When I was approached to help spread the word about GoodNites’ new Special Bedtime Moments campaign, I said yes almost immediately. For one thing, bedtime is a sacred time in our house, and not just because it means the short people are headed to sleep. It’s when a lot of the deep conversations happen, it’s how I fostered a love of reading in my children (gotta love that nighttime snuggling up with a book), and it’s a great time to wind down from the day together. For another thing, one of my kids was a bed-wetter for years, and so GoodNites holds a special place in my heart. (By “holds a special place in my heart” I mean “kept me from changing sheets in the middle of the night,” naturally.)
So here’s the deal: There’s prizes in it for you! First, you can share your own Special Bedtime Moment with GoodNites for a chance to win one of two grand prize $2,500 bedroom makeovers, and they’ll be running the contest from now through August 7th, 2009. You can enter once per day, and each entry is another chance to win. Second, I’ll also be giving away three great GoodNites swag totes worth $250 each here on Want Not. The tote includes a $100 gift certificate to PajamaGram.com, a $50 gift certificate to Borders, a fuzzy blanket, a special bedtime journal, and of course the tote itself. Interested? Read on for the details!
I’ll be giving away one of these totes each month; all you have to do each time I post about it is leave me a comment with the text of your entry on the Special Bedtime Moments site and you’ll get an entry into this contest. Remember how I said you could enter once per day on the GoodNites site? You can enter this contest once a day, too. So for this first one, you have from now until 11:59 p.m. Eastern (8:59 p.m. Pacific) on June 30th, 2009 to get your entries in, and I’ll randomly select a winner to be announced next month. We’re now in round two of this contest—continue entering every day, and the second winner will be selected some time after the end of July. We’re now in the third and final round—get your daily entries in by August 7th, 2009, for a chance to win the last tote! (Traditional Want Not contest rules and regulations still apply, except that multiple entries are okay for this one.) This is a long contest, and with entries possible every single day, you have a lot of chances to win!
I saved the best part for last: In addition to these chances to win awesome prizes, there’s another little contest happening, here—the participating blogger who generates the most entries into the Special Bedtime Moments contest this summer wins $1,000 worth of bedtime books. If Want Not wins the contest, I will have GoodNites donate these books to my local county library system’s outreach program (they have an arm that gives out books to low-income families). So your entry (or entries) into the contest might win you something, but also potentially will help result in a lot of kids getting books who wouldn’t otherwise have them. How can you say no to that?
To recap: Enter on the Special Bedtime Moments site for a chance to win a room makeover. Enter here for a chance to win an awesome swag bag worth $250. Enter early and often so that I’ll get to donate a bunch of books to underprivileged kids. It’s a win-win-win, folks. Get entering!
[Disclaimer: I have partnered with GoodNites® for this series of posts; I am being compensated for writing about my family's bedtime routine and for promoting this contest, not for endorsing a product.]
My name is Mir, and I'm a bargainholic. (In my spare time, I'm also a 
Me please!
Oh, I didn’t read the instructions…
AWESOME!
Oh, what a great idea, to give the books to the library outreach program. I hope you (and I!) win!
what a great contest. I hope I, You, and the kids all win!
Doh! I hit the “submit” button before I could copy and paste!
The basic gist of my entry is that my husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
Every night my husband and I read with our two boys. Each picks his favorite and we snuggle in our “reading corner” to enjoy them. Our oldest is now old enough to start reading some of the works himself. Then, we tuck in and and lay with each boy for a couple minutes of snuggling. Almost every night they ask if we can stay another minute, and we usually do, knowing they won’t be asking for much longer. Then, we give lots of kisses goodnight, even though my youngest says we’re only allowed to give him one per day (he tries to wipe off the rest.) What a perfect end to our day!
Claire, I did that too!, shucks.
She is 5 now and we are reading the Laura Ingalls Wilder series, but she loves to tell made up stories to her little brother and sister.
I would read a short story to my babies were younger, and then have them close their eyes while I make up a story. For my oldest daughter, Livia, it usually went like this. Once Upon a time there was a beautiful Princess named Livia, and she was the most beautiful princess in all the land…..” I would continue on with the princess doing everything my daughter did, like go to the royal playground, or invite her loyal subjects over to play. She loved it, when she could stay awake to hear it all.
I love bedtime, too!
We have two little girls (4 and 2.5) and every night they say “nooooooo!” to hugs, but ask for other (weirder) tokens of affection — “not a hug, Daddy, give me a squish” or “a pumpkin” or “a crunch” or “a squash”. It always makes the four of us giggle as we tuck them in.
My entry for 6/15:
Every night my daughter picks 2 books to read before bedtime, and recently she’s been picking from the Paddington series I had as a child. It’s been great to revisit some of my favorite stories with her!
I love that you are going to donate the books when Want not wins.
