Sleep My Little Bub

When you walk in the door:
Instead of the usual bottle-and-wind-down, bring out the box of tricks. Sit down, connect, play together. This is your quiet time — it distracts them from the missing bottle AND gives you gorgeous connection time before the dinner/bath/bed chaos kicks in.

Then move quietly into your bedtime routine as normal. They’ll be so busy and engaged with the new activities, they genuinely won’t notice the bottle’s gone. 🙌

Keep this up for a few days and you’ll break the cycle. It really only takes a few days — for you AND for them. 💛

What helps:
🍎 Offer 5 small meals/snacks a day — brekkie, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner
👨 Sit down and eat together as a family — role modelling is everything
⏳ Don’t expect big volumes at every sitting — their meal size is roughly half of yours (sometimes even less)
📊 Zoom out and look at the whole day, not just one meal

Some days they’ll smash two or three serves at breakfast, then barely touch dinner because they’re tired and running on empty by day’s end. That’s normal toddler eating — not a sign something’s wrong.

Look at the week, not the plate. 💛

👶🧸 Moving from bottles to toddlerhood — is your bub ready?

If your little one has just crossed the 12-month mark, they’re stepping into the toddler phase — and that means bottles are no longer needed as part of their daily dietary intake.

I know this can feel like a big shift. It’s so normal to feel a little hesitant about changing up the routine, and honestly, it can bring up some anxiety for us as parents too — even when we know bub is ready.

Here are my go-to tips for gently reducing bottle dependency as you move into this stage:

1️⃣ using connection with patience & play
2️⃣ mix up story time space bedroom verses living room
3️⃣ sipping cup

💛 If bottles have become part of your toddy’s sleep routine, comment below or send me an email — I’d love to support you individually through this transition.

👉 Keep in mind: the longer bottles stay part of the daily diet, the more it can impact your toddler’s interest in solid foods.

melbournemum

👶🧸 Moving from bottles to toddlerhood — is your bub ready?

If your little one has just crossed the 12-month mark, they’re stepping into the toddler phase — and that means bottles are no longer needed as part of their daily dietary intake.

I know this can feel like a big shift. It’s so normal to feel a little hesitant about changing up the routine, and honestly, it can bring up some anxiety for us as parents too — even when we know bub is ready.

Here are my go-to tips for gently reducing bottle dependency as you move into this stage:

1️⃣ Mix up their daily routine with connection & redirection with low stimulus play in the evenings.
2️⃣ Mix up where you implement quiet time. Bedroom or living area
3️⃣ offer sipping cup instead

💛 If bottles have become part of your toddy’s sleep routine, comment below or send me an email — I’d love to support you individually through this transition.

👉 Keep in mind: the longer bottles stay part of the daily diet, the more it can impact your toddler’s interest in solid foods.

Dropping the midday sleep? Here’s how to get through that brutal 3–5pm stretch 😅💛

That window between 3–5pm is where your toddy is running on empty — and it’s exactly the time to slow down, stay close, and keep them connected to you, mumma.

Here’s what helps 👇
🌾 Sensory play — birdseed bins, water play, sand play
🚶‍♀️ Fresh air — a nature walk or the playground works wonders
📵 No screens — TV at this hour is a one-way ticket to a 4:30pm accidental nap (and a 10pm bedtime battle 😩)

Calm, low-stimulation, sensory-rich play in these hours helps regulate their little nervous system — less chaos, fewer meltdowns, and a much smoother run into the evening ✨

Then:
🍽️ Early dinner, 5–5:30pm
🛁 Into bed by 7pm

The transition gets so much softer once you know what their body actually needs in that window 💛

Trust the process, mumma 🤍

Toddlers dropping the midday naps?
Dropping the midday sleep? Here’s how to get through that brutal 3–5pm stretch 😅💛

That window between 3–5pm is where your toddy is running on empty — and it’s exactly the time to slow down, stay close, and keep them connected to you, mumma.

Here’s what helps 👇

🌾 Sensory play — birdseed bins, water play, sand play
🚶‍♀️ Fresh air — a nature walk or the playground works wonders
📵 No screens — TV at this hour is a one-way ticket to a 4:30pm accidental nap (and a 10pm bedtime battle 😩)

Calm, low-stimulation, sensory-rich play in these hours helps regulate their little nervous system — less chaos, fewer meltdowns, and a much smoother run into the evening ✨

Then:
🍽️ Early dinner, 5–5:30pm
🛁 Into bed by 7pm

The transition gets so much softer once you know what their body actually needs in that window 💛

Trust the process, mumma 🤍

If your toddler is still having a midday sleep but then fighting you tooth and nail at 7pm, only to actually fall asleep at 8:30 or even 9pm… you’re not doing anything wrong. Your toddy just isn’t tired enough for a 7pm bedtime yet.

Here’s what I want you to do this week:

Track the actual time your toddy falls asleep each night for 7 days (not when you put them down — when they actually drift off). That real time is your sweet spot. That’s when your body clock is telling you they’re ready.

Then you’ve got two choices:

🌙 Keep the midday nap → shift bedtime later to match when they’re genuinely tired. Less protesting, less “destruction o’clock” before bed, more peaceful settling.

☀️ Want that earlier 7pm bedtime back? → it might be time to review the midday nap. Dropping it (or shortening it) means more awake time built up across the day, so they’ve got the sleep pressure to go down easily at 7.

Either way works — it’s about mat