Anybody else's kids lose their absolute shit at bedtime

[Theydrivemecrazy]

And become hyper little lunatics?
They are 2 and 5 and absolutely out of control at bedtime. They play fight, jump on the beds, bundle each other, sing and dance but it's all so HYPER. Why does it happen? What am I doing wrong? They go to bed at a good time (7-8) but once they're out of the bath, that's it, out of control, don't listen to a word I say and take aaaaaages to calm down.
It's quite cute as a one off or from a distance but every bloody night, it's exhausting. Any tips?

Do you have the same schedule every night- honestly I think that’s why we don’t tend to have problems here (believe me we have a million issues all day long but never bed time)- consistency is key.

We do have the same schedule evey night. They were both crap sleepers so I implemented it really young and stick to it. Same routine every night, and same hyper part after they get out the bath!

Encourage them to have a post dinner run around before you do bath time to kill some of the energy.

Then divide and conquer. Get them out of the bath one at a time and make sure one is dressed and teeth brushed before the second one gets out. Then send the eldest to their room/downstairs for a bit of extra quiet play (or one episode of something) because they're so grown up now and you can definitely trust them to be calm and quiet. Put two year old to bed. Then do the five year old.

My siblings both have two each: they have both reported that during the bedtime bath, the kids wind each other up. Bath time had to be moved away from bedtime

Can you bath them earlier? Mine also go wild after a bath but I’d aim to shift the whole shebang about 20 mins earlier to avoid them being overtired. My 18mo goes up at 6.30 and the 6yo as soon as the little one is down so I’m usually back downstairs for 7.15. Any later and the small people are turning into a hyper mess of emotions and I’m starting to think about enormous glasses of wine

I also don’t bath them everyday!

Shower them separately?

We only do bath time once a week unless dirty for the same reason. Divide andconqu wouldn't work here because we stay with them until asleep.

I moved bathtimes to mornings or afternoons for a while when I had this problem. It definitely helped but I was on maternity leave so had luxury of time. Not always an option if you have early starts or late pick ups.

I also found am early tea followed by a run around / physical activity helped.

I appreciate all the replies.
I'm a single parent so I can't leave one in the bath and dress the other as there's nobody to watch the one in the bath. I think that's the root of the issue tbh, not having someone else to help split them up. They realise and gang up on me!
I like the idea of giving the older one some extra play time as they're so grown up after the bath while I sort the little one.
Skipping the bath is probably a good idea to test out too, see if going straight to teeth and stories helps.

An early dinner then a run around is a good idea, especially now the weather is getting better.

My DC does this when she is overtired. I can always tell as she starts doing summersaults on the bed and if she does that she is AWFUL going to sleep.

Could you try putting them to bed a little earlier? DD5 needs to be on her bed at 7 or she is a pain. (I also wouldn't bath every night).

Oh yes. We had strict bedtime routine and still had this mad 5-10 minutes. Exhausting

When do they eat before bed?

Apparently rough and active play before bed is good for them - helps set them up for good sleep! So can you encourage some active play before bath time? Maybe make getting upstairs and undressed a timed challenge with a tickle game included and spent 10'mins mucking about? Then bath story bed?

You can dress the first one to get out in the bathroom/in the doorway, while watching the one who is still in the bath. If you get the eldest out first then presumably they can mostly dress themselves while you just supervise both.

Showering is way quicker imo- my 2 year old has a gate on her room, so if I shower her first, when her sister is showering she plays in her room for what is max, a few mins.

Could you switch to morning baths? For some kids they seem to relax them, but for others they have the opposite effect and hype them up

My two are 6&3(weeks off 4 if it makes a difference) and if they bathe together at night it's a shit show.

The youngest has her own bath now, then bed. Eldest has a shower or sponge wash and bed once she's asleep. Keeps bedtimes much calmer.

Mine still at 8 and 10 have a bath/shower and then are knobs for a bit - dancing, singing, rolling about in the hall, harassing the dog.

I do a little TV after their baths, then I read to them altogether in my bed, then into their rooms. They've always needs a gap between bath and bed to avoid lunacy

Are they getting enough exercise during the day, OP? Ideally, you want them worn out by bathtime, so they are ready to be tucked up for their bedtime story then off to sleep straight afterwards.
I (or the nanny, as I worked 4 days a week at that stage) always took the DDs for a long walk, and played ball games or put them on the slides and swings at the park.
Weekends we either went swimming or up the hills (rural Scotland) for plenty of fresh air. My two were zonked by the time I finished a couple of chapters at bedtime!

Bath before tea so 430/5

No need to bath every day

I'd leave the 5yo in the bath and pyjama the 2yo in the corridor outside the bathroom with the door open (depending on the layout of your house). Then distract 2yo with some toys in their room while you sort 5yo.

My 10yo still gets hyper, playful or argumentative with his sister and very loud when tired, around 730-8pm. He then crashes and sleeps like a log. No routine will calm him.