I submitted before copying – even after reading about that mistake here! In a condensed version, I have two girls ages 3 and 5. I cannot give them individual attention very often during the day – as leaving one of them alone to do so wouldn’t be the best parenting, so at nighttime, each girl gets individual time with me. We recount the entire day’s activities. The recap of the day starts with waking up and end with getting ready for bed, nothing is left out. Doing so often triggers a story that they had forgotten and one that I would have missed if we didn’t do the daily recap. My youngest daughter goes first, and then I visit my oldest daughter’s room for her daily recap. They like the individual attention and I love spending the time with them!
I would love to win and I hope you get the books to donate!
I love bedtime with my son because of our “talks.” I curl up in bed with him and we talk about whatever comes to his mind. Sometimes about his favorite toys, sometimes about his day, other times about our family and friends. The rest of the day goes by so fast…it is nice to have a few minutes every night to connect with my growing boy!
ohh pick me.
I love the bedtime hugs and snuggles…We read a chapter from a book and talk about whatever comes to mind…i’ve found that they are more likely to share something that’s bothering them at bedtime. I always end with I love you forever and always…:)
okay, when my son goes to bed, he wants to hear some of my “crabby” stories from when I was a little kid. He is going thru a “I want to do what I want to do” phase, and naturally, it makes him crabby when he cant. So hearing about my experiences seems to help him with his daily frustrations.
so there you go. Mom and son, talking about crabbiness. Perhaps something in this bag might help sway from this topic.
I can dream, right?
Here was my entry for today:
We have read the book “Guess how Much I Love You” over and over. My daughter loves it. Now that she’s almost 4, she tries to match the bunnies when they tell each other how much they love one another. She told me the other day “Mama. I love you all the way to . . .to . . to. . . Grandma’s House!” And I love her (as they say in the book) all the way to the moon. . .and back.
I feel that the book “I’ll Love You Forever” is one of the most heartwarming family books ever. It isn’t so much about potty training, but my girls all thought it was because of the cover. And now it is coming up on grandchildren time and I will certainly carry on this tradition.
pick me. pick me.
Here’s my entry, and yay for donating to libraries:
Our special bedtime moment started with an awful day. My husband was halfway through his deployment in Iraq, and my daughter and I had had one of those days where everything went wrong, and we were just mad at each other. At bedtime, I knew that the day would just get worse if I didn’t stick to our bedtime routine! I grabbed a new-to-us book that combined a favorite of hers (bats) and a favorite of mine (libraries). The book’s beauty and humor got both of us out of our bad moods, and by the end of the book we were laughing and snuggling. While I’m sure that’s not the last bad day we will have together, I’m sure that taking a moment to share something fun will help make it a good night.
Incidentally (not part of the entry), I wrote to the book’s author to tell him how his book had turned around a bad day, and he was so touched that he sent my daughter autographed copies.
My son is three so everything at bedtime comes in threes. We read 3 books and he gives everyone 3 kisses before he goes to bed.
we always read a book but have recently started “where the sidewalk ends” and they LOVE this book, and i cant wait for every night when we get to do that!!
We would love to win. My son loves books.
Count me in!
Pajamas and books…two of my faves!
I’d love to win this one. My girls are both readers thanks to bedtime reading and snuggling.
I also submitted before copying. Even after reading about how others did the same thing. Ugh. But…the Cliff Notes version: We cuddle cuddle cuddle, read read read and kiss kiss kiss. My kids love things in patterns–we’re kind of nerdy that way.
My child’s bed-wetting days are over, but I can tell you Goodnites was a sanity saver!
I am a big supporter of Goodnites…love them!
Entry –
For us, routine works best for winding down. First, is bath time, then jammies and a little play time. This usually includes a book or maybe several. When it is 8pm, we tell our son it is night night time and he turns off his light, shuts the door and crawls into bed. Then we each take turns kissing him and telling him we love him and he goes to sleep quietly with his blanket…usually.
Since my daughter was born 6 years ago bedtime has been a very important time in our house. Every night at bedtime we would read a few books and rock and sing. As soon as she was old enough, this blossomed into reading time and snuggle time. Snuggle time is laying in the dark talking about our day. My son, now 3, also does this same routine. The child picks which parent they read with and the other parent gets the snuggle time.
I love this time of day because this is when I learn the most about my children and what they do at school. It helps me feel connected to them in a world that is so busy and disconnected. I know that this will only continue for so many years before they are “too old” for this special time but I will remember these nights always.
I have 4 children 3 1/2 years apart, and bedtime seems to be the only time of day that they are quiet and still (well, of their waking hours
)
I let each of them choose one book for me to read (we start the process right after dinner). That child gets to sit on my lap during her book while the other 3 listen. Then we switch, until all 4 are read. Then each child chooses a song for me to sing to them. It’s hard to have one-on-one time with so many children, but bedtime is the one time of day that I get that. I LOVE it!
