Worried your little one is going to lose precious sleep after daylight savings time starts?? Learn the exact steps you can take to make the time transition smooth!
Daylight savings time for kids can sometimes mean sleepless nights, fussy babies, and complete aggravation.
The great news is, you can avoid the havoc by taking some steps to adjust your baby for daylight saving time.
Daylight savings time can be a hard time for your little one because just like need time to adjust to the new time, so does your baby. Most of the time, it’s hard for babies to adjust to the new time change so it can wreak havoc on your baby’s schedule, and even on your family!
The best way to adjust your baby to daylight savings time, both for the start and end of it, is to ease your baby into the time change by preparing for it beforehand.
I’m going to tell you the exact steps to take to help your baby adjust to daylight savings time before it even happens so when the change starts, they will already be fully adjusted!
Want to easily adjust your baby to daylight savings time?
Download my bedtime and nap time charts to help you adjust your baby’s sleep based on their nap times and bedtime! The charts include times to put your baby to sleep for both daylight savings time start and end too.
Let’s get down to it!
Tips help you adjust baby to daylight savings time
Important: These steps reach the optimal outcome if your baby is on a daily schedule and consistent routine. Since we are going to deal with how to adjust your baby’s sleep to daylight savings time, you want to make sure you are doing a consistent nap time routine bedtime routine with your baby. This will make the adjustment SO much easier.
Find out about how to start a bedtime routine here and how to start a nap time routine here.
Start the adjustment 10 days before
Daylight savings time always falls on a Sunday.
Both the start and the end of daylight savings time. So if we are trying to adjust our baby to the change seamlessly, it’s best to start 10 days before that Sunday.
That way, then the time change actually happens, your baby is already fully adjusted and will feel no real difference. We’ll talk more about what to do each of those 10 days to prepare your baby for daylight savings time.
Gradual adjustment is key
The main part of adjusting your baby to daylight saving time is doing it gradually. That’s why we are not leaving our children to just “adjust” to the new time after it’s done. The important factor is to do it gradually!
When you adjust your baby to daylight saving time gradually beforehand, you wont have a cranky, grumpy, time confused child once it happens!
Best ages to begin daylight savings time adjustments
My daughter was born in April and she experienced her first daylight savings time change in November, when she was 6 months. I thought she was “too young” to try to adjust her before the time change so I just left it alone and figured she would adjust naturally like we do as adults. NOT. THE. CASE.
I was so angry at myself for not adjusting her gradually before the time change because my once passive, easy to fall asleep, loving her schedule baby was now an angry, constantly tired, grumpy baby. It took me 2 weeks to get her back on her schedule and normal routines!
So if your baby is a little more than a couple of months I would just start the gradual adjustment. If your baby is well over toddlerhood and can understand the difference in time well enough, then you may be inclined to just let the change happen naturally. The choice is yours!
Steps to Take to help Baby Adjust to Daylight Savings Time
Daylight saving time starts: Spring Forward (When you Lose an Hour in March)
1. Starting 10 days before the time change, start to put your baby to sleep 15 minutes before their normal bedtime.
Because in the spring we are LOSING an hour, that means that your baby’s normal bedtime at 7:00 is really going to be 8:00. Which is too late.
Since you want to keep your baby at the 7:00pm bedtime, this really 6:00pm after daylight saving time.
This means you have to start adjusting your baby to go to sleep earlier, so they are making up for that lost hour once it happens.
So at the 10 day mark, if your baby goes to sleep at 7:00p, put your baby down at 6:45.
Do this for 3 days.
Remember, start your bedtime routine 15 minutes before as well! For example, if your baby goes to bed at 7:00pm and you usually start your baby’s bedtime routine at 6:15, then you need to adjust the bedtime routine as well and start it 15 minutes earlier, at 6:00pm.
2. 7 days before the time change, start to put your baby down an extra 15 minutes before. This is now 30 minutes before baby’s original bedtime.
Now that you have put your baby down for 15 minutes before their normal bedtime for 3 days in a row, you are going to add another 15 to that time.
Keeping with our original 7:00pm bedtime example, you are now going to put your baby down to sleep at 6:30pm.
Do this for another 3 days.
Don’t forget to move your baby’s bedtime routine 30 minutes from its original time!
3. 4 days before the time change, start to put your baby down an extra 15 minutes. This is now 45 minutes before your baby’s original bedtime.
For the past 3 days you have been putting your baby down to sleep a half hour (30 minutes) before their original bedtime. Now that we are only 4 days away from Daylight savings time, it’s time to add another 15 minutes.
You want to put your baby down to sleep 45 minutes before their original bedtime. S if baby goes down at usually at 7:00pm, you are putting them down to sleep at 6:15pm.
Do this for 3 days.
Remember to move your baby’s bedtime routine 45 minutes before!
Don’t forget to download my daylight savings time baby sleeping chart! It details what time to put your baby to sleep at on each day before daylight savings time to help your baby adjust easily!
4. One day before daylight savings time, put baby down one hour before their original bedtime.
For the past 9 days we adjusted your baby’s bedtime by 15 minutes every 3 days. One day before daylight savings time is the time to make the full adjustment and add that extra 15 minutes to make it the full hour.
For example, if your baby goes to sleep at 7:00pm, put baby down to sleep at 6:00pm. This shouldn’t be a huge change because for the past 9 days we’ve been gradually changing the sleep time by 15 minutes. So, the extra 15 minutes to make it an hour, won’t even feel like anything to your baby!
