Hayley and Katie from Slumber & Sprout are all about supporting good sleep but also a healthy and flexible lifestyle for parents. As two Mum’s of young children they understand that finding a healthy balance is essential which is why they encourage families to implement good sleep habits at home but also encourage them to get out and about and have their little ones comfortable with sleeping well out of the house. Their top tips to maintain the happy sleeper when away from home:
- Timing is the most critical thing for success with napping out of the house.
- Avoid putting baby in the pram too early before the nap is due. If your baby spends too much time lying about in the pram before they are due to sleep this will take away from their appetite to nap.
- Avoid baby being overtired. If your baby is kept awake longer than their ideal awake window, has become overstimulated, overtired they may struggle to fall asleep in the pram.
- Have baby in the pram only 10 minutes before their nap is due, a well-timed pram nap is often more successful.
- Take familiar sleep props. Whatever your baby would usually sleep with (dummy, comforter, blanket etc.) these must be taken with you.
- Cover the pram SAFELY. Remember the darker and more boring the sleep environment the better. This includes the pram as well. If your little one is able to see all of the exciting stuff going on then it's likely that they won't want to miss out on the fun.
- Motion. Some babies will fall asleep in the pram with the pram stationary, many won't. If your little one isn't drifting off to sleep without motion then go for a walk or give the pram a rock back and forth.
- If you have a pram nap fail the first few times don't get disheartened, they don't always go to plan. Keep practising until you nail them!