Bedtime Rituals

I have never been a huge routine person, at least not at bedtime. I do like them in the mornings, but that's certainly not happening anytime soon. Well, not in the make coffee, read something I will enjoy, then start my day type of routine. Now it looks more like good morning laughter, change diaper (and clothes and sheets if needed), breastfeed, then I get to take a trip to the bathroom and maybe get some coffee (if my husband was a delight and made me some).

Several weeks ago, we instituted a bedtime routine for Evelyn. It starts with us walking downstairs to the bedroom; if she has been telling us she is ready for bed (meaning: if she is fussy) and we carry her downstairs she will just be delighted with us.

Then we close the curtains together (she also loves this if she isn't too frustrated with our lack of interpretation of her language).

She then gets to spend some time on our bed while I turn on the lights of our essential oil diffuser (again, if she is fussy I may take more time to fill the diffuser and add some oils to it).

Finally, with a nighttime diaper, sleeping outfit, and some baby lotion in my hand I join her on our big bed. This is when we do the majority of our actual bedtime preparation. I take off her daytime clothes, change her into a nighttime diaper, then do a bit of baby massage.

The massage is insanely simple, some gentle hands on her chest to calm her, then basically rubbing lotion down her arms and legs. When the massage is over, she gets her nighttime clothes (we call them ghost costumes, but they are just sleeping gowns).

To end the routine (read: put her to sleep) she gets all the milk she will take, then swaddled and laid into her baby bed.

Now what my bedtime routine looks like is a bit different. I fall into bed as carefully as I can so as not to wake up the baby after adding a cloth diaper to my bra in the dark room. Then if I am tired enough I just knock out. Lately, I have been intentionally heading down a tad early to read.

I have never been one for a nighttime routine. What are your bedtime rituals? Right now I am loving diffusing cedarwood and wild orange essential oils.