Cosleeping bedtime routine

[Fadesto]

What is your bedtime routine if you Co sleep?
LO won’t sleep if I’m not there, so the result is quite a late bedtime for them by the time I’ve done everything I need to and getting them to sleep always seems to be a bit of a nightmare
I’m thinking of changing things around and would love to know what other people do.

How old is your little one?

I would creep out of bed once DS was asleep so he went to bed at a 7pm time rather than late

@TheOneWithUnagi
10months

In our room we sit in rocking chair and read a book or two, then lie in bed together and I nurse her to sleep. Once properly asleep I roll away. She stays there until I go to bed myself. She's 14 months now and it's been this way since 6 months when we attached the cotbed with 1 long side removed to our mattress. Would totally recommend this, means a much bigger space. Especially handy now DD seems to prefer sleeping perpendicular to me, except for excursions to the boob! We removed our bed head and foot board which were the legs of the bed, so the mattress is on the slatted frame only and much lower to the ground. She never fell off when I wasn't there. As soon as she woke she cried out and I raced up.

Until about a month ago, DD did wake a LOT in the evenings and I'm sure would've preferred me there all evening. Sometimes I do give in and just stay in bed with her. I've got into the habit of trying really hard to get everything done earlier on. And sometimes she just won't sleep and is downstairs pottering with us until 9ish. I think that's fine, if that's what it is happening with you. Sleep is over 24 hours rather than having to be be in the evening, baby will sleep more in day naps probably.

At that age we were on a floor bed in their bedroom. Cuddle or pat to sleep then rolling away.
My first child took ages to go to sleep (basically all evening) and looking back now day naps were far too long and too late. This may be worth considering.

my second child has slept much better and even though we did cosleep overnight we got an evening. I think still 2 naps at that age but 1.5 hours in total (vs the first was getting about 4 hours!)

Interesting! We’re at 3-4 hour nap time in the day as well, but I worry theres not enough nighttime sleep and I’m so exhausted I need the break too. Maybe I need to suffer through a few days and see if we can shift the hours a bit.

Thank you @HiCandles i definitely worry about falling off the bed when I’m not there and I just feel terrible, she seems SO distressed when she wakes up if she thinks I’m not there so I’ve just not been leaving. But I’m glad I’m not the only one in this situation. Sometimes you just need a sense check, I seem to only know babies who sleep in their own bed and sleep through the night!

You're not alone, definitely not.
It seemed absolutely ridiculous during the worst of it for us. At one point I was going back in to nurse her 3 times every evening before I could go to sleep myself. Every time takes 30 mins to get her to sleep then move away without waking her. But those snatched minutes downstairs I really needed, both to do the chores and next day prep, and to do nothing and not feel needed for just a few minutes!
It's passed to no wakes now in the evening or just 1, and this stage will too for you.
Sometimes I listen to audiobook on earphones whilst I'm settling her, just to have something to do in the dark, that might be something to try.

Thank you
your reply made me want to cry a bit that I’m not just failing and the only one doing this all wrong.., I’m definitely exhausted 😂

At that age my daughter still had a bit of a late bedtime, she was an 11-11 sleeper (with wakes), we tried to adjust it for nursery but it didn't work because she didn't sleep at nursery so fell asleep immediately she got home for a nap and then still went to bed at 10/11 but had to be up for nursery, so we just went with it and I went to bed at the same time as her.
When she was more settled with nursery we moved towards putting her to sleep in our bed then left her to sleep, we had a camera monitor on her and went in when she stirred to resettle her.
We transitioned to a floor bed in her own room around 2, (we started around 18 months but she struggled with it too much so we stopped).
We still lay with her for her to go to sleep now after a story, sometimes she resettles herself when she wakes up but sometimes we have to go in to cuddle her, we'll often fall asleep there if that's the case in the middle of the night. (She's 3 now)

I used to cuddle/feed them to sleep then get up. When they were a little older, I would cuddle/feed them to sleep in their own beds, then take them into our bed at the first waking.