My Entry-
I do not have any children yet. But I have a god-daughter who stays over often. Everynight before bed I would read her goodnight moon or often she would read it to me. Before I walked out of the room we would play a game. I would say goodnight I love you and she would say I love you two and I would say I love you three and so on until we get to I love you ten…then whomevers turn it was next would say I love you infinity then who ever did not get to say infinity would say No Fair! It was something that I remember doing with my mother when I was a child. It was always fun and always reminded me how much I was loved. Now sharing this special moment with my god-daughter I hope she learns love just like I did.
Ohh, I love bedtime with my 8 month old son! I’m a SAHM with him but even thou I’m with him all day it is my favorite time. It’s the only time he’s actually calm! If there is such a thing as baby ADD he has it! He’s usually so hyper and active and playing in the day but when naptime or bedtime comes he lets himself be cuddled or held. I love that.
No more bed wetting here, but we sure did LOVE those Goodnites a few years back
I share bedtime stories with my 2-year-old twin nephews. They love to “read” along with me.
i have a baby shower coming up and what a perfect present…
My 10 1/2 year old daughter doesn’t want to be tucked in anymore (she says she’s too old), but every single night when she goes upstairs, she says night, night and then I say sleep tight, to which she replies, don’t let the bed bugs bite. It’s been that way since she was 4 and something I really hope she doesn’t outgrow anytime soon.
I’d love to win – reading books at bedtime is my favorite part of the day too…
Ooh, great contest! Thanks!
My goodnites entry: My husband was recently deployed with the Air Force. Our favorite part of bed time is when each of our 3 young children puckers up to the webcam to give Daddy a good night kiss.
After experiencing heartbreaking 2nd trimester losses in two prior pregnancies, my husband and I learned to cherish every minute of my 3rd pregnancy. My husband religiously read to our daughter every night, while she was still in utero. He read Dr. Seuss’ “Oh, Baby, the Places You’ll Go”. Even after her birth, we never miss a bed time story. She loves Dr. Seuss and still prefers her Dad read to her. My now 5 year old daughter started reading on her own by age 3 and is currently into chapter books, but that nightly cuddle story time is still very special to us.
Me please!
Yes, please, and am heading over now to enter at the other site.
I am all about book donation! I’m entering in the hopes of winning the tote for my brother and SIL, expecting in December. But more than that, books! Let’s rock the book donations!
Yay, GoodNites! Here’s what I posted there…
A favorite moment of mine is when our oldest stops what he is doing and just asks for one more snuggle from me. It always feels like he’s slowing down and we’re taking a break from him getting older too quickly for me!
Well, doh, I, too, submitted before cut ‘n pasting.
Our 3 year old boy has been terrified of the fire alarm in his room ever since it went off one night. So every night we construct a “cave” of blankets and stuffed animals and he burrows in. He always asks before going to sleep, “No fire alarms in the cave?”
Our son does not go to bed easily – although his twin sister does. When we sneak in to check on him, he’ll often beg us “for just five minutes”. It’s hard to resist, and oftentimes my husband and I climb in. It’s one of the few one-on-one moments we get with him. He’ll tell us stories and dreams during those five minutes. We both treasure them dearly.
Ahhhhh….if only this would make my daughter sleep!
I donate books to our library all the time. Hope this helps you win, and hoping it helps me win too!
Ok, even tried to copy and paste after I submitted by clicking “back” and it didn’t work.
Our bedtime routine isn’t too different than everyone else’s from the sound of it. We all cuddle in mom and dad’s bed for books, and once we are done reading we just cuddle and talk. My 2.5 year old likes me to tell him about “when he was a baby” even though he’s still a baby to me. He’ll ask me about what he did as a baby, and we tell him and he is so enthralled in the stories lol. After we finish in mom and dad’s room, we head over to his room for bedtime prayers, and I snuggle with him for a bit in the rocking chair, sing him a song or two, then he asks to go in his bed.
I would love this!
Books ROCK!
Bedtime is my favorite time of day spent with my kids. We cuddle with the lights down low and read a book. There’s a connection during this time like no other.
loooooove it!
Three cheers for GOODNIGHTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sign me up for this! I just ran out of Goodnites tonight…I should have run to the store!
My husband is the bedtime routine/book reader, and he is awesome! He always has time for “just one more”.
Oh what a sweet contest. Here’s my entry for today:
Bedtime Kisses
When my 18 month old daughter can’t settle down to sleep, she will sometimes sit up on my lap and just give me sweet little kisses on my face. That seems to settle her down and enable her to close her eyes.
I could use some swag.
I could definatly use some swag over here!
I would love to win!
Oh I would love to win!
I somehow missed what my entry should be the first time. Sorry. My entry for today was how I cherish the quiet moments of cuddle time I got with my oldest son when he had a hard time sleeping as a toddler. At the time, it seemed so frustrating, but now I realize how special those times were.
