not sure if I'm letting off steam or seeking advice...here goes. Have always enjoyed bedtime, always had a routine, warm milk and lots of stories - so I don't want anyone to think I begrudge them the time - I really don't but recently things have just got ridiculous - dds are 2 and 4 and the mucking about time is eating into the nice story time and just drives me UP THE WALL. Choosing a teddy takes about 5 minutes. Getting into the cot takes forever and usually ends with howls of protest as - once in the cot - DD2 remembers something she has to do; or changes her mind about her teddy; or decides she wants to get in the cot herself (if I helped her in) or wants me to help her in (if she got in herself). The there's requests for drinks of water, last minute wees - even the insistence that they didn;t get a kiss and a hug - when they did - drives me mad. The problem is that by this stage I'm hungry and tired and I;ve had enough. So it's very easy to get bad tempered - which I know makes things worse but find hard not to do. Tonight - when things had degenerated - I tried a different tactic - left the bedroom, sat by the door and just kept repeating in a calm voice "I will come back in and talk to you when you are both quiet and in bed" it kind of worked, and they are both quiet and in bed now - but I'm wound up and fed up. I just feel overwhelmingly cross with them for wasting time that I'dmuch rather spend reading to them. I think I'm going to buy an egg timer - and give them 5 minutes from end of story to light out and me leaving the room. Anyone tried something like this? Does it work?