Bed time routine toddler

[Humptydumpty666]

Current setup up is making me miserable. Me and LO (2) have dinner then sit and watch tv unyil 10 o clock and he sleeps in my bed which is when I also go to sleep.
How to I break this habit which just leaves me with no me time. Hes terrified of the bath so only donthat once a week its more hassle than its worth. Whats 'settles' down your LOs? What time do yours go to bed?

Mine went to bed about 9ish until they nolonger napped which was not long after their second birthday. You should avoid them watching TV for at least an hour before bed.

What time does he get up? Does he nap? Does he eat well? Is he getting at least 3 hours of exercise a day?

Gets up between 8 amd 9, doesnt do naps unless were in the car. Definitely not exercising everyday, We do go to national trust and parks on weekends.

At two mine used to stay up with me and my husband after we'd had dinner around 7pm, we didn't mind. We'd sit cosily cuddled up on sofa or he would be on floor playing with things, sometimes we'd join in or read with him. It was nice. Occasionally he went to sleep next to one of us in which case we'd carry him up to bed but if not, he'd come in with us. It wasn't a big deal.

He liked baths but we always did that in the morning, then a decent wash or quick shower, teeth and into pjs in the evening after dinner.

Would your son prefer a shower, do you think? I know some babies do enjoy showers. He can't go on with once a week baths indefinitely.

2 yr old wakes between 7-8, goes out every day even if just on the school run or supermarket. Toddlers need exercise!
Mine Doesn’t nap anymore.
Dinner is at 5, then shower (way easier than a bath), bottle at 6.30, and then tv/ books on the sofa until 7. Then bed.
Any change in schedule/ habit will cause a back
lash. So if you want to not co sleep you will have tears, and you need to be consistent. Current routine sounds dreadfully late- does your LO seem tired in the day?

DS is 2 next month. We do a bath at 6 (mine like it), then into PJs, relax watching TV for an hour then bed at 7.30pm, where it’s into bed kiss and say goodnight. Falls asleep his own and is in a single bed with a guard. We don’t do bedtime stories- lots of reading at other times of day but at bedtime it seems to hype them up for some reason. TV isn’t a problem. We did do some sleep training during a pre 2YO blip but it righted itself fairly quickly. Sleeps through to about 6.30am. Still naps after lunch but usually 40 minutes, never more than an hour.

And yes yes yes to exercise everyday! If I can’t really be bothered or the weather is crap just a walk around the block suffices.

We have dinner, clean up, wash (usually a bath) and play, get dressed, read books, sing songs and drink milk. Then we read to him outside the room as he falls asleep. We don't do any tech or noisy toys after dinner.

If you want your evenings back, then it's time to start adjusting slowly. I'd start by waking him earlier. Say 7.30am. Both of you up and on it. Keep him awake (he may be more inclined to nap if he has an earlier start)

Then just aim for 7pm into your bed, and for the first bit of time, lay with him for a sleep. Watch CBEEBIES bedtime hour 6-7 as it goes off at 7pm so you can fake "ah tv has gone to sleep now"

Once in your bed, read him some stories, sing some songs etc.

Keep up the 7.30am starts and 7pm tv off, and if he needs more time before sleep in the short term, make it quieter play, reading, songs etc.

Mine wakes between 6 and 6.30 and has pretty much dropped his nap, barring the odd 10 mins in the car.

We have a full on day of walking/playing/reading/supermarket trips. He goes to bed about 6.30pm. Dinner and bath from 5pm.

Wake him up at 7 and the NHS says a minimum of 3 hours exercise a day at this age.

Mine is 2.5, bed time is a struggle. We cut out tv before dinner at 6, then she plays inside/ outside till about 7.30 and then we go upstairs to get changed etc and she needs someone to lie down with her whilst she listens to her fav music. We only bath two/ three times a week. She goes to nursery 3 days a week and when I have her I try to be outside as much as possible

8ish bedtime here, if no nap then more like 7.30. She was 2 in October. Gets up about 7am ish, sometimes more like 8 if she’s had a late night. She needs 11-12 hours sleep over night, nap is only a few times a week at the most now.
cuddled or boob to sleep!

Dinner around 1730, bath and into pjs. In the night garden with some milk in her bedroom on a tablet. Stories then into her cot, sing a song and leave her between 1900-1920. She wakes between 0700 and 0730.
Shes 2.5, this routine works at home and if away. We do skip/modify at times depending on whether she’s been at nursery and/or had a nap, but the basis is consistent.
We also go outside every single day, it’s absolutely necessary for my sanity and to wear her out.

