daylight saving tips for a 2 year old

[Raquelita1]

Hi there

I'm getting nervous about the clocks going back next weekend...  I don't think it'll be a problem with DS as I'll probably get him down for a late catnap and then do his bedtime routine an hour or so later than normal.  But I'm dreading it with my 26 mo DD!  I can't quite remember what we did last year, but the year before it coincided with a trip back to the UK (we live in Spain) so there was an hour difference anyway and travelling always knocks the routine out a bit.  She has an in-built body clock to be up at 7-7.15 every day, no matter what time she goes to bed at night.  Normally we aim for 8.30 bedtime (she still sleeps a 2hr nap in the afternoon).  What's worse is we're going out for dinner (a very rare treat!) on Saturday night (the night the clocks change), so she needs to be in bed at 8.30 as usual otherwise the babysitter will have a nightmare with her as she's not used to anyone other than family putting her to bed.  So here are my thoughts on how to tackle it - any opinions or other ideas appreciated!   
1.  Skip her nap or cut it down to 1hr max on Saturday, put her to bed at 8.30 as usual and hope she sleeps beyond the new time of 6am on Sunday.
2.  Do nothing different on Saturday, then cut down/skip nap on Sunday and then keep her going till 8.30pm new time and hope she'll be really tired.
3.  Do nothing different on Saturday or Sunday, but then once she's asleep on Sunday night wake her an hour later and get her up for an hour to really throw her internal body clock, putting her back to bed sometime between 10 and 11pm.

DD has nursery on Monday morning at 9am, so I don't want to risk her being too much of a grouch...

Looking forward to your thoughts. 

Rachel x

[andibig]

Mmmm I haven't really though too much about the clocks going back.
I usually let it sort itself out which it normally does in a couple of days with DD.
saying that i'd shoot for either 1 or 2.
No 1 if she is the sort of LO who will tag extra night sleep on if she has missed her nap.
No 2 if she doesn't do the above.although i'd probably keep her nap th same length considering she'll be up at 6.15 and not her usual 7.15.
HTH

[Layla]

I would leave everything as it is & once the clocks change do everything as per new times (lunch, etc...). You could try push the nap about 20-30mins every couple of days until its at the "old" time and with it move bedtime.

When we did this earlier this year I moved the nap & meal times & bedtime ... she was still waking up at 5am for a few days & then it changed to 6am within about about 3 days or so

hth
Layla

[Raquelita1]

Thanks girls for your replies.  I think i'll just try to do everything on Sunday as per new time, and hope that it works out within a few days.  I guess I'll just have to get myself to bed early each night in case of really early wake-ups!!

[franchick]

I'm actually really looking forward to the clock change as it will mean some early bedtimes for a while for our 28 month DD (so more adult time for us - how selfish...DH and I can survive on less sleep - heehee) and earlier wake-ups.... I have been late for work far too many times in the last few months as Katie and I haven't been getting up till about 7.45am!! 

However, I know it will adjust itself over time as the nursery will stick to new times for the lunchtime nap and I think that meal times (such as dinner) also have a bearing on when the body is ready for sleep. Oh well, I will enjoy it while I can.