How to Prepare Young Kids for Daylight Savings

Daylight Savings is coming this weekend to ruin your child's sleep schedule. Here's how to prepare yourself this week, so you're not a zombie next week.

"Springing forward" is the worst, especially for parents of young kids who really don't follow a clock in any way, shape or form.

That is me. Two kids under five and dreading the time change this weekend.

Not only will it become more difficult to convince them to head to bed with it being lighter later, I know they won't be sleeping any later in the next morning.

A double whammy of sleep deprivation for me.

But I have a plan. I read up on how to prepare young kids for the change in the clock and here's what the parenting and sleep experts agree on.

1. Start prepping your child for the seemingly earlier bedtime all week. 

Every night, starting tonight (Tuesday night), put them to bed ten minutes earlier. So 6:50 instead of 7 p.m. on Tuesday, 6:40 on Wednesday, 6:30 on Thursday, etc. That way when they go to bed at 7 p.m. on Sunday night after the DST "spring forward," it'll feel just the same as the 6 p.m. they just went to sleep on Saturday night – because it is.

2. Push the mealtimes ahead by 10 minutes each day, too. And if they need to be woken up each morning, start doing that 10 minutes earlier all week as well.

The small changes each day will make the larger time change over the weekend seem like the usual routine by the time it actually happens, giving you the chance to have a smoother transition too.

3. Don't expect the 10-minute changes to solve all the problems.

Yes, the gradual transition should help but honestly, DST is rough on everyone. Expect setbacks to your plan. Expect to feel tired for a week or two as you yourself adjust to things. Try to give yourself the earlier bedtime transition too. And definitely stock up on coffee.

Any time change tips you have for other moms struggling? Share them with us!