my daughter is turning 3 at the end of next month, she has always been really good at bedtime, but lately she keeps asking to come downstairs for 5 more minutes. we go through this at least 3 times a week and on bad nights she gets up about 5 - 6 times. she goes to bed at 7pm everynight. Is this too early for her? I am usually really good at handling her but i have been unwell for the last week, so been giving in to her. i am worried she will carry on. She doesnt always have a nap during the day. everyday i will put her to bed just after lunch but she doesnt always sleep. any advice would be great.
thanks

Silly question, but do her sleep-less nights happen when she has had an afternoon nap? Twos and Threes still need naps, most of the time. If she does like to get up, establish a 'strict' routine with her at bedtime. Perhaps her routine could be two stories or two songs... even giving her a choice of which she wants. Then, put her in bed. It might be rough for a little bit until it's routine. If she does want to come down for 5 minutes, have her help you set a timer so when it goes off, it's time for bed. That way it's really clear to her when her 5 minutes is up. However, if she's just not going to bed at 7, try 7:15 or 7:30 or a little after so perhaps she is more tired. Good luck!

sometimes she has a nap sometimes she doesnt. on her third trip downstairs last night she said she was hungry so i have her a slice of bread and butter, then she went straight to bed with no problems. do you think i should give her more to eat during the day?
she has her breakfast, then lunch between 12 and 1 depending, then a snack of fruit at about 2-3 then her tea at about 5-6. should she be eating more than that?

Hi,

I may not have a an answer that works for your girl but I can relte to your situation. Lately we have had a hard time getting our little boy to go to bed. He turns two tomorrow. I think it is because it is so light out at his normal bedtime (7:30). What I have done in the past week is to push his bedtime back to 8:00 pm but then I am pretty strict about it. He gets a few books and a song and then that's it. Sometimes I need to rub his back but that is while he is in his crib. That may be another difference, we still have him sleeping in a crib so he can't get out!


He usually eats dinner around 6:00 pm and then have a very large glass of milk and sometimes a cracker or fruit at 7:15 or so. Then we brush his teeth and start the routine.


Good luck,

Jen

thanks for your reply.
i think also, it may be because of it being so light. she refuses milk but she does have a very milky tea. i didnt get to try anything today as she was so tired from nursery that she feel asleep as i was getting her pjs on! will try something new tommorrow.

Kelbabe,

When you said that you gave your little girl "tea" in the evening I thought you were just using the word to describe the light evening meal ( I have fond memories of scones and meat pies from when I was in London.) Are you acutally giving her black tea? If so, is it decaffinated?

-Jen

lol. i mean a cup of tea.
normal - pg tips. i dont know if that means anything to you if you are in the usa, but its the best going here. i only put the tea-bag in because she helps me make it. so i take it out pretty much straight away. so you could say she is getting a bottle of milk.
i use about 1 ounce of hot water, the tea bag very quickly then top it up with milk, so i have to ut it in the microwave to get it warm enough.
do you think its wrong to give her tea? even if she isnt really getting a cup of tea, she just thinks she is?

I think that there is nothing wrong with it! My grandparents were raised that way and turned out fine.

I woudl just make sure that she is having a big meal sometime near bedtime.

-J

my daughter is 4 and she used to be VERY good about going to bed. for about the past few months, she doesn't want to go to bed. i tuck her in about 8-8:30. i will be watching tv or on computer and i can hear the bedroom door creep open. now she doesn't want to go to bed until i do, which is about 10-10:30. on my days that i work, we are up very early. i get her up about 5:45a, as we have to leave the house by about 6:20. I don't have a problem with getting her up and ready, but i can tell in the evening she is very tired...........IF she stops for a second............LOL
and they do take naps at daycare. i wish i could get her to do that at home sometimes........LOL

i put a babygate in my daughter's bedroom door and that keeps her from coming out! to actually keep her in bed, though, was another story all together!

we just went through this a few months ago... with her getting up and turning on her bedroom light to play!

we found that if we talked to her each time she got up, she'd keep getting up. BUT if we just turned off her light, and picked her up and put her back in bed (no kisses, hugs, or anything "extra attention giving"), she'd stay in bed (good tip we learned from "SuperNanny") :)

also, watch what you're feeding her, especially towards the end of the day. my older daughter absolutely cannot eat sugar or processed foods without becoming completely wired and jittery, and UP ALL NIGHT!!! and make sure she isn't napping too long or too late during the day.