We started reading books with our son Noah when he was 3 months old. We did the same routine every night. Bath, brush teeth, read books, tuck in, kisses, and lights out. We still do that same routine today! He is now 5! He LOVES to read books. We do 2-3 books at night and it has been fun to watch his likes mature over the years. He loves books now that have a real story line to follow, instead of just simple pictures and words.
My special bedtime moment is that I kiss my kids goodnight. I know that may sound silly to some, but I promise you, many parents forget that one simple thing.
Here’s ours…
I wish our routine didn’t still include GoodNights, but alas it does. Kids get their jammies on, and pick out books. Just recently we’ve added one more reader to the family, so if there’s time we all read to each other. The kids brush their teeth and we lie down with the kids, share a few knock-know jokes and other silliness, and they fall asleep.
My grandson and I would love this one, oh please pick me!
Every night we do the same routine. bath, snack, quality time, brush teeth and then read. My daughter loves to hear us read to her and recently started to “read” to us. It is great family time!
That sounds like fun. I’ll take it.
me me me me meeeeee!
Bath, teeth, snuggle, singing songs to relax that’s what my five year old loves…..
We pick books together and snuggle up to read before bed. Then we sing songs together and say goodnight!
Ooo, count me in! Bath, fighting through teeth brushing, picking out books and snuggling to read. My favorite time of the day!
Oh count me in…. we are nearing potty training days and I’m sure will need GoodNights for sure! I love our bedtime routine – teeth, book, prayers, kisses and bed!
Evening is my favorite time of day. It is a special bonding time between my children and I. The worries of the day melt away.
this is great:)
My husband and I always read with our 3 year old son at bedtime, then our son turns out the light and comes back to snuggle. One of us snuggles with him (he always says “hold me tight”) and our son picks two characters for a story. One of us (usually whoever isn’t snuggling our boy) gets to make up a story with the characters.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world.
My son is a dynamo, always on the move. To calm him down as a toddler we would read him bedtime stories. He is older now, but still, when it is bedtime, will come and ask…”can we have a little talk?” And this is when we can chat about his friends and his problems and what big things are going on in his little head. I love this window into his reality.
Of course I got a little wordy with my routine – that happens when I’m writing about something I love! So I posted it over at my blog. Here’s a snippet and a link!
Bedtime is pretty sacred at my house. It’s simple, it’s structured, it’s my favorite time of the day. Barring extremely special occasions, bedtime is always at the same time and always follows the same structure. My girls brush their teeth (to avoid toothpaste slime from spilling on their pajamas), get pajamafied, and then we read stories.
http://cantgetthere.wordpress.com/2009/06/16/because-bedtime-snuggles-are-important/
Our bedtime ritual consists of piggy back rides around the house and up the stairs to bed, but a trip to Border’s could could help improve the ritual!
pick me!
How many entries you are going to get!!! Here is mine from today:
Bedtime is the time my son and I use to connect, re-connect and just share with each other. I figured out that he was always worried about how long more I would be with him and he couldn’t enjoy the time we had as much. So I started “counting him to 20″ right before I would leave his room. I rub his back and count to 20 slowly, getting softer and softer as I go. That calms him and he can also relax, knowing I am not getting up until I reach 20.
At bedtime, we create stories together after we read our books. I start the story and my son finishes.
When my oldest (almost 9) goes to sleep, I always ask “What was your favorite part of the day?” And “What are your happy thoughts?” (to which she always answers, “Everything that’s happy!) BUT–if we won a Border’s card, that might replace that night’s happy thought AND favorite part of the day.
Enter me please.
Tonight’s entry “Three little monkeys. Each day we read three stories, one for each Monkey, singe three songs, one for each monkey, say our prayers together and snuggle in with matchin bears in bunny suits.”
I hope I win. I love books!
Here’s today’s entry:
My now 2 year old son didn’t take to reading as well as my daughter did. Early on, he never had the patience to sit through an entire story. The only time of day he would manage to get through half a book is at night. I learned that the motion of a rocking chair helps him relax and listen to stories at night. This rather recent discovery has helped make bed time routine a lot smoother and something he looks forward to every night.
Bedtime is the only time the baby really wants to cuddle any more, so I love being able to have that time with him while he takes his bottle.
Teeth are brushed, stories are read, prayers have been said, and lights are off. “Mommy, can I have a drink of water?” I groan to myself, and then remember the countless glasses carried to my room by patient parents when I was young. So I carry the water in and give her one more kiss after she drinks up.
Nighttime and books go together like a hand and glove. Everyone should have a safe place to sleep, a person to snuggle with, and a book to read.
When my now 8 year old son, was a toddler we would sing a bedtime song to say goodnight to all of our family members and pets. I think it helped him to feel connected to his grandparents and uncles even though they lived in different places. It sort of brought us all together in his mind at the end of the day. It was a soft, peaceful repetitive song that ended with ‘nigh, nigh, Nikolas’. We haven’t sung that song in a long time, but I would in a heartbeat if he requested it!
My nightime ritual is to make sure I kiss my kids goodnight. That’s something many parents forget.
