Your client meeting runs super late, and when you get home hours later, your well-meaning hubby is plopped on the couch with the kids watching Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! Eight o’clock bedtime is shot—again. “You might not make it
home the same time each night, but that shouldn’t have a negative impact on your kids’ sleep,” say Conner Herman and Kira Ryan, co-authors of The Dream Sleeper. To help keep consistency:

Stick to the schedule. Whether it’s your husband, mom or sitter, your caregiver needs to carry out the set bedtime routine without you. Stress the importance of getting your kids to sleep on time so they’re not cranky and sleep-deprived the next day. The kids will soon learn it’s fine if Nana puts them to bed.

Jump right in. If the kids are donning jammies when you arrive, head straight to their bedrooms and savor the last moments of their routine by reading a book or brushing your daughter’s hair.

Don’t stress if you miss lights-out. Sometimes a late arrival may just mean a soft kiss on a sleeping child’s forehead. Use your varying work schedule as a teachable moment to show that everyone has to be flexible to make a family work well.