2+ moms, how do you put your kids to bed?!?

[biblionerd]

I guess it would be MOOKS with younger kids since older ones would be a little (?) bit more self-sufficient? But DH is broken down, AAA won't be there until midnight, and I'm getting ready to attempt to put both kids down. I haven't done it since she was an itty bitty and I just stuck her in the jumperoo for 15 minutes and ended up going back and forth from room to room until they both settled down. Usually we both take 1 since they're just crappy to fall asleep, etc. This is one of those mom moments where I feel incompetent without DH... 

[TrudyCampbell]

No advice, but I hope it's possible because ill be on my own every night! Meep.

[thedahliharpa]

I hate it. D goes to bed first and I make H sit on the couch with the TV on with the house completely boarded up with strict instructions to come running if anyone comes to the door. It's hard to hear her and I'm afraid she will decide to bounce out while she has the chance. I also feel bad for her sitting out there by herself. In an ideal world D would stay up later than H and sit with us for H's story.

[biblionerd]

Aug 16, 2013 21:29:34 GMT -5 TrudyCampbell said:

No advice, but I hope it's possible because ill be on my own every night! Meep.

I think it's one of those things that would be a LOT easier if I had been doing it on my own longer. Like we'd have a different routine where they didn't each have their own whole separate bed time routine and did everything together, if that makes sense. Like right now, they each read a book in their own room instead of just reading to them together. 

[irishsara]

Mine are a little older, but it's assembly line-ish. The younger two get in bath and I pull Charlie out and diaper/pajama him. Let him walk around. Pull jack out, he gets his underwear/pjs on. Ethan hops in the shower. Read Charlie story while jack hangs in his room. Put Charlie in crib, turn out lights. Make sure Ethan is out of shower. Brush jacks teeth, read him story, put in bed (Ethan is brushing teeth, etc). Read with Ethan, lights out. Downstairs by 7:30-8.

If DH is home, he will do teeth brushing/pajama wrangling, etc.

[charlielove]

I'm sure it's easier for me with the age difference. I do bath together, brush teeth together, get Charlotte's pajamas on while Claire puts her own on, then turn a show on for Claire while I nurse and rock Charlotte before bed (10-15 minutes).

[Deleted]

Mine share a room, so they get ready at the same time. Bath, book, teeth brushing, bed. They get into bed and fall asleep within a fewest usually. Sometimes they talk but not often.

[irishsara]

I also keep the one I'm not with in their room usually. They read books and stuff. Their rooms are probably the most child proofed places in the house!

[bebeetmoi]

Aug 16, 2013 21:34:11 GMT -5 thedahliharpa said:

I hate it. D goes to bed first and I make H sit on the couch with the TV on with the house completely boarded up with strict instructions to come running if anyone comes to the door. It's hard to hear her and I'm afraid she will decide to bounce out while she has the chance. I also feel bad for her sitting out there by herself. In an ideal world D would stay up later than H and sit with us for H's story.

This is basically what I did with DD and my SS. After dinner, I'd bathe DD while SS brushed his teeth etc, put a TV show on for him and go in to nurse and put her down. I'd watch the rest of the show with him until it's his bedtime.

[dixeedeluxe]

Adeline goes down after her bottle around 7:30. Then edie around 8:30.

They've done that forever. They've always gone down awake.

[biblionerd]

Ugh, we survived. I'm seeing the benefits of sharing a room though!! I got DD ready out here in the living room since DS HATES being alone. Then I won mom of the year and threw him in front of the couch with his milk and bribed him to behave with cookies. DD is teething and sick and is a BEAR lately so there was lots of running back and forth with her screaming and DS banging on his door waiting for me to come back in. Sigh. She's usually not THIS bad, but we went to the children's museum last week and they get sick every.stinking.time. So she's been a sick monster.

[Deleted]

Aug 16, 2013 22:59:39 GMT -5 biblionerd said:

Ugh, we survived. I'm seeing the benefits of sharing a room though!! I got DD ready out here in the living room since DS HATES being alone. Then I won mom of the year and threw him in front of the couch with his milk and bribed him to behave with cookies. DD is teething and sick and is a BEAR lately so there was lots of running back and forth with her screaming and DS banging on his door waiting for me to come back in. Sigh. She's usually not THIS bad, but we went to the children's museum last week and they get sick every.stinking.time. So she's been a sick monster.

Sorry to hear they are sick  But you survived!

I am a big fan of the kids sharing a room.  Esp. now that DS2 is a bit older.  We started the room-sharing when DS2 was about 7 months and he went through a period of 5am wakeups so we temporarily moved DS1 out.  It's been good since then (about 10 months.?).  

Not sure what your plans are Biblio when the bub arrives but I'd highly recommend it.

DS1 has taken ownership of his little brother and I think it really helped their bond.  Also going to bed is easier on them, and when they wake up in the morning they often chit chat and muck around while we can lay in bed.

Some of the other Mums here (eg. Gisa) really helped me to stick with it.

[Dorothy Zbornak]

Aug 16, 2013 21:39:20 GMT -5 charlielove said:

I'm sure it's easier for me with the age difference. I do bath together, brush teeth together, get Charlotte's pajamas on while Claire puts her own on, then turn a show on for Claire while I nurse and rock Charlotte before bed (10-15 minutes).

This is pretty much what we do, except DH usually puts Butterbaby to bed.

[pinkpeony6210]

DH helps me every night...I bathe Ella, brush her teeth, and hand her over to him to get her dressed and comb her hair. They make their nightly call to my ILs, and then watch a couple minutes of Sprout or Disney Junior. While they're doing this, I'm giving Kate her bath. Once we're done, I take Kate to feed and read to her, and he takes Ella to read to her. Ill sneak in and lay with Ella for a bit after Kate's down.

When DH isn't there to help me, Ella will watch a program in my bed while I'm feeding Kate. Then I'll take her to bed and read to her.

[thedahliharpa]

Aug 17, 2013 1:01:20 GMT -5 Dorothy Zbornak said:

Aug 16, 2013 21:39:20 GMT -5 charlielove said:

I'm sure it's easier for me with the age difference. I do bath together, brush teeth together, get Charlotte's pajamas on while Claire puts her own on, then turn a show on for Claire while I nurse and rock Charlotte before bed (10-15 minutes).

This is pretty much what we do, except DH usually puts Butterbaby to bed.

With or without the use of his nipples?

[greenkitty98]

I'm on my own for bedtime a lot of nights. I do the bathroom stuff (go to the bathroom, brush teeth) together and get them both in their pjs. Then I sit B down in the living room (or his room, if he prefers) with a book to read or a coloring book/crayons while I put P to bed. It doesn't take too long, because I just read (or recite if she has made the book disappear) Goodnight Moon, give her hugs, and lay her in bed with her sippy of water and Violet playing goodnight songs. She isn't even in a crib anymore and this routine still works. After P is down, then I read books with B, talk about his day, and tuck him in with Scout playing bedtime songs (ones he picked from their online selection).

I try to avoid baths when dh isn't there, and if it is absolutely necessary they get a bath that day, then I do it one at a time during the afternoon. (B would end up getting a bath/shower while P is napping if I do this.) Unless they are super dirty, sick, or having blowouts, my kids only get baths a couple of times a week or else their skin dries out.