Monkey See, Monkey Do

Ever since Stella was little we never really gave her a bedtime. She would always just cuddle up and fall asleep on the couch with us and then we would put her to bed after she fell asleep. Same thing with Talia. Then Olivia came along and we started a bedtime with her when she was around eight or nine months old. As she got a little older, she was staying up later like the other two. I mean late, like ten or eleven at night. It was getting to the point where this momma had no “me” time and not much time with my husband. So something had to change. 

A few months ago all the girls started a new bed time, and we have a new routine down where everyone gets in their bed at the same time. We start with our prayers, then a story and then our “bedtime song”.

It goes like this: “Goodnight, Stella and Talia and Olivia. Goodnight, Stella and Talia and Olivia. Goodnight, Olivia and Talia and Stella. Goodnight, close your eyes, sleep tight.” Don’t judge. I’m no song writer but the girls love it!

Most nights our routine works, and one or two of them drop like flies. Other nights it is like fighting tooth and nail to get them to settle down. Regardless, the point is they are in their room and are trying to go to sleep. Most nights we find ourselves repeating things like: stay in your bed, no talking, close your eyes. We get statements back like: I want a drink, Will you rub my back?, I have books in my bed. 

The newest thing during bedtime is between Talia and Olivia. We have bunk beds for the older two and then Olivia is in the crib on the opposite wall. So each of them can see everything that the other one is doing. I’ve noticed that whatever Talia is doing in her bed, Olivia is in her bed doing the same thing. If Talia is sitting up, so is Olivia. If she is kicking her legs, so is Olivia. If Talia is talking, Olivia is babbling about something too. This may have been going on longer than I realized but we may be in the market for yet another routine. 

I have noticed that if Olivia is cranky, I typically put her to bed earlier and she’ll fall right to sleep. If she waits and goes to bed with the others, she is usually the last one awake. Perhaps I should have Olivia miss the bedtime “stuff” and go to bed ten minutes before the others all the time so that she falls asleep. Or maybe I need to do everything twice?  

If Olivia isn't the last one awake, it’s Talia. A few nights ago, she was playing in her bed. We knew she was and let it go for a few minutes because she was quiet. The other two were already asleep. My husband walked by their room and told her to put all of her toys on the floor and go to sleep. We heard them all hit the floor. A little while later, we went to check on her and she had outsmarted us …

So, what about you? Do you have a solid routine for all of your kids that works?