Here’s my entry –
I’m an auntie and one of my favorite things is sleepovers with my niece or nephews: One on one time with my the little people who make my heart the happiest. Prime spoiling time: Straight from warm baths to snuggly pajamas; full of food that’s not good for you and movies their parents have neglected to share with them. It was during a sleepover with my youngest nephew that a whispered conversation revealed that he had been the one to suggest my nickname for the name his brand new little sister should get ~ I’d never known before why they’d picked it, although I was honored. Finding out (almost 2 years later) that the suggestion came from the new baby’s big brother, and that he suggested it, because “she was going to grow up to be a nice girl like you, auntie” filled my heart up to bursting, I’ll tell you.
We love to read books and sings songs with our kids before bedtime!
My dd loves the bookstore, and she loves her bedtime story.
yeah.. I wanna win this!!
Don’t tell anyone but my sister just found out she is pregnant!! Hooray for baby number 3! This would be a wonderful gift for her.
I’m glad I’m not the only one who forgot to copy.
My favorite bedtime moment is when my girls are finally asleep with limbs flung and mouths open. They look so peaceful and innocent and I forgive them all the difficulties of the day and kiss their foreheads and pull the covers up over them.
pick us!! (i have twins)
This would be an awesome prize
My twin girls are still in cribs, so it’s harder to cuddle with them just yet. But we love to go in at night and before they lay down I ask for a smooch and some love pats. My daughters wrap their little arms around my neck and pat my shoulder then give me a big kiss. It’s the sweetest thing!
Of course I got a little wordy with my routine – that happens when I’m writing about something I love! So I posted it over at my blog. Here’s a snippet and a link!
Bedtime is pretty sacred at my house. It’s simple, it’s structured, it’s my favorite time of the day. Barring extremely special occasions, bedtime is always at the same time and always follows the same structure. My girls brush their teeth (to avoid toothpaste slime from spilling on their pajamas), get pajamafied, and then we read stories.
http://cantgetthere.wordpress.com/2009/06/16/because-bedtime-snuggles-are-important/
Neat contest all the way around!
Here is what I posted on the GoodNites site:
My oldest child had a hard time falling asleep at night, so I made up a special song to help her fall asleep. I would sing her name and say a family member loves her. I would add every family member on both sides of our family. By the time I got down to the last uncles, aunts, and cousins, she would be asleep.
me again! Pleeeeeaasssee!!!
Please!
Oh, Me.
My nightime-ritual involves the reading of a book. One cannot go to bed unless a book is read. Good thing there aren’t many pages in each book. LOL
I got a little wordy with my routine – that happens when I’m writing about something I love! So I posted it over at my blog. Here’s a snippet and a link!
Bedtime is pretty sacred at my house. It’s simple, it’s structured, it’s my favorite time of the day. Barring extremely special occasions, bedtime is always at the same time and always follows the same structure. My girls brush their teeth (to avoid toothpaste slime from spilling on their pajamas), get pajamafied, and then we read stories.
http://cantgetthere.wordpress.com/2009/06/16/because-bedtime-snuggles-are-important/
Once a day right?
Pick me!
“We like to spend some of our bedtime reading/snuggling time talking about our day. My son’s will start us out by saying ‘Let’s talk about our day’ and then we all share some moments that we thought were special that day. My mom started this tradition with my eldest son when he had a sleepover at her house. I love this time with my two boys. It gives me insight into some things that I may not have remembered or even noticed but was special in some way to them.”
Bedtime is pretty sacred at my house. It’s always at the same time and always follows the same structure. My girls brush their teeth, get pajamafied, and then we read stories.
Bee always picks the same book: How Does a Dinosaur Say Goodnight? I choose the second book, a tradition that started when Gracie was little and always grabbed the longest stories she owned. Bee and I snuggle in her toddler bed, read, share kisses and hugs, and then pick a happy thought for Bee to dream about.
Then it’s Gracie’s turn. Gracie sorts through every book we own before settling on Fancy Nancy or a Little House book. We run to Mom’s bed and burrow under the covers. I stop reading every sixth word to answer 80 gazillion questions. The questions can be exasperating, but how else will I know what that crazy girl of mine is thinking, and what better way is there to foster her curiosity? Then it’s off to bed with kisses and hugs and maybe a piggy-back if she’s not feeling too grown-up-ish.
It’s a simple routine, but it’s special to us and that’s what counts.
With six kids, I have done many different bedtime routines, some of which were very elaborate and caused stress and aggravation. Now we follow the same set of steps for each kid, and it works for all of them, no matter what age they might be. Medicine – which means different things for different kids but always includes vitamins – pajamas, teeth, books and bed. Even in my absence, my kids know the steps and they can help each other follow the routine.
Enter me again, please
sign me up, please
Dude! I was raised by the queen of the guilt-trippin-mommas; it totally works on me. Can’t guarantee I’ll remember to enter once a day, but I’ve entered once anyway!
