Can you tell me your 2 year old's bed time routine

[thankful16]

Hi, my little girl is going to be 2 in March and it's a nightmare to get her to sleep at night. She was fine as a baby but the last few months its all changed. Don't even know where to start with it all. Most of it is our fault as we've got ourselves into bad habits like bringing her into bed with us. She basically doesn't know how to go to sleep by herself and I fear she's too old to learn now. Would love to hear how you get your toddlers to sleep and any suggestions of how I can get mine to start falling asleep on her own. I already do bath and story time which she enjoys but she seems to then come to life after it and wants to start playing around.

Hi OP, my DD is 2 in March too - we have our ups and downs with bedtime but generally it goes:

5pm - dinner
5.30pm - playtime/cuddles/story/colouring whatever she fancies really
6pm - bath
6.30pm - get into bed, tuck in, quick kiss and out the door with my fingers crossed

We found that she started to resist bedtime more when she didn’t want to be in her cot anymore, it’s improved a lot since she’s been in a toddler bed (but that’s just our experience, everyone is different regarding transitioning to a toddler bed).

She will learn, she will get there. You’re doing amazing either way!

Thank you for your reply. Really helpful to hear. Well that's actually going to be our next step to try and move her into a toddler bed as she just doesn't seem to sleep well at all in her cot but sleeps great in our bed even when we aren't next to her but I think we are still a long way from being able to just put her into bed and she'll fall asleep on her own accord. At the moment she just gets up and wanders around or starts playing with her toys even though we have all the lights out upstairs. It doesn't seem to deter her haha!

My DD was breastfed to sleep till 3 (a few months ago) and nursed through the night till 2.5. I'm sat on her floor waiting for her to go to sleep now, it's been about 15 mins including some pissing about with her dolls house... oh look she's asleep. We read a story before going to her room, we used to read a story while she's nursed but have got more lax with it lately. She didn't used to cope with her dad putting her to bed but she's ok now and we can pop out for a second but not say good night and leave, she'll get there eventually, so will your DD.

Magnesium in her bath helps her sleep a lot better.

My youngest (of 4) is 2 in March, bedtime routine is pjs (either after a bath or near bedtime as she only has a bath every other evening); bit of a play, then when I realise it’s nearly 7 o clock we go upstairs, brush teeth and put her in her bag and put her in bed. She’s in a single bed as we had one for her to go into, did have a few nights of issues a few weeks ago where she was undoing her bag and getting out of bed but soon stopped that by putting a t shirt on over her bag!! She’s had this routine since she was about 3 months old tho! No milk anymore, takes a bottle of water up to bed with her along with her favourite toy.

What happens when you just put her in bed and leave her? Mine sometimes chats to her teddy for a bit but then just goes to sleep.

If we were to just put her in her cot she would just cry to the point of making herself sick and nearly choke. When we try to get her to sleep in our bed we lie next to her but if we were to get up or leave her she'd just follow us or stand at the stair gate shouting or just go and play with her toys in the dark. She'd be up for hours if we let her. I'm still trying to get her to sleep just now and have been trying since 7pm.
Does your DD still nap during the day? How long for? I've been trying to play about with making her nap shorter and longer but it doesn't seem to be making a difference.

Sorry to jump on the bandwagon with OP's thread but can I just ask what age those in beds went into them? My dd will be 2 in June and cries in her cot at bedtime and I'm wondering if we should try changing the cot to a little bed or if it's too early? Thanks all

2.5 yr old
Bath
Sort and put away laundry
Story with her older sister
Breastfeed to sleep

2.5 year old.
Bath 6.15Pm where we read him a book or two
Out of bath 6.30ish, pjs and milk in our bed
6.40pm put him in his cot sleepy but awake, blow kisses, close door and leave. Usually then sleeps 12/13 hours straight through (unless ill or has a bad dream)
I'm aware a lot of it is luck but he is DC3 and we learned the hard way with the other 2. We have kept to the same bedtime routine since he was 3 months old and have always let him settle himself to sleep. At this stage you can re train her to fall asleep by herself but it will take at least 3 nights of returning her to bed every time she gets up. I'd clear a week off work and do it then if you're up for it as you may be in for a few sleepless nights. But once she gets it, you'll never look back. I'm not suggesting letting her get distressed, but you need to be firm and return her to bed every time she gets out. A simple phrase like 'bed time' but don't engage any further than that.
Good luck!

Mine naps 1.30-2.45 (when I have to wake her up to collect the others from school); she can survive a day with no nap and it’s not too painful but not ideal!

I agree with the above poster that you’re probably going to have to start from scratch and be really strict with yourselves!!!

My two year olds bed time

My little girl has always been easy to put to bed, she’d ask to go to bed, I’d give her a bottle & dummy take her up to bed, say goodnight and that would be her, until she had chicken pox about a month ago, no fault other than my own, but when she had chicken pox her sleep was really affected and she slept with me some nights, she was so poorly with them, I was doing anything I could to help her be comfortable. To get her to bed now is chaos, she won’t go to sleep unless it’s in my bed but once she’s asleep I can easily transfer her fine. We’ve tried putting her in her own bed, sitting with her in her own bed, but she just screams!! I feel like Iv let her down, as she was perfectly fine to put to bed before hand. What’s everyone’s bed time routines, and when did people take there two year olds dummy away