Most children go through a phase of being afraid of the dark. Sometimes it can come on suddenly, for no apparent reason. My son is going through such a phase now, which is why we placed an automatic night light in his room to help him to feel more comfortable at night. I really like this Twilight Ladybug Night Light, however. It does more than an ordinary night light. It projects images of stars onto the ceiling and walls of your child’s room. I have those stick-on, glow-in-the-dark stars on my son’s ceiling right now , but they only work if they absorb enough light before bedtime to glow in the dark. This ladybug is a much better idea.

The Twilight Ladybug can project blue, green, or ruby-colored stars, and also has a shell that lights up. It measures 10.5″ long x 8″ wide x 4.5″ high and has an automatic shut-off 45 minutes after you turn it on. That should be plenty of time for your little one to get to sleep amid the stars. The ladybug comes with 3 AAA batteries, and is recommended for children ages 3 and up. It costs just $29.95 at SlumberSounds.com. I’ll be purchasing this for my son’s comfort very soon.

When you see this darling plush lab, don’t you just want to pick him up and give him a cuddle? The Lavender Lab, made by Cloud b of soft velboa fabric, has aromatherapy lavender packets inside his head, back and bottom. The manufacturer says the scent lasts up to 5 years. Lavender is known to be a calming and all-natural sleep inducing fragrance, so the idea is you can keep this lab with baby in the crib at nap time and bedtime

Lavender Lab measures 13.5″ x 7.4″ x 7.2″. It is recommended that the Lavender Lab stay on baby’s pillow when not in use, so that the lavender scent becomes infused into the pillow and encourages sleep at nap and bed time. This could also be used to help Mom or Dad get to sleep during a particularly stressful time! You can purchase the Lavender Lab for $19.80 at Amazon.com. It would make a great shower or new baby gift.

Sweet and soft with soothing sounds inside. That’s the Sleep Sheep promise. Just gazing at him makes me want to cuddle up under the covers. He’s designed right down to the last detail, with 4 sounds, adjustable volume, automatic turn-off function, and even a tab secured by Velcro for attaching him to the crib (on the outside for safety.)

One of his sounds is mama’s heartbeat, but the others sound soothing and lovely as well. Some babies, my son included, choose one stuffed friend and take it everywhere, relying on it for comfort and familiarity.

My advice is never allow the favorite friend to enter stores or public places (we almost had a nightmare on our hands when ours was lost in a big store) but take it everywhere else you go for that remembrance of home.

Selling for $21.50 at babymallonline.com, the Sleep Sheep by Cloud B is a great shower gift, new baby gift, or mama purchase.