You want to be by her bedside, whispering “Sweet dreams” as your child drifts off to sleep. But the meeting was endless, the trains were running late—you know the drill. How do you handle those occasions when Mommy misses tuck-in? Alyson Schafer, psychotherapist and author of Ain’t Misbehavin’, offers some do’s and don’ts.

Don’t make promises you can’t keep.
“What children resent is when moms appease them by saying, ‘I promise, I promise, tomorrow will be better.’ It’s those broken promises that hurt a child much more than missing bedtime,” she says. Be honest and let your child know there’s a possibility that you’re not going to be the one reading Goodnight Moon this evening.

Don’t undermine your child’s need for consistency.
“If you know 8 p.m. is lights-out, don’t bust through the door at 8:15, wanting to play and hear about her day,” says Schafer. If you know your arrival is going to create a commotion, wait until your child is sleeping before you walk through the door, she says.

Do keep your sense of humor. Make “get out of jail free”
cards that both parents and children can use when they need to break a commitment, suggests Schafer. Cash yours in for a missed bedtime and let your daughter use hers when she forgets to feed the cat.

Survey
To get to sleep, 52% of working moms take something—usually a glass of wine.
Source: working mother.com poll