Let’s be honest: my son is a true night owl. He’s never been one to settle down before 9 p.m. It’s not in his nature, and it never has been.
In his early days, I really struggled to establish a bedtime routine. After weeks of stress and tears, I finally decided to embrace his natural rhythm instead of fighting it. Putting him to bed later seemed to work out better for us both. Admittedly, I have a night owl tendency too, so I didn’t mind too much. I simply cannot fathom how some parents manage to have their kids in bed by 7:30 p.m. Our lifestyle just doesn’t lend itself to that.
When my son was younger, I worked as a babysitter, and he accompanied me. This made it nearly impossible to have a regular nap schedule since I worked in the afternoons. Napping on the go was also a challenge; he was always curious and wanted to see everything around him. I often tried to get him to nap when we arrived at the homes of the children I watched, but he was too occupied socializing to sleep.
As a result, by the time we headed home, he was completely worn out. If he napped in the late afternoon, it pushed his bedtime even further back, which was a trade-off we had to accept. Sure, it would have been nice to have a few hours of peace before I turned in for the night, but I knew this phase wouldn’t last forever.
I was partly correct. While I eventually stopped working afternoons, the sleep habits had already formed. After a year of late naps, his body was already used to this schedule, and bedtime kept creeping later. No amount of discouragement or skipping naps seemed to change that. If everyone else was awake, so was he.
For a period, he was staying up until the early hours of the morning. On days when I had to wake up early for work, that was particularly exhausting. There were nights when getting him to sleep took so long that I simply didn’t bother going to bed myself since I’d need to be up shortly. It was a trying time, but I understood it would require patience to find a solution.
Once he stopped napping, it became easier to put him to bed before midnight. A recent cross-country move that shifted our time zone by three hours helped too. Even still, a bedtime of 7:00 p.m. was never in the cards for us. His father works during the day, and since they aren’t together, their only time together is in the evenings.
When I enrolled him in preschool, the only available slots were in the late afternoon. This worked well for my schedule since I work during the day, but it means we don’t get home until about 7 p.m. After that, we still need to fit in dinner, snacks, and baths, which doesn’t leave much time for anything else.
Now, I aim to have him in bed between 9:00 and 9:30, unless we’re out or I’m not home. I try to hold firm on this, wanting him asleep by midnight, mainly because he gets a little wild when overtired. For some, this may seem late for a 4-year-old, but for us, it works. Since he doesn’t have early commitments, this bedtime suits our lifestyle. Plus, I’m a night owl myself, so I still get a few hours of quiet time to unwind or catch up on work without interruptions. He manages to get about 10 to 12 hours of sleep each night, which is quite sufficient.
People often ask, “What will happen when he starts school?” To that, I reply, we’ll figure it out when the time comes. He adjusts to new sleep schedules quite quickly, so I’m confident he’ll adapt. Until then, he’ll remain my little night owl.
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Summary
My son has never had an early bedtime; instead, he thrives as a night owl. Establishing a sleep schedule has been a journey filled with challenges, but ultimately, we’ve found a routine that works for us. His natural inclination to stay up late aligns with our family lifestyle, and while we’re aware that school will bring changes, we’re prepared to adapt when the time comes.
Keyphrase: Child Bedtime Routines
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