December was a whirlwind. You shopped up a storm, performed magic in the kitchen for your houseguests, went to all of the holiday parties, drank your share of the wine and watched the ball drop. What’s left? Picking up the pieces! With the close of the holiday season comes a stark reality: You’re due at work on Monday and your family is off-schedule, tired and cranky. If you’re lucky, getting back to your normal routine will be a piece of cake, with just a little nudge. But for many of us, it will be a week or more before our little ones snap back to the norm. Here is some quick guidance on recovering from the holidays:

1. Put them to bed early—If your children are overly tired, the best medicine is to put them to bed early for two or three nights so they get extra rest. Children who are overtired will actually appear hyper (it might not be the cookies!) and act out as they fight the fatigue.

2. Offer naps early—If your child is a nap-taker and she’s now sleeping only half as much as she did before the holidays, try offering her naps a little earlier than usual. Short naps are a sign of being overly tired and putting her down just 15 to 20 minutes earlier will make a big difference.

3. Wake them up in the morning—That’s right! If your child is now up a lot at night, as tempting as it is, don’t let him sleep in too late in the morning. Get back into routine and on schedule by controlling wake-up, even if you generally don’t follow a strict schedule. You can’t make him sleep, but you can control the time you start the day if he has started sleeping in. This also helps if bedtime has gotten too late in the past couple of weeks. Stick to a stricter schedule for two to three days to get back on track.

4. Start from scratch—Unfortunately, some kids will have completely fallen into their old sleep habits during the holidays. If your baby had only just started to self-sooth (ie. fall asleep without your help), she may seem to have forgotten how to do it in just a week’s time. Help her to remember by teaching her from scratch, just like you did the first time. It may take longer this time around, but stick with it and your hard work will pay off.

5. Hold off on major changes—As much as it may appear that your child has changed her sleep needs in the past couple of weeks, don’t make any drastic changes until you are sure that the holiday hustle and bustle are behind you and you are back to your normal routine. While baby may have jumped from two naps to one nap the same week that grandma and grandpa came to visit, it’s unlikely that this is a permanent shift. Make sure you don’t jump to any conclusions and give her time to adjust after the holidays before you make any big changes. More than likely, your child’s sleep disturbances will work themselves out in a short time. If you feel that you’re encountering an ongoing sleep issue, trust your instincts and seek further support. You’ll all sleep better!

Nicole Johnson is a sleep coach and the owner of The Baby Sleep SiteTM (http://www.babysleepsite.com) specializing in baby sleep products and consulting services. Nicole is a wife and the mother of two boys. With a B.A. degree from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Ohio State University.