What to do when children find it hard to sleep on the night before Christmas

When excitement levels hit fever pitch on the night before Christmas, you might need to figure out which routines to maintain and which ones to ditch, writes Helen O’Callaghan

Billy, Clara and Ruadh Pierce with Marley at home in Bishopstown. Picture; Eddie O'Hare

On Christmas Eve it’s a tradition that sleigh bells ring in the garden of the Bishopstown-based Pierce family. And as soon as Billy, 11, Ruadh, nine, and Clara who’s almost six, hear these, they know it’s time for bed.

“We link bedtime on Christmas Eve into as many of the Christmas extras as we can,” says mum-of-three Fia Pierce, explaining that when the children visit Santa he reminds them about going to bed early.