As I write this blog, I sit in the doorway of Abby's room, yes it is really late and yes I would love to go to bed, but we are currently having a battle of wills (her will against the rest of the family). So here I sit and hope that soon she will be off to sleep. One day I am sure I will look back and laugh at just how stubborn she was and how she was determined not to got to bed, but that day is a ways off.
It is amazing the amount of will that a 2 year old will have so as not to resort going to bed. She can think of 10 things to do once she is there and then to keep her in bed, of that is tough. I am not sure where we went wrong, she used to go to bed all on her own, but alas, no more.
Last night Chris finished with her, and tonight I did. Each night involved much crying and screaming, I can only hope that tomorrow night will go better.
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This is a tough one. Addy is a lot like Abby in the will department. I tried a routine, that didnt' work. Then the cry it out bit. One thing I determined is it isn't fair if I make her go to bed when she isn't tired. So, I would either do extra outside time or shorten nap. She is a "night" person. I am the opposite, so that makes it even more tough! She is 4 now and we sort of have a "wind down" period, and I inform her she has 20 min. before bed. Then at 10 min I say "10 min before bed, etc... But it is still tough sometimes. At one point I tried "monster spray" (water in a spray bottle) when she was afraid of monsters. I also did the "Golden ticket" - where if she stays in bed she can trade in her ticket for a treat/present in the morning. That worked for a while. No magic solution, but these things tended to work.
Oh boy, I feel your pain! I will tell you that locking Maren in her room has made all the difference. It totally makes us sound like cruel parents but Maren stays in her room! We tried to remove anything she could use as a tool for destruction or hurt herself with, bolted the dresser to the wall, and told her what was going to happen. Sometimes after I put her to bed I hear that "thump" sound of her getting out of bed and then she goes and turns on the lamp and looks at books for a while. When she's ready to go to sleep, she turns out the light and gets in bed! It's amazing.
Now, there are still times when she flat out won't go to sleep at naptime and I end up having to go get her. Also in the morning when she wakes up, she yells for us, but it's not crying--she calls "mommy daddy bronco WAKE UP!" We were really lucky in that she never really screamed or cried once we started locking the door.
I don't know if it would work for Abby, for us it was totally the last resort but I have to say that it saved my sanity!
Good luck!
Yes, we did lock Connor in his room when he was 2 1/2 and transitioning to a big-boy bed. It totally worked for us too. But then again, I have been called a sleep nazi, and therefore my kids have all been pretty good sleepers. Good luck!
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