Category: childcare

7 Ways to Get Your Baby to Fall Asleep and Stay Asleep

Whether you’re nannying or parenting (or both!) chances are you’ve experienced sleep problems with baby. Here are some tried and tested techniques to help get baby to fall and stay asleep.

Night Parenting Decisions

Develop a realistic attitude about nighttime parenting. Sleeping, like eating, is not a state you can force a baby into. Best you can do is to create a secure environment that allows sleep to overtake your baby. A realistic long- term goal is to help your baby develop a healthy attitude about sleep: that sleep is a pleasant state to enter and a secure state to remain in.

Stay flexible

No single approach will work with all babies all the time or even all the time with the same baby. Don’t persist with a failing experiment. If the “sleep program” isn’t working for your family, drop it. Develop a nighttime parenting style that works for you. Babies have different nighttime temperaments and families have varied lifestyles. Keep working at a style of nighttime parenting that fits the temperament of your baby and your own lifestyle. If it’s working, stick with it. If it’s not, be open to trying other nighttime parenting styles.

Decide where baby sleeps best

There is no right or wrong place for babies to sleep. Wherever all family members sleep the best is the right arrangement for you and your baby. Some babies sleep best in their own crib in their own room, some sleep better in their own crib in the parents’ bedroom. Remember – sleep is not a state you can force your baby into. Sleep must naturally overtake your baby. Your nighttime parenting role is to set the conditions that make sleep attractive and to present cues that suggest to baby that sleep is expected.

Get baby used to a variety of sleep associations

The way an infant goes to sleep at night is the way she expects to go back to sleep when she awakens. So, if your infant is always rocked or nursed to sleep, she will expect to be rocked or nursed back to sleep. Sometimes nurse her off to sleep, sometimes rock her off to sleep, sometimes sing her off to sleep, and sometimes use tape recordings; and switch off with your spouse on putting her to bed.

Daytime mellowing

A peaceful daytime is likely to lead to a restful night. The more attached you are to your baby during the day and the more baby is held and calmed during the day, the more likely this peacefulness is to carry through into the night. If your baby has a restless night, take inventory of unsettling circumstances that may occur during the day: Are you too busy? Are the daycare and the daycare provider the right match for your baby? Does your baby spend a lot of time being held and in-arms by a caregiver, or is he more of a “crib baby” during the day? We have noticed babies who are carried in baby slings for several hours a day settle better at night. Babywearing mellows the infant during the day, behavior that carries over into restfulness at night.

Set predictable and consistent nap routines

Pick out the times of the day that you are most tired, for example 11:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Lie down with your baby at these times every day for about a week to get your baby used to a daytime nap routine. This also sets you up to get some much-needed daytime rest rather than be tempted to “finally get something done” while baby is napping. Babies who have consistent nap routines during the day are more likely to sleep longer stretches at night.

Consistent bedtimes and rituals

Babies who enjoy consistent bedtimes and familiar going-to-sleep rituals usually go to sleep easier and stay asleep longer. Yet, because of modern lifestyles, consistent and early bedtimes are not as common, or realistic, as they used to be. Busy two- income parents often don’t get home until six or seven o’clock in the evening, so it’s common for older babies and toddlers to procrastinate the bedtime ritual. This is prime time with their parents, and they are going to milk it for all they can get. In some families, a later afternoon nap and a later bedtime is more practical. Familiar bedtime rituals set the baby up for sleep. The sequence of a warm bath, rocking, nursing, lullabies, etc. set the baby up to feel that sleep is expected to follow. Capitalise on a principle of early infant development: patterns of association. Baby’s developing brain is like a computer, storing thousands of sequences that become patterns. When baby clicks into the early part of the bedtime ritual, he is programmed for the whole pattern that results in drifting off to sleep.

How to Ditch the Working Mother’s Guilt!

As mothers we all carry around a backpack full of guilt. No matter which way we turn or what we try to do, there is always niggles at the back of our minds telling us we should be doing more.

Maybe we shouldn’t return from work exhausted, or linger in the bath that little bit longer just to have a few moments peace and quiet, yet when all said and done, it has been clinically proven that guilt is quite simply a self-indulgent affair.

If you shake your head at this, think about it. Who does it benefit? Why do we feel it? We chastise ourselves for not spending enough time with our children, or for asking the nanny to attend a play, when really the only person it serves to help is us.

By putting ourselves through this mental torture we somehow believe that we are reaping what we deserve for our misdemeanours or failings as parents, yet none of us are failures, and our children would quite happily second that.

Having a nanny or child-minder is a wonderful option that many cannot afford. By developing a close relationship with your child’s daytime (sometimes night time) carer you are providing the next best thing to being there yourself. A good nanny will listen to your worries or fears, and will make sure they spend time researching your child and learning how best to handle them in order to produce a happy, well balanced and disciplined individual.

You little one will be showered with love, rewards, praise and also guidance whilst you are working providing for the family and being the best role model you possibly can. In a lazy nation, with surges of unemployment, bringing up a child that understands the value of working and sees it as a staple of everyday life should eradicate any guilt you may feel as you leave in the morning.

