Life with two kids: Bedtime

[andrewducker]

The countdown to bedtime starts at 20:00 with me asking if anyone is still hungry. And then hopefully by 20:30 they've finished having multiple cream-cheese wraps, ham sandwiches, and whatever else they need because dinner was almost two hours previous and so their stomachs are terribly terribly empty.

And then we brush teeth (we have an app that helps them focus on that, and they take turns choosing which Disney/Marvel/Star Wars character it will show). I love that it works in quadrants, so that they know where they should be brushing at any point, and everywhere gets some attention.

And then they argue over who Jane will put into their pyjamas first. And usually there are tears from whoever isn't first. Because being "first" is now a thing, and they will work themselves up into a state over the smallest thing that they weren't first at.

And then I read them a book (which they take turns choosing different nights). Sophia's current choice is Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Gideon likes Peppa Pig. They sit on my lap and fight over who gets to sit on my left leg. I have *no* idea why being on the left is so important, but about 6 months ago they started asking if they were walking on the left when we were out with them, and *that* turned into a battle over which of them would get to be on the left. And then it spread. Seems to have calmed down a bit recently though.

And then, when we've reached the end of a chapter/short book, Sophia climbs into the top bunk and falls asleep in about 3 minutes. Sometimes asking to hold my hand while she does. And then waking up when I try to pry my hand back out of her iron grip.

And Gideon climbs into his bottom bunk, with Jane lying next to him, and complains he's not tired for about five more minutes and then falls asleep as soon as he stops talking for more than ten seconds.

Once Gideon is asleep you can play a brass band in the bedroom and not wake him up. You have to be slightly sneaky if Sophia is awake though. If she realises that you're leaving the room before she's at least 160% asleep then she sits bolt upright and demands that you come back and hold her hand. On days when she's stressed this can happen multiple times. But thankfully that hasn't happened for a few weeks.

And then I go downstairs and stack the dishwasher. If that's all done by 9:30 then I might play fifteen minutes of a computer game (Thronefall is my recent city-builder/tower defense game which is great for being playable in small chunks). But mostly I just then climb into bed, read for fifteen minutes, and fall asleep myself.

Comments

[cmcmck]

It keeps you out of mischief! :o)

[andrewducker]

No time for mischief!

[bearshorty]

Hah - my girls were also fighting over who gets to hug me first/to whom I will sing the first song since I have to sing the same one individually to each and god forbid I just do one/and whose nightlight color is on that day. So we have odd and even system. On odd days, one gets first hug and first song and nightlight color and on even days, it is the other ones. It does switch up with months but at least I don't have to mark it on the calendar for them anymore.

Of course now the oldest doesn't want the nightlight anymore and the other really, really needs it, so we have to figure that out next.

[andrewducker]

Good luck! I think we have a lot of arguments in our futures!

[zippybeta]

Do morning routines go better for you?

[andrewducker]

They go fine.

Wake them up at 7:05, through for a hug in our bed, then downstairs by 7:15 for breakfast, into clothes at 7:45, out the door by 8 for a bus at 8:08.

[juan_gandhi]

So sweet.

I remember how mine, like, supposedly an hour into sleep, were both getting up, walking out, hand in hand, declaring that they want water and to pee. And they laughed.

[andrewducker]

Hah! I've not had that yet. But I am sure it is only a matter of time!

[mountainkiss]

And then WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY DO

[andrewducker]

They snore.

I've checked.

Sometimes Gideon rotates slowly. Give him a couple of hours and he'll be lying the other way round in the bed. Which is impressive as he's longer than it is wide.

[mountainkiss]

I wonder how.

[andrewducker]

I would set up a camera to check, but that would feel weird.

[mountainkiss]

Stakeout

[marymac]

I know mine of similar size sort of tucks up like an oven ready chicken, then sloooowly spins and unfurls over about an hour.

Observed while dealing with his brother's demands for "One more Yoto story".

[andrewducker]

That's terribly cute.

[marymac]

It is and it solved the mystery of how he was rotating without falling out!