Can you share your 1yo and 3yo bedtime routine please?

[blushingmare]

....particularly if your 1yo doesn't settle to bed on their own and you have to be in with them.

I just haven't got it right with my two. Tonight had a really unsatisfactory time of 3yo DD basically hanging around waiting for me to get 1yo DS to sleep, but he wasn't going down easily and she was getting really fed up - feel like I need to change what I'm doing.

I used to put 3yo DD down first and then have time to feed and settle DS. But she is just not tired enough to go down at 6:30 anymore and DS is getting a bit beside himself much later than that. It's easier to do if DD hasn't napped, but that's not always easy to achieve as she falls asleep in the car a lot of the time. I try to get her to stay in her room listening to story tapes or looking at books, but that rarely goes down well.

I know she'd be absolutely fine if I just stuck her in front of the TV while I put DS down, but I just feel TV straight before bed isn't a habit I want to get into, or is that being precious?

[Misty9]

I really feel for you having to put both to bed - we do one each here still as 13mo dd still feeds to sleep... but when I have done it solo I've fed her while singing ds, 3.8, until he's asleep, then put dd down or continue feeding in her room. I was lucky they were cooperative though!

I feel the same about tv before bed...could you make a big deal about dd being older and getting to go to bed later? And having special 'quiet time' activities she does while you put ds down? Could choose puzzles/books from charity shops for pence? Or will she not be in the room alone, like my older one?!

Good luck.

[tortoisesarefab]

Do they share a room? My 2 do and they are both happier that way. We had to move ds's bed so that dd could see him from the cot. I just pop them both in bed now and they settle to sleep themselves

[blushingmare]

No they don't share a room. That would be a nightmare as DS still wakes at night and DD is a light sleeper. DD isn't great at staying in her room at that time on her own. I've had limited success with getting her to listen to a story tape/songs whilst I feed and settle DS, but often she is up and down and coming in to me, which of course drags out the whole process!

[bobajob]

Mine are 1 and 4.

After tea they both have a bath together, 1yo gets out first and I get him dried and into pjs and he watches In The Night Garden. He has a bottle of milk watching that while I get 4yo out. Get 4yo dried and dressed, then brush everyone's teeth. After ITNG I put 1yo to bed while 4yo watches the bedtime story. Then I have 30 minutes to read/play with 4yo before he goes to bed at half past.

[TarkaTheOtter]

Mine are 3 (dd) and 1 (ds) and I mostly put them to bed by myself. They have milk downstairs, then bath, pjs, teeth. I then read ds stories in her room. Ds sometimes listens and sometimes just pulls books off her shelves and makes a nuisance of himself. Then I tuck dd and say goodnight. We bought her a lamp she can use herself so if she isn't tired she can look at her books.
Then I put ds in his cot in his room (sometimes read a story first) and since we've done gradual retreat he is happy to go to sleep on his own. Both are in bed by 7. Depending on if she's had a sleep in the car dd will go to sleep immediately or stay awake for a bit but she stays in her room happily since we got her the lamp.

[Pandasandmonkeys]

Mine are 2.5 and 6 months. When I have to do bed time alone, (DH and I usually do one each) they go in the bath together at 6:15pm. I get the baby out first and get her dressed for bed then she plays under the baby gym (sometimes crying) while I get ds out and ready for bed. Then we all have a story in ds room. If the baby is crying and I can't read (she bf's to sleep) I leave ds with a lamp on and some books and puzzles in his room and watch him on the monitor while I go and feed the baby to sleep. Takes about 15- 20 mins to get her off to sleep, leave her on my bed while I return and finish ds, read story and tuck him him. Then start the mission that is getting ds into her own bed.... But that's my other post!!!

[flipflopsonfifthavenue]

Pandas - I commented on your other post.
Thus one made my chuckle with your (sometimes crying)comments. I did bedtime for both DS this eve ( 2.10yo and 7mo) and I have to sit on steps outside DS1 room while he falls asleep. DS2 was howling in his cot because, apparently, someone was removing his toenails by the sounds of it. I ended up bringing him out into the step with me just to stop the noise...

[Pandasandmonkeys]

Flip flops - thought id be optimistic!! :-) to be fair though, the wailing usually begins after her feed. She likes water so the bath is fun for her - one of the few things that is!

[ipswichwitch]

We had this issue with DS's (3.5yo and 18mo). DS1 wouldn't stay in his room alone so I could settle DS2, and was always barging in and upsetting him. We used a sticker chart, so he got a sticker every time he stayed in his bed til we came back from settling DS2, and once he got 5 on the chart he got to go to the shop and pick a small toy. He's had a number of severe sleep issues which we have managed to largely improve on, but this was always a problem.

Now he'll quite happily stay in his bed until DS2 is settled, as he has the promise of another story without DS2 interrupting and trying to chew the book! We don't allow TV after bath but let him choose some music to listen to in bed, as long as it's nothing to noisy! His favourite at the minute is George Ezra :)