Is your little one afraid of the dark at bedtime? If so, they are definitely not alone. According to Beverly Hills family therapist Dr. Jenn Berman, “The fear of the dark tends to evolve around the time children are old enough to have a sense of imagination.” Usually around the toddler years, around ages 2 to 3, bring about the child’s first fears of the dark, says Berman, due to they’re being “old enough to imagine, but not wise enough to distinguish fantasy from reality.”
With this combination at work, it’s not hard to see why a child may envision a monster standing in their darkened closet instead of the clothes that are actually hanging in there. This makes it harder to train your toddler to sleep through the night. So what can be done? Enter the night light. But not just any night light — the right kind of night lights introduce just enough light to a darkened room to illuminate the real and ditch the imaginary scary stuff so your little one can sleep soundly without the rest of the household being kept awake. To simplify things, we went in for the best of these night lights and rounded up a few for your consideration. Check out our favorite night lights for kids that won’t keep you up all night:
Twilight Turtle
A bonafide favorite of some littles we know personally, the award-winning Twilight Turtle from Cloud B is a lovely addition to any child’s room, especially since each shell is beautifully and uniquely hand-painted!
This plush and soft turtle can light up in soothing hues of amber, blue, or green, and the push of a button on its shell sends a your choice of a slew of glowing stars and a crescent moon, or eight constellations onto the walls and ceiling. The gentle glow of the stars produces a relaxing effect which lulls your little one to sleep. The enclosed Star Guide shows children and their parents how to locate each of the eight constellations, and the story included tells the tale of how Twilight Turtle got lost one day and had to use the constellations to find his way back home.
The single press of a button keeps the constellations lit up for 45 minutes, after which Twilight Turtle shuts down, thinking your baby has fallen asleep. If they haven’t? Just press the button again for another 45 minutes. Comes in several colors including pink, blue, purple, aqua, and classic ladybug. Get your Twilight Turtle in classic here for $30.00.
Soothe and Glow Seahorse
Another favorite of the kiddos we checked with is the adorable Soothe and Glow Seahorse from Fisher-Price, a soft and cuddly sleep-time pal that glows, makes music, and emits “white noise” sounds. To get the seahorse started, all your little one needs to do is give it a hug: this begins 5 minutes of music including 8 lullabies and various ocean sounds, as well as a gentle glowing light from the belly of the seahorse. After the 5 minutes is over, the seahorse’s belly light begins to grow dimmer and the music gets softer until it shuts down. Want to start it again? Just give it another hug!
Is it too loud? Just adjust the volume as you wish for your kiddo’s preferences. Did you spill something on it? No worries — it’s totally machine-washable once you remove the electronic parts from the center. This night light is perfect for any age, especially when it’s time to learn self-soothing. Get your Soothe and Glow Seahorse here for $13.00.
Hatch Baby Rest
This cutting edge nursery light projector creates the optimal rejuvenating atmosphere for a young one’s bedroom. The 7 aurora lights whirl on the walls and/or ceiling and various ambient ocean sounds (Enjoy sounds like forest animals, sea gulls at the beach, flowing water and birds, as well as jovial nature sounds), of the Remote Control Ocean Wave Projector offer a brilliant compilation for setting up sleep mode.
Connect via the app through your phone, or simply use the device manually. (You can also connect with other devices to access even more music.) Once set up, you should be able to adjust and use the device’s built-in music player and ambient sound maker as you wish; if not, it’s possible something went wrong as you installed, so unplug it and start all over. Enjoy a video demo here. The product offers touch key and remote functioning for convenience.
Get your own Remote Ocean Wave Projector here for $23.00.
We think these four are the best to start with for this season’s night lights, and we’re fairly sure they won’t keep any adults awake as they lull your young sweethearts to lala-land. So which do you think you’ll choose? Some aren’t strictly a night light (lookin’ at you, Seahorse), but they do a great job acting as one and will probably offer a multitude of sleep-inducing songs and ambience as the nights go forward. Aside from that, please let us know how your little one enjoyed their night light, where you’re located, and even send a pic if you get any cute ones. We’d love to hear how your nights have gone since grabbing one of these (or a similar) night light.
