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Max & Lumi: Calming Bedtime Stories for Kids & Parents

Max & Lumi: Calming Bedtime Stories for Kids & Parents

By: Storylight Jar
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About this listen

 🌙 Max & Lumi — The Storylight Jar


A bedtime podcast for parents who want calmer nights, happier mornings, and children who drift easily into sleep.


Created for families with children aged 4–7, Max & Lumi blends soothing storytelling, gentle mindfulness, and sleep science into a 7–12 minute nightly ritual that helps young minds slow down and feel safe before bed.


Pediatric sleep studies show that predictable, calming bedtime routines can help children fall asleep up to 30% faster and reduce night wakings by nearly half.¹ Max & Lumi is built entirely around that science — offering a consistent, screen-free way to end each day with connection, learning, and calm.


Every Magic Word of the Week unfolds across three softly connected episodes — The Listening Glow, The Learning Glow, and The Living Glow — released on alternate nights. Families are encouraged to replay each episode on the days in between, using repetition to deepen comfort, memory, and emotional regulation.


✨ The Listening Glow – helps children settle and focus their attention through slow breathing and mindful cues.

✨ The Learning Glow – gently revisits the story, building vocabulary and understanding through calm repetition.

✨ The Living Glow – guides children to use the week’s word in a tiny act of kindness or reflection before sleep.


Each episode features:

• Lumi’s warm welcome and the Magic Password of the Week — a “think it, don’t say it” word that quietly grows your child’s vocabulary.

• Gramps’ glowing storytelling — reimagined tales that nurture empathy, imagination, and emotional security.

• Max’s sleepy goodnight — modelling relaxation and closure, supported by soft, 60–75 BPM lullaby tones proven to slow heart rate and breathing.


Parents love that Max & Lumi is:

• Screen-free and ad-safe — perfect for winding down without blue light or overstimulation.

• ADHD- and neurodivergence-friendly — predictable pacing, silence, and rhythmic cues for self-regulation.

• Guided by sleep psychology — Inspired by research from Lurie Children’s Hospital, Sleep.com, and the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute on how calm bedtime storytelling improves sleep, mood, and learning retention.


Rooted in science, wrapped in imagination — Max & Lumi helps families end each day in peace.

Press play, breathe softly, and let the Storylight glow.


Join the Storylight community on Instagram and Facebook, or visit www.maxandlumi.com for bedtime tips, new episode updates, and a little extra evening calm.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Storylight Jar Literature & Fiction Parenting & Families Relationships
Episodes
  • The Rabbit Hole Of Wonder – The Living Glow