Bedtime routines are so important!!
We would love this.
Entering again
My 3 yr old needs this…so do I
this was my entry at GoodNites:
My daughter’s father was dead, and for a variety of reasons, she grieved alone. We had moved into much smaller digs. She was suddenly faced with all-day preschool, instead of the genteel three-hour version she was used to.
Bedtime was a nightmare. She wouldn’t leave my bedroom. Wanted to sleep in my bed. Cried endlessly and tantrumed frequently.
In short, she was completely normal after suffering a traumatic loss.
But I was at the end of my rope, for I too had suffered. A different suffer than she had, but I needed my space at night and I was frantic to resolve this.
Turning bedtime into a predictable and therefore comforting routine seemed like the only option.
And so it began.
Jammies. Teeth. Bedtime book — the same one night after night after night after night.
Snuggles and kisses.
And my final words as I tucked her in — words that I invented in desperation but that she and I still use with each other to this day, 11 precious years later:
“I love you from the bottom of the ocean to the top of the sky … and all the way around the world.”
We love to read books and sing songs before we say Good night!
Thanks for reminding us to enter!
The basic gist of my entry is that my husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
One of our best bedtime moments is the conversations that happen before bed. My kids always urgently ask ” Can I ask one last question” as though they have some burning idea on their mind. Then they sit there for 3 minutes trying to think of something. You should hear the doozeys we get! Things like “Are birds real?” “Why is dirt dirty?” LOL
My kids love to hear the story we’ve made up about the clothes that dance! They ask for that story again and again at bedtime.
Here’s my daily entry!
entering again!
The past few nights (off and on) Alan and I have been reading a few pages a night out of a kids book of questions (forgot the title offhand). It’s been giving us something to talk about and we’ve both been learning new things.
Yes, please!!
Thanks for the reminder!
pick me
sounds great!
This sounds awesome!
Great. Thanks.
I’m a little confused if I am supposed to put my entry here or on the reminder post I just read about it on – since I only just learned about this site of yours!
Each night as I am getting my 5 month old daughter to sleep, I give her a massage, feed her and rock her to sleep. She watches me with these beautiful eyes and I just love our moments together.
ohhh sounds good to me!
School’s out, so the pressure of getting to bed at a certain time is off, and we have more time to relax and read extra books or talk or whatever. It’s nice!
Man, I haven’t been on this site in awhile and I totally missed mention of this contest. Oh well, guess I’ll just play catch-up.
My entry for today – Be Like Gumby (Flexible!): While I know that consistency is important with our one-year old, I’ve learned to lighten up when my husband is putting her to bed. So often he hasn’t had any time with her throughout the day, so bedtime is an opportunity for them to have some daddy/daughter time and I just enjoy the giggling I hear from upstairs.
And that’s my tip — stick to your routine, but know when it’s okay to flex it just a little. We live life for people, not for tasks.
Booya!
Bedtime at our house starts right after dinner. We head upstairs to brush all 80 little teeth, snuggle up in jammies, then everyone chooses a book. I read each child her chosen book on my lap while the other 3 listen, then each child chooses a song for me to sing to her. I hold them like babies and rock them, then tuck them in and move to the next child. I love that I can have at least a few moments each day with each child individually. Bedtime is a very sweet time to me!
My 10 1/2 year old daughter doesn’t want to be tucked in anymore (she says she’s too old), but every single night when she goes upstairs, she says night, night and then I say sleep tight, to which she replies, don’t let the bed bugs bite. It’s been that way since she was 4 and something I really hope she doesn’t outgrow anytime soon.
We read two stories and then a Bible story. Then, I lay down with him until he falls asleep. Most of the time I fall asleep two. Dad comes in and wakes me up and we both sneak out.
My husband works as a copy editor in the evenings, so our bedtime is usually full of rushing and pushing and shushing with five year old twins and an eight year old. Add into this that of the twins is mildly autistic and he is lovely, sweet, funny, and affectionate, but he is, well, a boy of few words. I would often think of all the things I would give up to hear him say “I love you” or “good night,” but that’s just not how it works. So every night we snuggle together for a brief bit–first one gets kisses and I love yous and good nights and then the other. And every night the fuzzy headed boy kisses me and says good night and I love you and every night the red headed boy snuggles and giggles, and every night it’s only in my head that I hear him join in–little baby words, but still.
And this is our ritual. Was our ritual. Because last week even though I did my part and Fuzzy did his part, the red headed boy changed it all. He rolled over and he put his cheek up to mine and he whispered, “Night-night. Love you.”
So now we have a new ritual. It’s a ritual in which everybody talks and kisses,and sometimes Mommy tears up a tiny bit because now everybody talks and kisses. Maybe that last part will go away and the ritual will just be that everybody talks and kisses and that’s just what we do every night when we go to bed.
Maybe. But I doubt it.
