Life After I "Dew"

That's what I used to say to Jimmy back when we were dating and we'd talk on the phone till we just couldn't stay awake any longer. Now, some 8 years later, I say it to both of our babies every night when I tuck them in.

This post is part of a compensated campaign with Mom It Forward Blogger Network and Sleep Number but all my opinions are my own.


Bedtime is one of my most favorite times of day with my kids.  The house is dark, quiet, everyone is relaxed and calm.  The kids easily go to bed at 7 on the dot, without a fight even!  Ha!  Who am I kidding.  Our house is just as crazy, if not crazier, at bed time.  By then Jimmy and I are ready to just unwind, have some husband-wife time and unwind.  Our kids, mostly the older one, think it's time to watch "one more show" or read "one more story".  Between the protests, the teeth that need brushed, the stories to be read and prayers to be said, sometimes I'm ready for bed once it's all said and done.

Sleep Number wants to #stopthestall with their new SleepIQ Kids Bed and they asked me to share my tips on creating a bedtime routine and why sleep in important to us.  I am no sleep expert but here's a few things that work for us.


1.  Let them know what to expect.  With Kendall I've found that if she knows that bedtime is approaching and we give her a "warning" she's much more compliant once bedtime actually rolls around.  We've set a time at the 30 minute mark and when the timer goes off she knows it's time to go to bed.  The same approach applies when it comes to the actual bed time routine.  She knows before we even get started that she gets one book, one prayer and one song and then it's lights out.  This has been her routine for at least 3.5 years and it works.  Of course we have nights where she asks for more and some nights we let her have more but generally speaking she knows what to expect before we even get to the bedroom and doing so has allowed for a much smoother bedtime.

2.  Let them chose.  Kendall gets to pick out the book we read every night.  Some nights I cringe when she picks up Cat in the Hat or One Fish, Two Fish because "WHYYYYYYY do you have to pick such a long book!?" but she picks what she picks and I don't throw a fit.  The nights where I have chosen the book the routine doesn't go so well because she's still wanting to read her book.  So we let her scour the shelves of the playroom and pick out thee perfect book and all is good.

3.  Wind down time.  About 30 minutes before bedtime we let Kendall chose {see above} one show to watch to wind down for the night.  No judging.  Sometimes she will ask for "a little snack" which is either a string cheese, yogurt or oatmeal, and she'll relax quietly on the couch with Jimmy while I put James to bed.  Many times she has fallen asleep during this "step" eliminating the bedtime battle altogether!

4.  Connect.  During prayers each night we all thank God for something or ask him to help us in a certain area of our lives.  Some days Kendall's "special prayer" is as simple as "thank you for letting me have ice cream" and other times she blows me away with the heartfelt ones like, "please keep daddy safe on his trip".  I love this part of our routine because even if we don't get to "connect" during the day I can always count on this time to learn something about my little lady and what's important to her.

Sleep Number knows how important a good night sleep is to a child's success in school and extra-curricular activities.  That is why they developed the SleepIQ Kids Bed.  The SleepIQ Kids bed features eight smart solutions that improve sleep for both parents and children:

 Family Connected, Sleep PerfectedSM: The SleepIQ® technology dashboard lets you see how the
whole family is sleeping. Powered by Bam® Labs, SleepIQ tracks your sleep and helps you optimize it.  
 Know the comfort they’re getting: The bed adjusts and grows with them; they can adjust the firmness of the bed for comfort and support – their Sleep Number setting.
 Lifts them up when they’re down: Head-tilt feature is for reading in bed or comforting stuffy heads. I think this is so cool because there have been many times when Kendall has had a stuffy nose and I pile pillows under her head only to have her roll off of them the minute she falls into a deep sleep.
 No more kiddos jumping out of bed: Alerts you when your child is out of bed or restless.
 Stars for young dreamers: Make bedtime fun again with rewards for good sleep.
 Night bright, night light: You can turn lights off remotely – when they’re sleeping tight.
 Twinkle, tinkle: Soft under-bed light guides them when they get up during the night.
 Monsters be gone!: Sleepyheads rest easy with a fearless monster detector.  We have yet to battle the "monsters under the bed" but I absolutely love this and think it is genius and adorable.


Do you have a bedtime routine with your littles?  What does it look like?  What about this super cool bed from Sleep Number?  I kinda sorta want to run right out and buy two for my kids today!  I just love that monster detector!