If you follow any parenting blogs or social media accounts, you know that they commonly tout the benefits of a bedtime routine for kids. According to studies, a consistent bedtime routine can improve kids’ sleep, help children learn self-care, and improve cognitive skills. But beyond that, a bedtime routine can also help to build parent-child bonding which can boost mood, stress levels, and behavior.
Our bedtime routine with Big L and Little L is an ever-evolving process, but for the most part, it’s probably not all that different from what most parents do. A variation of bath time, brushing teeth and reading books. While Little L plops down in his crib with his butt up in the air and yells, “goodnight,” Big L is still in the phase where he wants one of us to lay with him before bed.
I know there’s advice out there about how to break this pattern, but selfishly, this is one of my favorite parts of the day and not a phase I’m ready to let go of any time soon. It’s during this time that Big L and I have bedtime conversations, and these exchanges are the sweetest, most touching, and often humorous conversations. Even if it’s been a full evening of threenage tantrums, these bedtime conversations restore my faith in my sweet, loving child, and serve as a constant reminder of why I love being a mom.
It turns out that while these bedtime routines help our children, they can be equally beneficial for us as parents. According to research, pre-bed rituals can help to decrease parenting stress which can positively impact children’s emotions, regulate behaviors, and increase their willingness to learn.
Science aside, here are some of the cutest things Big L. has said during our bedtime conversations:
“You’re the best mommy in the world”
After I tell him “thank you for making me a mommy,” he often responds, “thank you for making me Big L”
He also sometimes follows this one with “thank you for making daddy, daddy,” and “thank you for making little L!”
Sometimes I tell him, “you’re my boy, blue!” to which he replies, “you’re my boy, yellow!”
When he’s ready to be alone he tells me he needs room and then often asks for a hug, a kiss, a high-five, and a fist bump, in no particular order.
This made me wonder, what do other parents love most about their own bedtime routines with their kids? So, I took to social media to find out, and here is what some parents shared:
[My 7-year-old says]
“My snuggle bar is extremely low right now. If you do not increase the snuggles immediately, you will go to snuggle jail.”
-Maggie, 7
“When I wasn’t feeling well, my eight-year-old climbed in my bed and rubbed my back. While his little hands were patting he said, ‘do you feel better?’ I asked why he said that and he said ‘I feel better when you rub my back when I have a nightmare.”
–Sam, 8
“My son is usually pretty good about putting himself to sleep but if he’s not getting there, he strips naked from the waist down.”
–Aiden, 2
“I don’t want the frog in the bed.” and “No mommy, not goodnight. It’s happy dreams!”
-Ava, 2
“After bath, teeth and hair brushing, she demands ‘Punzel,’ a sleep dress, and snuggles. Then she requests to kiss everyone in the house, including the dogs!”
-Astraea, 2
“Before he lets us put him in his crib, he tells us an animal of the night. We all have to pretend to be that animal while he hops, flies, or jumps to the crib.”
-Collin, 2.5
“He’s obsessed with vacuums lately. He will sweetly ask to ‘vac?’ now when he’s trying to delay bedtime.”
-Owen, 16 months
“When my daughter was two, she made us sing the song from Sleeping Beauty every night before bed. Most nights included a dance!”
-Selena, 6
What are your favorite things your little ones say or do before bed? Share them in the comments below!
Such a cute read. I don’t care what research says, enjoy every moment with the boys.