We spoke to the lovely India Josephs about her well-established nighttime routine with her little one, Atlas. India's nighttime rituals read like a lullaby, with soothing baths, massages, cuddles, and a carefully orchestrated environment with elements like a nightlight, white noise, and blackout blinds, all contributing to Atlas's peaceful sleep. Despite the challenges that parenthood may bring, India's dedication to maintaining the core routine has helped her navigate unexpected changes and foster flexibility in her bub's sleep patterns. 

We'd love to hear about your nighttime routine with your little one! How do you both wind down and get ready for a restful sleep? 

I have always had a consistent bedtime routine for Atlas; it's something that we both enjoy at the end of the day. It's like a little reset and bonding time after a busy or fussy 12 hours. Ever since she was a newborn, we have always done a long bath where we wash her hair, now play with bath toys, and chat to her about the day. We then take her into a dim room and do a massage with baby oil, brush her hair, put her nappy on (with a bum load of nappy cream), and get her dressed into her sleep clothes. After doing all her “goodnights” to Dad and the cat, we go into her room where it’s dark and have a bottle and cuddles, then I pop her into her sleep sack, and she’s down for the night. In the winter months, we also lightly blow dry her, and she loves it. Not only is she warm, but she gets dryer faster, and it stops her from crying - my mum hack! 

Evenings are such precious moments. What are some activities you both enjoy in the evening that help set a calm and soothing mood before bed? 

We love to cuddle while she drinks her bottle. I give it to her in a dark room with just her red night light on and white noise playing, and she just looks up at me and plays with my hair or face. Such a special time for both mum and bub, especially now that she’s so busy, and I can never get cuddles out of her. It's the best 30 minutes of my day (I swear she takes forever to finish a bottle so that she can soak it up too). 

Bedtime rituals can be so heart-warming. Are there any special routines you've established that your child absolutely adores? 

We're talking favorite bedtime stories, special songs, and more! This probably sounds so strange, but in the bath, she absolutely loves for us to pour water on her face. She’s such a water baby, so we say "Atlas, ready, go," and she closes her eyes and gets so excited. We also cuddle and kiss her and dance with her when she’s all wrapped in her towel. 

Creating a comfy sleep environment is key. How do you ensure that your baby's sleep space is just perfect? Any special factors you always keep in mind?  

I always keep in mind temperature and light. We have a heater in between both of our rooms, sitting at 22 during the winter, so it heats her room to a perfect comfortable temp. I always have her blackout blinds up too, which work a treat. She also has her white noise and red night light, which promotes melatonin, and she has slept with it since a newborn - safe to say the one night the power went out, we only got a wink of sleep.

Time teaches us so much. What's the most valuable lesson you've learned over time when it comes to tucking your little one in?  

Make sure you get the timing right to avoid overtiredness; it makes bedtime such a breeze, but also getting it right where they aren’t undertired too. To be honest, you have a 30-second window (haha) to put them down at the right time, so don’t ignore the signs and make sure you keep them happy and calm! 

Bedtime magic: Do you have any unique tips or little tricks up your sleeve that make getting your little one to sleep easier? 

Do their nighttime feed in a dark room (I let the light from the hallway come in so it’s not completely dark) with their night light if they have one and white noise so they remain calm and sleepy, then pop them into their sleep sack or swaddle, then put them down - this is how I have kept her sleepy without having an association, and she goes down within seconds or minutes and always has done since a newborn.  

Striking that bedtime balance is an art. How do you manage to weave a calming routine while also embracing unexpected changes that might pop up? 

We always make sure we have the core basics of the routine there like a bath, getting into warm sleep clothes, bottle in the dark, and into a sleep sack. As long as we do those things, we can deal with the hiccups or changes along the way, and with the core routine, it’s made her flexible to different environments as well. 

Challenges can pop up; we get it. Have you faced any hurdles on your nighttime routine journey? If so, how did you tackle and overcome them? 

Absolutely! Many many! We went from hating the bath as a newborn to absolutely loving it, we have had hysterical crying and fussing all the way through getting changed and her massage etc to laughing and babbling, then we have had times where she smashes her bottle in seconds and wants more, or sickness which causes vomiting which means doing the routine over again, and we are now currently going through a phase where she doesn’t drink any of her milk just fake sucks on the teet. It’s all about knowing it’s all just a phase - I know it’s so easy to get wrapped up in any little change or unusual behaviour but what I have found is consistency is key and they will learn to love things or overcome things as long as you stay consistent. 

Are there any rituals or traditions you’ve carried through to the way you parent your children? 

Growing up we didn't observe any rituals or traditions, but that's given us a wonderfully free base to what rituals we want to create for our own family. It also means there aren't really any cultural expectations on us to continue something with a long legacy and J and I have enjoyed a lot of trial and error over the last 5 years as we find our feet on what traditions are most important to us.  

What are your favourite ways to spend time in nature as a family? 

My husband and I are really big believers in encouraging free play. So, we like to be "prepared" for all eventualities (rarely pack light) but then for us, the best days out in nature are when we let the children dictate their own play. That could be going on a search and retrieve "mission" for logs/shells/treasures... A favourite that tires them out, gives them freedom and allows them to be intrigued... and later as a family we will come together to build/discuss what it is the girls have found and prompt a new game with our findings. 

 Image credits: 

Styling: Africa Daley-Clarke @thevitamindproject 

Photography: Kasia Fiszer @kfiszerfoto