DD driving me insane at bedtime

[utterlyplump]

Title says it all really. DD is 7 and will try every trick in the book to prolong the bedtime routine. Feigning hunger, making excuses as to why she can't clean teeth, put pyjamas on etc.

If I send her upstairs to make a start on getting ready for bed she will be doing something totally opposite to what she has been asked to do.

She insists on me being there, and I do go up-but I feel she should start to be a little independent at this age and not make demands on where I should be and concentrate on what she is doing!

It wasn't always like this but it has been going on for a while and tbh is wearing me out now. I end up feeling so drained after each performance every night that I just flop on the sofa feeling fed up.

I don't know if I'm asking/ranting or what to be honest. Just felt like getting it off my chest so hope that's ok

What time is her bedtime?
Ds started doing this at about that age. Turned out the reason was that other children in his class were saying that had a much later bedtime and so he was trying to stretch it out so that he could say he went to bed later too.

Her bedtime is 7:30. Could be earlier than some but she gets up early no matter what time she goes to bed so is always tired by the end of the day.

I have tried pushing it back to 8:00 to give her more time to get settled but by then she's so tired everything takes twice as long.

How long has it been going on? Has she been playing up worse in other aspects of the day or is it just relating to bedtime? Is there some other underlying issue as to why she won't go to bed? Maybe she's enjoying the attention she gets at this time and that she has you just where she wants you as she knows you really want her to get to bed. Why not go along the route of ignoring it, even if it means she stays up late a few nights. Particularly during the school holidays it won't matter if she's a bit tired the next day. It sounds like she's probably better off learning from her own mistakes. I know it sounds harsh but if you take the pressure off and tell her that she's a big girl now and knows how important it is to get some good sleep, she might stop resisting you so much. It sounds like it's all turned into a bit of a game. Maybe offer her some sort of incentive if she stops making a fuss.. but then again I don't really know as I don't have a 7 year old. But it was just a thought!! let us know how you get on!

OP, I'm still trying to figure the reason for delay at bedtime. DS is 13 now and still prolongs bedtime. I have finally accepted he is of the vampire fraternity and keep garlic by my bedside