Lullaby and good night...

My 10-month-old son is finally sleeping through the night-much later than my daughter. She was sleeping through the night at about 6 weeks-old. There are several tips and tricks that I have tried. The tip that I find to be most universal for kids is HAVING A ROUTINE. The "night night" routine should be at the same time and relatively same order each night. My daughter still has a nighttime routine at 3 1/2 years-old. If followed properly, she wakes up in a good mood. If we missed the time frame and were lazy (didn't read her a book or tuck her in well), my daughter is restless and usually cranky the next day. Another good tip, is to BE CALM yourself. Kids feed off our energy. Even if you are in the moment, but thinking about things to do for the next day or reliving a stressful day in your head, your child is going to sense your anxiety. During the nighttime routine, don't think of anything else but easing your child into a pleasant, restful sleep. Share this special time with your child and leave thoughts of laundry, grocery lists, job stress or money worries for later.
Actually, knowing how kids feed off of your energy is a good tip for other areas of parenting. If you're calm, it's much easier to calm a child who has been hurt or is upset about something. When scolding a child, they're much more likely to listen to calm, logical dialogue than to screaming and yelling.