The pressure on us to perform is always immense, outside influences sometimes drip into our psyches and we feel the judgement as if it were tangible, coupled with our own persecutions it’s no wonder we feel wretched sometimes, so the best present you can give yourself is to nip guilt in the bud as soon as it starts to form.

Every parent is different, and no two parents have identical views on how to raise a  child, but quite simply if your little one is healthy, happy and secure, you’re doing the best you possibly can.

It’s perfectly natural to feel a little frazzled when you return from work to a child instantly demanding your attention, yet from previous evenings you’ll know this soon dissipates. No matter how great the childcare, or how old the child, even when having the best day of their lives, children will want mummy’s undivided attention as soon as she walks through the door. Some children don’t mind how they receive the attention, they will tantrum, or some will quite simply hug and hug and hug.

However a fabulous trick is to take a breath before you enter the house. If you’ve driven home, give yourself five minutes of uninterrupted peace, listen to classical music or read a favourite book before stepping into your home and your child’s arms fully refreshed and recharged ready for the bedtime routine.

Common Childhood Illnesses: A Guide

As someone with young children in your care daily, it’s important to have a basic understanding of common childhood illnesses and how to treat them.

Here are 5 common illnesses, their symptoms and how to treat them:

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Stain removal

Small children are messy, sticky creatures – there’s no getting away from it – and that means that their clothes, and yours, can take quite a beating at mealtimes and when playing. Treating stains properly straight away reduces the risk of permanent damage to clothes, which is good news when your favourite top has a close encounter of the strawberry kind.

Small children are messy, sticky creatures – there’s no getting away from it – and that means that their clothes, and yours, can take quite a beating at mealtimes and when playing. Treating stains properly straight away reduces the risk of permanent damage to clothes, which is good news when your favourite top has a close encounter of the strawberry kind.

Grass stains – soak in milk, rinse and wash as normal

Red fruits – stretch out the area where the stain is and pour boiling water onto it or soak in very hot water and agitate frequently

Blood – the best stain remover is that person’s saliva which contains enzymes to help break it down but in case you don’t want to teach children to spit or it’s a big stain you should run the stain under cold water. For delicate fabrics mix salt and water together and spread it on the stain or try hand soap.

Chocolate – wash as soon as possible in warm water and soap flakes or hand soap

Grease – the best method is to apply dishwashing liquid to the back of the stain (so the inside of a t-shirt for example), rub in and then rinse out with hot water from the back of the stain. If you can see any grease on the right side lift it gently with kitchen roll. Repeat if necessary.

Tomato – you can either stretch out the fabric, stain down, over a sieve or colander and pour boiling water over it from a distance of about a foot OR sponge the stain with cold water, rub it with a slice of lemon, and
then spray with stain remover before washing.

Mud – the good news is that mud should wash out of most clothes easily, but if you get mud on your UGG boots leave them to dry and then brush off. If this leaves behind marks from the water then wet the whole of the boot again (trust us!) before blotting it with a towel so it’s evenly wet and stuff with newspaper before leaving them to dry overnight.

Banana – probably the most challenging and one of the most common stains! Treat ASAP by applying dry borax then pouring hot water through the stain and washing as normal.

How to Combat the Post-School Meltdown

How many times have you picked your little one up from school, watched them wave goodbye to their teachers and friends with happy, smiling faces, only to turn to you with furrowed brows, crossed arms and a sullen temper?

If this is you, you’re not alone.

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5 Autumn Activities for Toddlers

With Autumn on the way, we’ve found 5 great activities for you and your little one to enjoy as the leaves begin to fall!

With Autumn on the way, we’ve found 5 great activities for you and your little one to enjoy as the leaves begin to fall!

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How Nannies Can Help Home Schooling Families

With a number of positive factors including flexibility, term-time holidays, child-led learning and learning at the child’s pace, instead of the pace of the class, home education (home schooling in the US) has seen a huge rise in popularity and it’s not surprising that nannies have been stepping in to help.

Think about it, a nanny who helps a home educating family isn’t a far cry from a governess. Back in the day, governesses were hired to educate and care for the family’s children which allowed parents to focus on work and other pursuits.

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How Nannies Can Help with Back to School

Back to school is often a nightmarish time for working parents. At a time of year where colds, illness, and head lice are rife, not to mention tantrums and an unwillingness to go back to school, it’s a time where your nanny can make the difference between a bad day and a great day.

We’ve put together our top tips for both nannies and parents to help with the back-to-school transition.

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What is Child-Led Play and Why is it So Important?

Child-led play is exactly what it sounds like; children choose what to play and the adults follow the child’s lead. The sole purpose of this type of play is to allow children to explore and discover independently whilst making their own choices and decisions about what to do.

We’ve put together some tips to help you encourage child-led play whilst also identifying learning opportunities:

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Why You Should Visit Your Local Library This Summer

The summer holidays can be stressful for parents and nannies alike. Trying to find new and exciting activities to keep the kids entertained every day is no easy feat. When you consider the many rainy days experienced in the average British summertime, you might find that you and your children are going a little stir crazy.

Over the summer holidays, libraries all around the country will be pulling out all the stops kids entertained by putting on various activities including hosting character visits and read-a-longs to craft or computer sessions, and much more.

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