I want to win! I haven’t had a set of pjs since before I hit double digits! Every time I think maybe I should buy a pair I think that for that money I could get shoes, or a book or I think, what for I sleep in underware and a (holey, bleached out would die of embarrassment if we had to run out cuz of a fire and peole saw me) t-shirt. So please Random Thingy pick me! I would love to have pjs and a book!
We read a story with our two kids together each night. Then it’s hugs and kisses and sweet dreams.
good nights start with good books and a good song!
Our goodnights start with all 5 of us curled up on the couch with a pile of books and a bedtime snack. Does it get any better!
Our goodnights start with all 5 of us curled up on the couch with a pile of books and a bedtime snack. Does it get any better!
I always make sure I kiss my children goodnight. So many parents miss that special moment.
we love bedtime stories and songs
I’m reposting my entry for another chance to win:
With six kids, I have done many different bedtime routines, some of which were very elaborate and caused stress and aggravation. Now we follow the same set of steps for each kid, and it works for all of them, no matter what age they might be. Medicine – which means different things for different kids but always includes vitamins – pajamas, teeth, books and bed. Even in my absence, my kids know the steps and they can help each other follow the routine.
147.
My husband works as a copy editor in the evenings, so our bedtime is usually full of rushing and pushing and shushing with five year old twins and an eight year old. Add into this that of the twins is mildly autistic and he is lovely, sweet, funny, and affectionate, but he is, well, a boy of few words. I would often think of all the things I would give up to hear him say “I love you” or “good night,” but that’s just not how it works. So every night we snuggle together for a brief bit–first one gets kisses and I love yous and good nights and then the other. And every night the fuzzy headed boy kisses me and says good night and I love you and every night the red headed boy snuggles and giggles, and every night it’s only in my head that I hear him join in–little baby words, but still.
And this is our ritual. Was our ritual. Because last week even though I did my part and Fuzzy did his part, the red headed boy changed it all. He rolled over and he put his cheek up to mine and he whispered, “Night-night. Love you.”
So now we have a new ritual. It’s a ritual in which everybody talks and kisses,and sometimes Mommy tears up a tiny bit because now everybody talks and kisses. Maybe that last part will go away and the ritual will just be that everybody talks and kisses and that’s just what we do every night when we go to bed.
Maybe. But I doubt it.
We love to read books & sing songs before bedtime.
Cool, Mir! I want WantNot to win, too!
Gah. First I didn’t read the instructions, then I didn’t cut & paste before submitting on the GoodNites site. What I said, more or less, was:
I have a 3 year old son and a 10 month old daughter. Every night at bedtime, my son picks out a stack of board books for his sister, and then 3 stories for us to read together.
Recently, Josie has started looking at the pictures from the stories I’m reading, and paying attention while I’m telling them. I love how excited Noah gets — he’ll announce, “Mommy! Josie’s listening! She likes it!”
And I really love that I’m developing their love of reading AND their friendship as part of our nighttime routine.
Coming back to re-enter. My husband chuckles that even if I had kissed her a few moments before, I always kiss my Sweet One as I’m crawling into bed.
Nighttime is always a special time for my older son (3) and I to bond. At night, he picks out two books to read and then we talk about them. He also is very interested in space right now and asks all sorts of questions about the planets. This is also my time to just cuddle with him.
Just re-entering. Thank you.
My Entry: (clicked “submit” before I copied”)
Sleepy time for twins…
I love our bedtime routine with the twins, cuddling on the couch and reading our favorite bedtime story”
My husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
Today’s entry is our routine which I haven’t posted yet. My son is 8 months old and we’ve been doing it since he was 5 months old. We start off with turing on his lullaby/sound machine to lullabies. We change his diaper, put on pjs. Then we read a book. Then we say our prayers. Then we get up and turns off the light (which he loves to do) then we go to the rocking chair and I nurse him until he’s nice and sleepy. I get up kiss him and say good night and put him in his crib with teddy. I go switch the lullabies to white noise and then leave the room. At first it was hard because he cried but now I hear nary a peek and he puts himself to sleep. So I love that I started young and hung in there with the CIO method.
each child has a song, same song, every night for years . . . if you put a special “twist” on it it’s not acceptable. I’ve tried . . .
I like to do the traditional tell-a-story at bedtime. I tell them a different story every night. I make up each story. They love it.
My twin girls are still in cribs, so it’s harder to cuddle with them just yet. But we love to go in at night and before they lay down I ask for a smooch and some love pats. My daughters wrap their little arms around my neck and pat my shoulder then give me a big kiss. It’s the sweetest thing!
I let my son pick out a few books every night and we snuggle up in my bed to read them. Although he was listening to every word I said, he would sometimes get distracted when he found a feather. He kept every feather and proudly tells people about his collection. One day he’ll realize Mommy has a feather pillow.
Just re-entering. Thanks!
pick me
We read 3 books, then sing songs, then hug & kiss & into bed!
