an ear infection. Once he’s done drinking his bottle we remove the pillow immediately.
Avoid Having Toys Inside the Crib
Sleep time should be just that, sleep time.
Avoid having the TV or any electronic devices on. This will only cause a further delay in falling asleep. I suggest removing any toys within arms reach as well. We want the child to fall asleep as soon as possible.
Recently, we have allowed him to sleep with his Mickey Mouse stuffed animal. He hugs it and falls asleep within minutes. Mickey Mouse helps to provide a sense of security to him. Mickey Mouse and his blanket are the only two items inside of the crib.
This is what works for my son. And the best part is, he will stay asleep until the next day. Okay, okay there might be some late nights where he might wake up lol. But, we just rub his back a little and back to sleep he goes. It helps to reassures him that we are still here.
His crib is right next to our bed so keeping him close makes us happy. We can hear and see him at all times.
I hope my blog post helps you. It is how I sleep trained my 18 month old to nap and sleep throughout the night. Please share this with anyone that you think would benefit from it or pin it to your Pinterest board for later.
Sleep safely and talk soon!
Hugs,