    The Rabbit Hole Of Wonder – The Living Glow
    Nov 21 2025
    Welcome back to Max & Lumi — The Storylight Jar, the calm bedtime podcast that helps children and parents unwind together with gentle storytelling, mindful breathing, and imagination designed for better sleep.Tonight’s story reaches the final stage of this week’s Magic Word: Curiosity.The Storylight Jar glows lavender-blue — the colour of The Living Glow, when children learn to use their new word in a kind, real-world way that brings comfort, confidence, and calm.🐱 What This Episode Is AboutIn this soothing conclusion to The Rabbit Hole of Wonder, Max and Lumi discover that someone from Alice’s world has slipped into Nocternia… the Cheshire Cat. But he isn’t scary — just shy, mysterious, and hard to see.Together, Max, Lumi, and the listener learn how to use quiet curiosity to understand something that first seems strange. Through slow breathing and gentle focus, the Cat gradually appears — ears, eyes, paws, and finally a warm, purring tail. Curiosity turns what might feel unknown into a friend.The story helps children understand that shadows, strange shapes, or nighttime worries often feel frightening only because they’re unclear. When they stay calm, breathe slowly, and look closely, those “mysteries” become ordinary, safe, and even comforting — just like the Cheshire Cat.💤 Why This Episode Helps With SleepThe Living Glow is created with a research-backed bedtime rhythm that helps children transition naturally into sleep:• Slow narration (~90–100 wpm)• Soft lullaby music at 55–60 BPM• Lavender-blue sensory imagery to cue relaxation• Guided breathing to reduce bedtime fidgeting• Predictable narrative structure to lower nighttime anxiety• Gentle reflection that helps children settle emotionallyBy teaching that curiosity can make the unknown feel friendly, this episode supports emotional safety — a key ingredient in healthy, reliable sleep for ages 4–7.🌙 Educational and Emotional Benefits• Shows children how to use curiosity to feel safe at night• Teaches calm problem-solving and emotional reframing• Strengthens self-regulation with guided breathing• Builds resilience when facing new or unfamiliar things• Encourages reflective thinking through the “happy treasure” moment• Completes the Three Glow cycle for deeper understanding👂 Listening Guide for ParentsPlay this episode as your child settles into bed, lights dimmed and screens off. Invite them to rest as still as Max, breathe softly with Lumi, and imagine the lavender-blue Storylight drifting into Gramps’s beard.The final reflection — finding one tiny happy moment from their day — helps your child anchor a positive feeling before sleep, reducing anxious thoughts and bedtime resistance.🌳 Inside NocterniaWhen curiosity is finally used with kindness, the Cheshire Cat dissolves into gentle lavender sparkles that drift to the Dreamtree. There, the Leaf of Curiosity glows fully for the first time — completing the Dreamtree’s recovery of this week’s word and adding one more light to Nocternia’s canopy.Press play, breathe slowly, and drift into Nocternia with Max, Lumi, and the sleepy Cheshire Cat — a calming bedtime story for children aged 4–7 that shows how curiosity can turn the unknown into something safe, friendly, and beautifully dreamlike.💫 Follow @maxandlumi on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Pinterest, and Facebook, or visit www.maxandlumi.com for more peaceful bedtime adventures.💫 Loved this episode? Follow Max & Lumi for more peaceful bedtime stories, ADHD-friendly sleep podcasts, and gentle night-time tales that help children drift into restful sleep.🎧 Subscribe and download to enjoy calming storytelling, vocabulary-building adventures, and consistent bedtime routines – perfect for children aged 4–7.🌙 Visit maxandlumi.com for free bedtime resources, the full Max & Lumi storyworld, and tips to make bedtime the most peaceful part of your child’s day. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show More Show Less
    13 mins
  • The Rabbit Hole Of Wonder – The Learning Glow

    The Rabbit Hole Of Wonder – The Learning Glow
    Nov 19 2025

    Welcome back to Max & Lumi — The Storylight Jar, the calm bedtime podcast that helps children and parents unwind together through gentle storytelling, soft mindfulness, and sleep-ready imagination.


    🐇 In this second part of The Rabbit Hole of Wonder, the Storylight Jar glows rose-gold — the colour of The Learning Glow, where children step inside the storylight itself to understand the Magic Word Curiosity more deeply.


    ✨ What This Episode Is About

    Inspired by Alice in Wonderland, this soothing Learning Glow takes Max and Lumi into Wonderland, where they meet Alice and the White Rabbit in a peaceful clearing that only appears to quiet hearts.


    Together they sip Wonder Tea (which tastes like the question you’re thinking), practise a “Curiosity Breath,” and help Alice solve a gentle mystery: a tiny golden key that only opens a door when someone looks with soft, patient curiosity. Inside waits a glowing thinking candle — a reminder that calm questions often shine the brightest.


    This episode shows children that curiosity isn’t rushing or pushing for answers — it’s wondering gently, looking kindly, and discovering slowly.


    💤 Why This Episode Helps With Sleep

    Every Max & Lumi episode is written with a research-backed bedtime rhythm:

    • Slow narration (100→90 wpm) to support relaxation

    • Soft lullaby tones around 60–65 BPM

    • Predictable structure that lowers bedtime resistance

    • Mindful breathing cues to settle fidgety thoughts

    • Gentle sensory imagery to encourage drifting and drowsiness


    The Learning Glow strengthens calm focus and emotional regulation, helping young listeners move naturally toward sleep — perfect for children who struggle with bedtime transitions, big feelings, or busy minds.


    🌙 Educational and Emotional Benefits

    • Deepens understanding of the Magic Word Curiosity

    • Helps children practise calm problem-solving

    • Encourages gentle observation rather than rushing

    • Builds vocabulary through context and story immersion

    • Reinforces imagination, positive wonder, and self-regulation

    • Supports healthy, consistent bedtime routines


    👂 Listening Guide for Parents

    Play this episode as your child settles in bed with lights dimmed and screens off. Invite them to breathe slowly with Lumi, listen softly with Max, and picture the rose-gold Storylight guiding them through Wonderland. Replaying the Learning Glow during the week deepens comfort, familiarity, and bedtime readiness.


