what time do your toddlers go to bed?

[tallmama]

I'm local Chinese. My girl sleeps from 8pm to 7:30am since she's 6 weeks old (she's 11 mths now). Quite a few of my friends also put their babies to sleep around this time. Yet, the majority of local parents do let their kids sleep as late as 10 or even later. Like Kashismom says, it's very common for both parents going to work and they want to enjoy some quality time with their kids when they're home. Most of them will be surprised to hear that ur babies sleep at this time and they do think babies sleeping early (7pm, 8pm) are weird! My mother-in-law always thinks i give my girl special training and force her to sleep at 8pm! I don't care about what she says. It's my baby's routine. She has 2 naps in day time and she sleeps like an angel when we put her to bed.

[Neha]

our son used to sleep between 7-8 but now a days he sleeps by 9 and wakes up by 7.00 which is normal time he never slept more than 10 hours at a stretch and he sleeps in the afternoon for 2 hours so he makes up his 12 hours of sleep. There are days when doesnt take his afternoon nap he sleeps early at 7 and wakes up at 6-7

[trailingspouse]

that is brilliant, thank you everyone! Really helpful stuff. I totally agree with having adult time in the evening, I couldn't do without it with three so young. My husband will be working as a lecturer so should be able to get home in reasonable time to see the kids (he manages it now, so fingers crossed it will not be too different). good to know it is not a lot cooler in the evenings, forewarned is forearmed! Thanks everyone.

[MLBW]

My 14-month-old goes to bed between 6-7:30 pm but that is because my husband and I conscientiously keep to that schedule (for our son's health and our sanity). I second what the above posters have written: My husband's parents (local HK Chinese people), if left to their own devices have no problem letting our boy stay up until 10 pm, 11 pm or even midnight! (and feeding him copious amounts of chocolate and sugar--thankfully, we've come to a compromise on this!)

Hong Kong isn't exactly "mediterranean" as people are constantly on the go here and don't really do "siestas" (however, in ML China, afternoon siestas are common) however, this city runs late. In the urban parts of the city you can usually go out at any time of the night (2-3 am!) and find a place or two open to eat dinner. So, people eat later (before baby, we usually ate dinner around 9-10 pm) and go to bed later and also wake up later and go to work later. I read an article in the South China Morning Post probably about 3 years ago talking about how a survey was taken and HK people go to work later than people of many other large cities.

Because of the late nights (spent working and socializing usually) you will often see people on public transport full-on sleeping. I've been on train cars and buses where I looked around and every passenger except for myself was sound asleep. I can't do it because it gives me a crink in my neck but my husband gets on the bus and immediately goes to sleep.

If you're moving to HK in November, I wouldn't worry about cooler evening walks versus "hot days" because November is the beginning of the winter season--which will be sort of maybe comparable to a balmy spring day in countries that have four distinct seasons. You may have to layer on more clothes to keep out the cooler winds, though--usually January-March are the coldest months in HK. When I first moved here in January 2002, from an area that has a snowy, cold winter, I mistakenly assumed that HK was warm and comfy all year round so I didn't even bother to bring a coat! Big mistake! It does get cold here--damp and cold sometimes and most local homes are made of concrete and don't have heat so it can be uncomfortable at times. In the summer, you'll deal with muggy, hot weather that will leave you dripping--that's when evening walks come into play, but as Carang says--sometimes it doesn't even cool down in the evenings. For example, this last summer in late July, I happened to look at the thermometer at 4 in the morning. It was still nearly 30 degrees C and 85% humidity out. You will definitely want a good air conditioner in the summer!

[0ze_Kid]

Mine between 7.30-8.00pm but are pretty feral after 7.30.

Ages 2 and 4.