Changing bedtime routine. Your tips please...!

[Ab31]

Hi all,
My 15 month dd has always had a good bedtime routine; bath, dress, books, breastfeed, bed. Thing is, she has pretty much always fallen asleep feeding and on the odd occasion when she doesn't she's really hard to settle.
Now though I want to stop b/f. How do I change bedtime into a 'read a story, kiss goodnight, leave the room' kind of affair? She's doesn't really like milk so can't rely on bottles/cups. Any thoughts on duvets/blankets versus grobags for a cosy effect? Or reading story in her cot rather than on laps?
Basically I need to know how to go from a baby bedtime to a child's one. Any advice welcome!
Thanks!

we moved form a routine identical to yours to...put DS in gor-bag, sit on lap with me with beaker of milk & read story, put into bed & I sing him a song. Big kiss goodnight! Then after a week we began to alternate between DP & me giving him his milk. We did that at 15 mths too,

Recently we can him a cot quily as well as his gro-bag for him to snauggle into. I'm not worried about him overgeating because he wriggles around so much much he rarely keeps it on all night.

We did this very gradually - bath, dress, then breastfeed, books, bed. In bed we shh/patted until she was asleep for a couple of nights, and then shh/hand on for a few, then shh by cot, then shh by door, then shh outside door. She was a bit younger (about 9 months, I think). We had to change it again recently (she's now 16 mo) as she got unsettled over Christmas, and finds books very exciting, so after books we switch the light off, and cuddle her in the rocking chair until she's relaxed, and then put her into bed.

Only experience of 1 child, so have no idea if it will work for you, but it was very gentle and untraumatic for all concerned.

Oh, yes - she's always had a 1.0 tog grobag plus blankets for the cosy heavy effect - I like that, so project on to my child...

Didn't he cry Chocolateshoes when you started putting him to bed awake and wwithout the b/f to dozy-fy him?

I suspect my dd would not be to fussed about losing the breastfeed now - she's keen to get to the stories, so I think we'll do it soon - just making the leap myself!

Yes I like the heavy blanket thing too and always feel something's missing without!

my 14 mo dd was always fed to sleep too and would cry if we put her down awake. We sorted it overnight, by luck. She loves ITNG so one evening I talked and sang through their goodnight routine from the end of the programme, where they say goodnight to all the characters. She was old enough to recognise this and understand it to a certain extent. I got her to put her stuffed igglepiggle toy to bed, then told her it was time for her to go to bed too.... and off she went!

We now do this every bedtime and she cuddles up with her igglepiggle quite happily and puts herself to sleep. I think she likes being in charge of putting igglepiggle to bed iyswim.

We use a grobag btw, makes it more difficult for her to move around and seems to work for us.

Wow will definitely try that, she loves ITNG too! Great tips...keep 'em coming...

Ab, at 15 months your dd may well, as Scoobi says, understand things well enough. Try talking to her about bed and sleep as you're getting her ready - the INTG thing sounds nice, but dd is a ponce and refuses to watch TV. Bah. Love it, myself.

No Ab he was fine. I thought he'd want b/f but was very pleased with his beaker. I had been dreading it! And went to bed happily. He also has a favourite toy that he has always slept with