Sleep routine for two under two...

[Tessie87]

Hi all,

Just after some tips and advice from anyone who has had two children close together and how to go about putting them to bed solo! Youngest is 6 months and eldest will be two in a few months time, there’s a 15 month age gap between them.

Currently my partner and I take one each as they have different bed times, youngest 6:45 and eldest asleep by 8. We are trying to bath them together now to slowly align their times a bit but eldest then needs more in the way of story time etc.

How have other people managed both on their own? I’ve been lucky so far as lockdown has meant my partner hasn’t worked away at all, so we’ve both been there.

For context, youngest is breastfed before bath time etc, sleeps in a cot in our room and is slowly learning how to go to sleep by himself, but I don’t want to do cry it out methods so we stay and support. He is still hit and miss as to how long it takes him to go to sleep. Eldest will go to sleep on his own but as I mentioned does need a few stories etc and to be properly wound down or he arses about and tries to climb out of his cot etc.

Hope that all makes sense, and any advice would be welcome. I’ve built it up in my head to be this really difficult task, and I feel a bit anxious about it...thanks in advance!

14 months between my eldest two children, I remember it well.

I would suggest

• feed youngest before bath, so not crying hungry
• bath together
• wrap youngest in towel. Floor or bouncy chair while you dry eldest and into night clothes
• wind cuddle youngest on your shoulder (in preparation for bed) while reading story and kissing eldest good night.
• once eldest settled, move focus to youngest, getting ready in night clothes and settling in cot with dummy.

Good luck! Gets easier as they get older (my eldest two are 14 and 15 now)

I have 14 month age gap with my 2 under 2

When I do solo bed time I bath them together. Get DD our first dry / get into sleep suit and pop on floor while I get DS out get him dried teeth brushed into pjs etc. I usually start singing bedtime songs / lullabies while I’m doing it.
Take both into DS room and get him into bed. Read while either holding DD or pop her down on his floor while we read. Once DS is all tucked in I take DD into her room for a bottle (sometimes I feed her during story in DS room) and another story. Pop her down in her cot and she drifts off to white noise