In this post, I’m talking about creating a gentle toddler sleep routine, and I’ll be looking at some of the best natural products to help your toddler sleep.
A sleep routine has nothing to do with strict bedtimes and sleep training, but is a calming way to help your toddler to relax and pick up on the cues that bedtime is near.
Jonah’s biggest sleep association is, of course, the boob. But we’ve found it helpful to introduce a routine that he recognises and has come to expect. For instance, bath, nappy, massage, story, breastfeed, then bedtime.
Natural bath and bedtime products can be a huge part of such a routine. Bathing, massaging, and enjoying familiar fragrances together creates a lovely bond between parent and toddler, and the practise is very comforting and soothing.
I’m talking about massage and foot oils, pillow mists, and bath products to help calm and relax your toddler ready for bed.
Although, as I’m sure some parents can relate, if your toddler has had too much daytime sleep, no amount of relaxation will coax him or her into bed!
Read on to learn more about natural products that aim to create a relaxing bedtime routine for babies, toddlers, and children.
Disclosure: I received Little Aurelia Sleep Time Pillow Mist, Little Butterfly Floating On Clouds Bedtime Bath Milk, and Mia & Dom Baby Sleep Remedy to try free of charge. My opinions are honest and my own.
Little Aurelia Sleep Time Pillow Mist
Aurelia is a gorgeous British bio-organic and probiotic skincare range. Their baby range, Little Aurelia, is just as gorgeous. I fell in love with this product immediately. The packaging is so beautiful, featuring cute illustrations of animals and plants.
We bedshare with Jonah, so we spray this mist onto our own pillows, and we lay a soft muslin cloth where Jonah’s head will be, after spraying a little of the mist on to it. It smells absolutely heavenly, and is always comforting. I do think smell is such a nice way to relax.
What interested me most about this mist is that it contains rose quartz, which is said to help reduce tension. Not only that, it can help with wrinkles caused by a non-relaxed facial expression. It can also help alleviate redness, so is great to treat any flare ups or rashes.
Essential oils of chamomile, geranium, lavender, and angelica, along with bitter orange flower water further add to the calming effect of this beautiful pillow mist.
We really enjoy using this pillow mist and have benefited from the positive sleep association it has created. Highly recommended!
Little Aurelia Sleep Time Pillow Mist
Little Butterfly Floating On Clouds Bedtime Bath Milk
Little Butterfly is a dreamy mother and baby skincare range that aims to offer kind and pure products to nurture skin. This Ecocert certified bath milk comes in a plastic bottle with a cute wooden cap. Although Jonah likes bubble bath, I think bubble bath products can be quite harsh, and a milk offers extra hydration to delicate toddler skin.
The sweet mandarin fragrance of the bath milk is very delicate, so won’t overstimulate your toddler’s senses before bedtime.
It’s a soothing blend containing cucumber seed oil, buttermilk, and oat kernel extract that gives an incredibly moisturising bath. The first time we tried this, Jonah and I bathed together and we both came out of the tub feeling super soft and relaxed. We both get a good night’s sleep after using this soothing bath milk.
Little Butterfly Floating On Clouds Bedtime Bath Milk
Buy Now – £25.50 at Little Butterfly London
Mia & Dom Baby Sleep Remedy
Since discovering Mia & Dom Bath Oil, I’ve been curious to use the rest of the range. This relaxing massage oil comes in a handy rollerball, which is a really good way to dispense oil when massaging your toddler since there’s nothing to spill over.
I roll this onto my hands before applying to Jonah’s chest during a gentle massage – if he keeps still long enough!
I love the simple ingredients in this blend – sunflower oil, lavender and chamomile essential oils – known for their relaxing properties. Massage is such a beautiful way to relax your child before bed and this oil is the perfect accompaniment.
Mummy Loves Organics Sleepy Feet
This gorgeous foot oil from Mummy Loves Organics promises to encourage sleep and prevent night terrors. It contains soothing lavender, mandarin, and frankincense essential oils, and it smells absolutely amazing.
We massage a little of this into Jonah’s feet right after his bath or at his bedtime nappy change, and it seems to help him relax. You can also apply it to the temples and behind the ears.
The oil claims to help children stay asleep, which I haven’t found to be true in our case, nor would I want to encourage in a huge way.
Jonah often wakes an hour into his daytime nap, or an hour after he went to bed, wanting comfort. I think some babies and toddlers are hardwired that way, especially if breastfed.
Although it can be frustrating, and I’ve questioned whether or not he’s missing out on sleep, I know it’s an important biological norm to rouse frequently through the night. When I realised this, I felt reassured about Jonah’s broken sleep!
Learn more about why breastfed babies and toddlers wake so frequently.
Mummy Loves Organics Sleepy Feet
Buy Now – £10 at Mummy Loves Organics
Can natural products help your toddler sleep?
I do believe they can when used as part of a calming bedtime routine. Relaxation before bed is important to us, and I hope I’ve given you some ideas for soothing bath and bedtime products to choose when introducing a bedtime routine.
What bath and bedtime products do you use on your children? I’d love to hear about them in the comments section!
As an aside, if you’re interested in helping your child to sleep well, naturally, and gently, Kate Surfs talks about why children don’t fight sleep. Her article explains how you can help your child fully express pent up emotions that have not been expressed throughout the day, leading to better sleep.
Until next time!
10 Comments
I bet those are great products for parents to check out!
They certainly are, they’ve been really helpful for us!
I love all natural products! These look great!
Me too, and they certainly do.
You totally had me at SLEEP. 🙂 Anything to get those little ones to sleep!
Yes! It’ll all help!
OMG this is so helpful!! What a good post to bookmark!
Thank you, I’m so glad you find it helpful!
Will def be sharing this with my new mom friends!
Thanks so much!