A Bedtime Routine That Holds
The same few steps in the same order, most nights, is what makes bedtime easier.
Children settle more easily when they can predict what comes next. The steps matter less than the order staying the same: wash, change, one story, lights low.
Start winding things down about half an hour before you want your child asleep. Screens off, voices lower, the big light replaced by a smaller one.
In a joint family this takes some negotiating — the television is on, people are talking, someone has just arrived. It helps to agree with the household on one quiet half-hour rather than trying to enforce silence.
Some nights will simply not work. That is normal and it is not a sign that the routine has failed.
If your child's sleep is worrying you — they seem very tired in the day, or bedtime has become distressing for everyone — it is worth talking it through with someone qualified rather than carrying it alone.