Don’t forget to start your baby’s bedtime routine an hour before too!
5. On daylight saving time night, put baby to sleep one hour before.
All that you’ve been preparing for is finally here! The official time change! Your baby already went to sleep the night before an hour before their original bedtime. That prepared them for tonight’s official time change. When you put your baby down to sleep a 6:00pm tonight, tomorrow night at this time it will be 7:00pm.
So, your baby will be back to their 7:00pm bedtime!
TA-DA! Not too hard right!
IMPORTANT: This is where the importance of a schedule and routine come in! Because you are changing the actual TIME of your baby’s bedtime sleep, you need to also start their bedtime routine the appropriate minutes before to align with the new bedtime.
Having a bedtime routine will help your baby transition times because it will allow them to feel comfortable through the adjustment.
Because they know that the bedtime routine signals bedtime sleep after you do the routine at the new time, it will still signal bedtime sleep and it will help them sleep, despite the time change!
Daylight saving time ends: Fall Back (When you gain an Hour in November)
Let’s talk about when Daylight savings time ends and you gain an hour back! It’s basically the same steps but in reverse!
1. Starting 10 days before the time change, start to put your baby to sleep 15 minutes after their normal bedtime.
Because in the spring we are GAINING an hour, that means that your baby’s normal bedtime at 7:00 is really going to be 6:00. Which is too early.
Since you want to keep your baby at the 7:00pm bedtime, this really 8:00pm after daylight saving time.
This means you have to start adjusting your baby to go to sleep later, so they are adjusting to that lost hour once it happens.
So at the 10-day mark, if your baby goes to sleep at 7:00p, put your baby down at 7:15pm.
Do this for 3 days.
Remember, start your bedtime routine 15 minutes after as well! For example, if your baby goes to bed at 7:00pm and you usually start your baby’s bedtime routine at 6:15, then you need to adjust the bedtime routine as well and start it 15 minutes after, at 6:30pm.
2. 7 days before the time change, start to put your baby down an EXTRA 15 minutes after.
This is now 30 minutes after baby’s original bedtime.
Now that you have put your baby down for 15 minutes after their normal bedtime for 3 days in a row, you are going to add another 15 to that time.
Keeping with our original 7:00pm bedtime example, you are now going to put your baby down to sleep at 7:30pm.
Do this for another 3 days.
Don’t forget to move your baby’s bedtime routine 30 minutes after its original time!
3. 4 days before the time change, start to put your baby down an EXTRA 15 minutes. This is now 45 minutes after your baby’s original bedtime.
For the past 3 days, you have been putting your baby down to sleep a half hour (30 minutes) after their original bedtime. Now that we are only 4 days away from daylight savings time, it’s time to add another 15 minutes.
You want to put your baby down to sleep 45 minutes after their original bedtime. So if baby goes down at usually at 7:00pm, you are putting them down to sleep at 7:45pm.
Do this for 3 days.
Remember to move your baby’s bedtime routine 45 minutes after!
Don’t forget to download my daylight savings time baby sleeping chart! It details what time to put your baby to sleep at on each day before daylight savings time to help your baby adjust easily!
4. One day before daylight savings time, put baby down one hour AFTER their original bedtime.
For the past 9 days we adjusted your baby’s bedtime by 15 minutes every 3 days. One day before daylight savings time is the time to make the full adjustment and add that extra 15 minutes to make it the full hour.
For example, if your baby goes to sleep at 7:00pm, put baby down to sleep at 8:00pm. This shouldn’t be a huge change because for the past 9 days we’ve been gradually changing the sleep time by 15 minutes. So, the extra 15 minutes to make it an hour, won’t even feel like anything to your baby!
Don’t forget to start your baby’s bedtime routine an hour after too!
5. On daylight savings time night, put baby to sleep one hour after.
All that you’ve been preparing for is finally here! The official time change! Your baby already went to sleep the night before an hour after their original bedtime. That prepared them for tonight’s official time change. When you put your baby down to sleep at 8:00pm tonight, tomorrow night at this time it will be 7:00pm.
So, your baby will be back to their 7:00pm bedtime! All done!
IMPORTANT: This is where the importance of a schedule and routine comes in! Because they know that the bedtime routine signals bedtime sleep, after you do the routine at the new time, it will still signal bedtime sleep and it will help them sleep, despite the time change!
Free Baby Sleep Charts for Daylight Savings Time!
To help you better adjust your baby, I created these charts for you to easily access and download! It includes:
- A bedtime chart of what time to put your baby to bed so you can easily gradually adjust your baby based on their specific bedtime!
- A nap time chart of what time to put your baby to nap so you can easily and gradually adjust your baby based on their specific nap times!
- Charts for both daylight savings time start and end!
Get the free Daylight Savings Time Chart now!
There you have it! Here are ALL of the steps to take to adjust your baby to daylight saving time, both the start and the end of it!
Remember, the best way to adjust your baby to daylight savings time, both for the start and end of it, is to ease your baby into the time change by preparing for it beforehand.
By following these exact steps you will help your baby adjust to daylight savings time before it even happens so when the change starts, they will already be fully adjusted!
No sleepless nights this year!
Have any questions or want to share how you help your baby adjust to daylight savings time? Feel free to share them in the comments below!
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