With the holidays upon us, many parents worry about their baby’s or toddler’s sleep, particularly during visits from family or when hitting the road. While this should be a time of joy and happiness, we all know that a cranky baby can easily take the fun out of things. Try these tips to help make the season bright, and well-rested, for baby and you.

Baby Sleep and Traveling
1. Before you travel, make sure you have a well-established nap and bedtime routine. This will make it easier when you are traveling, as your baby or toddler will know what to expect.
2. Consider adding a specific baby sleep CD to your baby’s routine now, so that you can play it while away, and your baby will associate it with sleep.
3. If your baby is old enough, consider introducing a baby lovey before your trip for added comfort in a “foreign” place. A simple baby blanket or baby pillow are nice choices. If you have a newborn, you can try to swaddle your baby for added comfort.
4. Depending on the age of your baby, you may want to sleep on your baby’s receiving blanket before you go, so it smells like you. Give it to her when she sleeps and your scent will help her to feel you near, even if you are in another room.
5. If you are traveling time zones, try to get onto the normal clock schedule as soon as you can, within reason. If you are traveling late at night, allow one day of sleeping in and off-schedule naps, but then try to get back on schedule the following day. If you travel early enough, stick to the regular schedule right away for an easier transition across time zones and battling jet lag.
6. Stick to your baby’s schedule as much as you can without sacrificing fun on your trip, but once you get back home, try to get back to your normal routine as quickly as you can. Otherwise, parents often complain that several weeks later they are still feeling the effects of their traveling. If your baby has trouble getting back on schedule after a week or two, you might consider formally shifting his schedule.
7. Make sure you have a good, comfortable bed for your baby or toddler to sleep in, like a portable Pack-n-Play for baby or a portable child bed for your toddler. If you have a bed at your travel location, you may want to purchase a portable bed rail.
8. If you are in the middle of changing your baby’s sleep habits and routines, you will likely need to abandon your efforts until you get back home. Consistency is a key and since schedules are out of whack and you’re visiting a different place, you likely won’t have a lot of success. If you’ve already succeeded in establishing routines and sleep habits (or will by the time you travel), things might not be perfect during your travels, but once you get back it usually only takes a few days to get back to normal.

Baby Sleep and Holiday Visitors
It can be challenging when holiday visitors want the baby or young children to stay up and visit with them when they should be sleeping. This is especially true of those traveling far distances. For those who have children who do not get cranky, this will probably be a non-issue and you can be as flexible as you want to be. But, for those who have kids that get very cranky, you might not be able to be that flexible. Here are a few tips help you through:

1. Explain to your visitors that you understand how limited their time is with your child, but that his sleep needs have to be a priority to ensure his behavior, happiness, and well-being.
2. Try to involve visitors like grandma and grandpa in the nap or bedtime routines.
3. Try to plan ahead and have visitors come over after the first nap, because typically that’s the most important. That way, if the rest of the day doesn’t go exactly as planned, your baby might not be as overtired.

Now pack up the car or get the guest room ready! You’re equipped to take on and enjoy the holidays… hopefully with as few tears (from the baby!) as possible.


Nicole Johnson is a sleep coach and the owner of The Baby Sleep Site™, specializing in baby sleep products and consulting services. She is also the President of Babble Soft, a premier baby software company that further helps new parents with baby sleep issues. Nicole is a wife and the mother of two boys. With a B.A. degree from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Ohio State University, Nicole has also received an honorary degree in “Surviving Sleep Deprivation,” thanks to her son’s “no sleep” curriculum. She has become an expert on infant and toddler sleep and has made it her mission to help other parents solve their child’s sleep problems, too.