Every night for the past two weeks it's gone something like this:
Me: Gideon, do you want Daddy to shout at you?
Gideon: No
Me: I don't want to shout at you either.
Gideon: Good
Me: So, how do we make Daddy not shout at you?
Gideon: Not muck about in bed
Me: So you're going to curl up, get comfy and go to sleep
Gideon: Yes
...Three minutes pass...
Gideon: Fidgets
Gideon: Plays with his foot
Gideon: Sings songs under his breath
Gideon: Makes clicking noises
Me: Gideon, if you aren't quiet, I'll get grumpy with you. Is that what you want?
Gideon: No. I'll be good.
...Three more minutes pass...
Gideon: Sings, fidgets, rolls over, refuses to hold still, twists his arms around his legs until he looks like a pretzel, and then grins at me
Me: WILL YOU LIE STILL, STOP MUCKING ABOUT AND GO TO SLEEP.
Gideon: Gets tears in his eyes, chokes up slightly, curls up, and stops mucking about,
Gideon: goes to sleep in about 45 seconds.
Me: Is stressed for about half an hour and angry at myself.
If anyone has advice on how we can skip stages 9 through 17 I would appreciate it.
