Being in a new place, a new bed, with fun surroundings and tons of daily activity, it makes sense for kids to have a difficult time getting to sleep while traveling. It is often tempting and usually easy to break the nighttime routine when traveling. But staying consistent with your nightly routine while away from home will make your days more enjoyable. Though our bedtimes vary and are often way past the normal time, we make sure to go through the normal routine of bath, teeth, books then bed with all their familiar comforts.
3 Tips to helps you stick to your bedtime routine and get great sleep when traveling with kids
PACK NEW BOOKS: We always read bedtime books but sometimes I have a difficult time getting them to pay attention in a hotel room. So we now take new books on each trip. This is not only fun for the kids, but fun for me too. Reading a new book is always exciting and doing it as part of the vacation adds to the memories associated with the book. A great way to get new books is to subscribe to a book club for kids. We love the Story Box because it sends two new books a month. When we know a trip is ahead, we save the books for that trip.
HAVE FUN TOOTHBRUSHES: We keep toothbrushing as fun at the hotel as we do at home. The brushing step signals that bedtime is around the corner. We are Firefly toothbrush fans! From the kids’ mouthwash to the fun timer toothbrushes. But for traveling we keep it fun by taking our special”travel toothbrushes.” Our kids love their Hello Kitty and Starwars toothbrushes at home; so we got a travel version for on the road! They brush together like always and do the same toothbrush dance together when they finish. I share our DENTAL CARE TIPS FOR PRESCHOOLERS at the bottom of this post.
BRING THEIR BEDTIME BUDDIES: You want the sleep environment when traveling to be very similar what the child’s home sleep environment is. Therefore, it is important to pack as many portable items as you can from home. Bringing all their bedtime buddies (blanket, pillow, dolls, etc) may seem like overkill. However, I have found that if they each bring 3-4 of their favorite bedtime stuffed animals they are eager to crawl in bed even when hyped up on vacation excitement.
Dental care for preschoolers
Dental hygiene for preschoolers is important even though the baby teeth don’t stick around for long. Creating a good toothbrushing habit starts with a preschooler. But if your little ones are like mine, I had to find a way to make it fun in order for them to do it right and consistently. Here are my tips for dental care for your littles:
Find a fun toothbrush they love with a timer. As I mentioned above, we have found the brushes we love: Firefly. They have popular characters and light up timers that the kids enjoy which helps this momma!
Use flouride toothpaste: Did you know that the American Dental Association (ADA) changed its long-standing guidelines and now recommends that parents use fluoridated toothpaste as soon as a baby gets her first tooth. Fluoride toothpaste helps block cavities by helping to remineralize areas of teeth that have been bombarded by bacterial acids.
Introduce them to mouthwash. Mouthwash for kids is a wonderful thing but takes some practice. My kids, aged 3 and 5, are now pros at using mouthwash thanks to this Spiderman and Hello Kitty FireFly mouth rinse.
Do you have any tips for traveling with kids? What are your favorite kid-friendly dental products? Share in the comments below!
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DISCLOSURE: This post was written in collaboration with Firefly. As always, all opinions and fun are my own and unbiased. This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. All photos are mine and cannot be used without permission.