    🌳 Inside Nocternia

    As Max and Lumi help Alice find what the golden key unlocks, the Dreamtree’s ghost-leaf fills with glowing colour — the sign that understanding has taken root. One more part of the Lost Lexicon begins to awaken, one gentle word at a time.


    Press play, breathe slowly, and step gently into Wonderland with Max, Lumi, Alice, and the White Rabbit — a calming bedtime story for children aged 4–7 that turns curiosity into peace, wonder, and sleep.


    💫 Follow @maxandlumi on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Pinterest, and Facebook, or visit www.maxandlumi.com for more bedtime magic and peaceful sleep stories.

    💫 Loved this episode? Follow Max & Lumi for more peaceful bedtime stories, ADHD-friendly sleep podcasts, and gentle night-time tales that help children drift into restful sleep.


    🎧 Subscribe and download to enjoy calming storytelling, vocabulary-building adventures, and consistent bedtime routines – perfect for children aged 4–7.


    🌙 Visit maxandlumi.com for free bedtime resources, the full Max & Lumi storyworld, and tips to make bedtime the most peaceful part of your child’s day.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show More Show Less
    10 mins
  • The Rabbit Hole Of Wonder – The Listening Glow

    The Rabbit Hole Of Wonder – The Listening Glow
    Nov 12 2025

    Welcome back to Max & Lumi — The Storylight Jar, the calm bedtime podcast that helps children and parents unwind together through gentle storytelling, mindfulness, and imagination.


    🐇 In this week’s dreamy adventure, The Rabbit Hole of Wonder, Lumi opens the Storylight Jar to release a soft amber glow — the Listening Glow, first of the Three Glows. The Magic Word of the Week is Curiosity, meaning a kind and gentle desire to know or learn something.


    ✨ What This Episode Is About

    Inspired by Alice in Wonderland, this soothing reimagining follows Alice as she drifts down a sleepy rabbit hole filled with floating clocks, invisible tea, and softly snoring teacups. Guided by the White Rabbit and the kindly Mad Hatter, she learns that real curiosity isn’t about rushing to find answers — it’s about listening until they quietly arrive.


    💤 Why It Helps With Sleep

    Each Max & Lumi episode blends slow pacing (100–90 wpm), soft lullaby soundscapes (60–65 BPM), and mindful breathing cues to help children relax. The Listening Glow encourages calm attention — helping young minds focus gently, slow racing thoughts, and drift into deep, natural sleep.


    🌙 Educational and Emotional Benefits

    • Introduces the Magic Word Curiosity — exploring gentle learning and wonder

    • Reinforces mindful listening and emotional self-regulation

    • Builds vocabulary and imagination through story-based context

    • Supports bedtime routines and healthy sleep associations


    👂 Listening Guide for Parents

    Play this story as your child settles in bed, lights dimmed and screens off. Encourage them to listen quietly with Max, breathe softly with Lumi, and imagine the glowing Storylight drifting into Gramps’s silver beard. Replaying this episode builds familiarity and calm, strengthening bedtime routines night after night.


    🌳 Inside Nocternia

    In the Dreamtree’s realm, every question shines like starlight. Tonight’s Listening Glow begins the journey of Curiosity — the spark that helps Nocternia’s Dreamtree grow one new glowing leaf.


    Press play, breathe slowly, and follow Alice, Max, and Lumi down The Rabbit Hole of Wonder — a gentle bedtime story for children aged 4–7 that turns curiosity into calm.


    💫 Follow @maxandlumi on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook, or visit www.maxandlumi.com for more peaceful bedtime adventures.

    💫 Loved this episode? Follow Max & Lumi for more peaceful bedtime stories, ADHD-friendly sleep podcasts, and gentle night-time tales that help children drift into restful sleep.


    🎧 Subscribe and download to enjoy calming storytelling, vocabulary-building adventures, and consistent bedtime routines – perfect for children aged 4–7.


    🌙 Visit maxandlumi.com for free bedtime resources, the full Max & Lumi storyworld, and tips to make bedtime the most peaceful part of your child’s day.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
    Show More Show Less
    11 mins
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