Hi all,
Posted this in sleep and just got one, jokey/non-serious response, so thought I might try here instead...
We have a few issues with DS' sleep and are not sure how to approach them/in which order.
DS is 25 months. We have co-slept with him almost since birth. He now co-sleeps with DH whilst I sleep alone, which for obvious reasons I do like (ie I get to stretch out and sleep!). However, we feel it's time (probably well past time) he should move to his own bed in his own room. This is complicated by the fact that we are due to move house when lockdown is over, so aren't sure whether to wait until we've done that.
The other issue is that he doesn't go to bed until 10pm. Sometimes he then takes an hour to get to sleep. We know this is too late. He has a 2-3 hour nap in the day. We also know this is too long.
The quid pro quo for DH having him overnight is that he gets a couple of hours to chill in the evening - watch TV, chat to friends, play on the PS, sometimes do some work.
This set-up is somewhat unconventional but in some ways it works well. We all get a good night's sleep. No one has to get up in the night (only exception is if DS is poorly). And it means that on the days I work (in normal life), I get to spend some decent time with DS in the evening.
On the other hand, there are a number of downsides. DH and I don't get to spend the bulk of the evening together, nor do we get much time just the two of us. We don't sleep together. And DS hasn't had chance to learn to put himself to sleep.
I think the reason we've resisted addressing it for so long is how well we've been able to sleep at night. We both remember the first few weeks after he was born, before we got into this routine, and how dreadful the lack of sleep was. So we've not wanted to rock the boat. But I think we need to stop putting it off and move towards a more 'normal' evening and nighttime routine.
I know that to resolve the going to bed late issue we need to start reducing the daytime nap. Otherwise I don't really know where to start. Would it be better to concentrate on bedtime first or on the co-sleeping first?
TIA