Bedtime Routines

At this point Lizzie is 5 1/2 and the twins are 3 1/2. Here are their bedtime routines:

Alex




At around 7 either after dinner or bath time I get Alex dressed in his pajamas and pull up. He is the only who isn't fully potty trained yet but I think it is
due to laziness more than anything else. If I am home then I am the only one who can get him dressed and put him to bed. If I'm not home then he doesn't seem to care. Next up is tooth brushing. All the kids have Sonicare toothbrushes but Alex by far is the easiest in this department. He just opens up and lets me brush his teeth for a full two minutes then we floss. So easy! After tooth care we wait for Emily to be done then they sit on my lap while I read them both a book. He then takes the book, climbs in to his fire truck bed, I tuck him in, sing three songs (Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Doe a Deer, My Favorite Things), get him some fresh water, give him a hug and kiss, tell him there are no monsters and reassure him there are no "insert made up word here", tell him I love him then close the door. He sleeps with two lights on in his room.

Emily
At around 7 either after dinner or bath time Emily heads up stairs with Greg.


He gets her in her pajamas then brushes her teeth. She doesn't like it when
her toothbrush is turned on or has toothpaste so Greg brushes her teeth manually for about 2 minutes, flosses her teeth then she uses a fluoride rinse. She tries her hardest to procrastinate before the tooth care and sometimes fights it and cries but thankfully not every night. She then joins Alex and I for a book before going in to her room with Greg. He reads her another book while I'm with Alex then when I'm done I take over. She insists that I lie with her for a little bit (not a long time) then with her permission I sing her three songs (Baa Baa Black Sheep, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Doe a Deer), turn on her fan, get her fresh water then give her lots of hugs and kisses before moving to the door where I blow kisses and hugs. If I'm lucky I can get out the door and go downstairs but sometimes I have to open the door a couple times to reassure her about something. She also sleeps with two lights on in her room.

Lizzie



While we are putting the twins to bed Lizzie usually hangs around, at least until I take over with Emily then she heads downstairs with Greg for her last
10 minutes of TV and food. Greg sets a timer which is usually going off when I come down from putting Emily to bed. With a fresh container of water Lizzie and I head upstairs. She usually asks if she can sleep in our bed from the start and tries to make a deal which most of the time doesn't work unless I'm feeling weak or lazy. Sometimes the deal is that Greg brushes her teeth and flosses and I read the book. This is a "deal" because Greg will brush her teeth in her bedroom (using a bowl) and I will only do it in the bathroom. But mostly I get to do the toothbrushing and flossing battle. She really really hates it and always has so on a good night she will just let you brush her teeth (we don't let her do it because she has had lots of cavities and we need to make sure they are clean) but on the bad nights I have to hold her down while she screams. It's not fun. After that battle we move to her room to read a chapter of her book (right now we are reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - we have read almost all of Roald Dahl's books) then I have to put my arm over her while she falls asleep. She is still unable to fall asleep by herself but thankfully these days it doesn't take long before I can sneak out unless I too have fallen asleep.


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