Bedtime tips for two please

[buffysummers4]

I have a 4 year old and a 7 month old who is still non mobile (no SN, just hasn't been bothered to roll or crawl yet).
Currently at bedtime I leave baby on the floor in the bathroom while I concentrate on the older one to get him into his pyjamas, do his teeth, give him a shower etc. I am panicking though about how on earth I'm going to manage when the younger one is on the move!

In the longer term I guess I will be putting the younger one to bed first but at the moment 4 yr old gets very tired and needs an earlier bedtime than the baby. I can't imagine this is going to change very soon esp as he will start school in September and everyone says they get really exhausted then.
Does everyone do both their teeth at the same time, then pyjamas at the same time etc, or do you get one into bed and then the other?

Any tips very welcome please!

Ps during the week I almost always do dinner/ bedtime by myself, husband gets home late.

I have a 3yo and a 10 month old who didn't start moving around until about 7-8 months. Rolled around first and just started crawling. I sit dd2 in the bathroom/ on the landing with a couple of toys and the stairgate closed. Then wash and brush teeth of dd1 or wash her hair in the bath. Then dd2 into bath/ into pyjamas if not having a bath too. Then pyjamas and story for dd1 and feed and bed for dd2.

Basically its just a matter of keeping toys around for dd2 and small things off the floor. I now make sure a towel or something is in each doorway so dd2 can't pull a door closed on her fingers (or push a door shut and then roll against it so I can't get into the room and have to get dd1 to squeeze in and roll the baby out the way ).

I hate bedtimes and am looking forward to when they are both able to just go to bed!

I think it partly depends on whether either of them will ‘settle’ without you being with them. I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old and do bath together, pjs and teeth together, stories together, and then couple of minutes to settle DS1 then cuddle DS2 to sleep. I do have to send DS1 back to bed a bit but by this time DH is normally home. Will work on DS2 self settling at some point when I can face it!

Thank you both! Towel in door is a great idea although one of 4 year old's procrastination activities at bedtime is repeatedly opening and closing doors so not sure how that would go down.
Need to sort a stairgate on the landing.

Don't feel you need to bath every night, a couple of times a week is fine.

You could give dc2 a shorter bath then into pjs in the bathroom while dc1 finishes up