My son is a little older (3.5) but feel like this routine has been the same for at least a year!

DS is in bed for 7pm and generally wakes up at 6.30-7.00am (early for some but necessary for me to get him up, dressed, breakfast and out the door by 7:45am).

My son doesn't have 'excerise' as such but loves running around downstairs and we often have regular 'dance parties' in an evening so I suppose that counts.

I try to stick to the following as our (loosely based) routine: tv, dinner and then play (no tv) before we head upstairs for a wash/brush teeth. Generally son prefers a bath over shower but time dependent, he sometimes doesn't get a choice. Speaking of, have you put bath toys in there and made it 'fun' with songs? Once jammies are on, it's a book or story in bed and then chats/cuddles/good night kisses. I'll pop his lamp on with white noise music and then he go to sleep on his own.

He still wakes regularly at night so I either get up and give him a quick cuddle so he goes back to sleep. Or, more often that not these days, let him jump into our bed for the remainder of the night.

5pm dinner
5.30-6.15 playing or TV
6.15 upstairs, usually involved some playing, then teeth, then bath - after he’s washed, about 5mins of splashing around
7pm in bed, at that age I was still breastfeeding to sleep and singing nursery rhymes to him
After he’d fall asleep, I’d roll off the floor bed and go about my evening.

Note, at 2 he was still waking up a bit - he just traipsed to our bed and co-slept until the morning - it only got better close to 3yo.

Ours: 6pm dinner then directly upstairs for a bath. PJs on, read a story and have a cuddle, then into his bed and that's good night! No TV after 6pm. Always to bed in his own bed. This has always been the case though so it works like clockwork.

Mine is 2 years and one month.

Wakes around 6.30am and sleeps 7pm. Naps from 1-2.30pm (on me - so not ideal) I hugely need the downtime so feel for you. Your set up sounds tough.

Has he always been terrified of the bath? Could a top/tails wash with gentle music form part of your bedtime routine?

The screentime isn't good for fussy sleepers. Mine watches far too much tv and definitely affects sleep when close to bedtime. It's the blue light. Perhaps audiobooks would help? Maybe a yoto player?

other sleep cues might include lavender oil, white noise or a certain song.

Does he go to nursery in the day? I've noticed that two friends of mine who work long hours have similar sleepers. I suspect it's because their kids want to hang out with them in the evening. Asking without judgement - just an observation. Fellow childcare user here!

Mine are 2.10. They have dinner at 6.
At 7pm, it's either bath-time or play-time.
Then about 7:45, pyjamas on, a small glass of milk, brush teeth and up to bed.
In the bedroom, read a couple of stories, cuddles, chats, kiss goodnight and I leave them with their nighttime music playing.
They occasionally call me back to blow their nose or something, and then sleep from 8:15pm to about 8:15am.
They nap at weekends for about an hour.

I mean he’s 2, so you break the habit by making changes and riding out the tantrums/upset. You can have all the intricate routines in the world, but if a toddler isn’t fundamentally tired it’ll do bugger all. I would work on moving everything by a couple of hours (e.g. asleep for 8pm, for a wake up of roughly 7am), daily outside play/exercise (maybe it’s just my toddler who is like a puppy and is wild and destructive by the evening if he hasn’t run around outside) and better sleep hygiene, ie limiting evening tv.

With our (just turned) 2yo bedtime routine looks like this.

7:05 - Announce to DD "it's bedtime!", allow DD to "say goodbye" to the cat, her toys, the table, whatever
7:10 - DH changes DD into pyjamas
7:20 - DH brushes her teeth then brings her to me for a quick cuddle
7:25 - Story time
7:40 - Cuddles with DH
7:50 - DH heads downstairs. DD usually chats to herself and plays with teddy in bed for a bit.
8:20 - If DD not asleep, DH heads back up to give another quick cuddle. This sends her to sleep almost without fail.

DH and I used to alternate bedtimes but currently I'm ebf DD2 and doing her bedtime routine at the same time. Honestly I quite miss bedtimes with DD1!

The routine only lasts a week or 2. Then suddenly they decide to go to bed alone and you think you've cracked it, then they teeth again so scream for a week. It feels like a lifetime but even a good routine needs adapting as the child grows.
They all need exercise though, kids can spend hours on a park and never get tired, they need to run and play

When you say no exercise do you mean he is on the sofa all day? As that’s not good for inducing sleep. Obviously exercise doesn’t mean structured exercise necessarily but playing in the park/ garden etc. does he go to nursery? That’s probably stimulating enough if so