2 books each, the favorite song, cuddles, and blissful sleep!
I like to do the traditional tell-a-story at bedtime. I tell them a different story every night. Each story is made up me, and they love it.
When my son was a baby we had a projector that showed the stars and the moon. Now before bed we step outside to take our goodnight look at the sky. I like to tell him that there are a million people looking at the same sky at the same moment.
Re-entering again. Thanks!
Every night, my kids and I have the chance to forget about the worries and troubles of the day by reading. What we read doesn’t really matter…usually it’s a chapter of the latest book to catch our interest. What matters is that for a while, we’re all transported away from our daily lives and into the book we’re sharing. It’s the best antidote for rushed days and harried parents available. Books are magic!
pick me x 3
I like to do the traditional tell-a-story at bedtime. I tell them a different story every night. I make up each story, and they can’t wait until a new one.
Re-entering yet again. Thanks!
I hope I win. I hope you win too! You know, for the chidren. Horray for hope!
my daughter suffers from anxiety to the highest level . . . most nights involve a lot of extra relaxation and assurances before she can rest easy. I’ve come to treasure the extra snuggle time . . . she’s 8 and I know she won’t need me forever!
I tell a different story every night. I make them up, and they love them. They can’t wait until the next night.
After our bedtime story (both read and created from our imaginations) we turn out the lights and our son asks my husband or I to “hold him tight” until he drifts off to sleep.
Here’s my second entry.
My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
My son had a favorite book for a while. The Monster Under the Shed. I never said we just read that one, pick another. If he wanted it read, I would re-read it. I must have read that book to him 200 times with sound effects and all.
Enter me again please
I am new to this site…my sister-in-law told me about it. I am very excited about it. Thanks
I want it. I didn’t know you could enter but once.
My children and I say our prayers and hug and kiss goodnight. some nights we read a book or a story from the bible. Both my son and daughter had some trouble with blatter control and uti’s ugh. Goodnites helped us out many a night! Would love to win!
Pick ME please!!
We do baths and then play a game together and/or read a story together.
Here’s today’s entry:
I love laying next to my daughter (who’s almost 4) right before she goes to bed. We always have the most interesting conversations. She tells me about the dreams she wants to have when she falls asleep (usually involving a prince!) and she’ll tell me all the important things from her day. It’s a great way to get close to her, physically and otherwise!
So many parents forget that special thing: kissing them before they go to bed. I make sure I do that every night.
I’m hoping I win, it’ll make me feel better. I think I’m coming down with a cold.
Everyday! Apparently I can’t read. Thanks!!
Everynight before bedtime, my little sister and I would go on a rabbit humt. She sleot with a well worn rabbit that she named Carrot. I’m sure there are a billion parents who have to kiss their child goodnight and then kiss the smelly old beat up Carrot (or reaplace with teddy bear etc. before lights out.)
pick me!
enter me again!
Wow!Not very many comments. Maybe I’ll win
My daughter is now nine, but she loves to cuddle while I read to her, at night. I find that this is a great way for us to stay connected and close. We both enjoy it and I hope she will want to continue our reading and cuddling time, for many years to come.
Please can i win this time!!! Pleeeease…
my daughter suffers from anxiety to the highest level . . . most nights involve a lot of extra relaxation and assurances before she can rest easy. I’ve come to treasure the extra snuggle time . . . she’s 8 and I know she won’t need me forever!
I want to win… so yes plz!
Enter me again plese
My baby boy just went down for his nap….can u hear the quiet?
The special times we get with our grandkids at bedtime starts with bathtime with some jazz ballads playing in the background. DH and i each read a book or 2 to our 18 month old grandson and 5 year old granddaughter. The extra snuggle time and good music help them relax and get ready for bed.
After little brother goes to bed we spend extra time with our granddaughter talking about her day and our plans for tomorrow.
My twin girls are still in cribs, so it’s harder to cuddle with them just yet. But we love to go in at night and before they lay down I ask for a smooch and some love pats. My daughters wrap their little arms around my neck and pat my shoulder then give me a big kiss.
When my son was little, I would read to him every night, then relax him by telling him to “soften” his toes, his ankles, his knees, all the way up to the top of his head. He fell asleep fast!
So many parents forget to kiss their little ones goodnight. That’s what I do: make sure I don’t miss a single night.
My entry today:
I’ll Love You Forever…
When my oldest was around 1 year old, I started reading this beloved book “Love You Forever” at bedtime. When it came to the lines the mother sang to her baby “‘ll love you forever, I’ll like you for always, As long as I’m living my baby you’ll be.” I sang them to my child to the tune of a hymn I know from church. When my emotions overcame me (which is known to happen from time to time), my daughter would sing those lines for me.To this day, now that she is 7 years old, whenever we hear that tune, we share a special glance and the memories flood back over those special bedtime moments when we shared a story and a promise to love each other forever.
My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day.
I’m just re-entering. Thanks!
thank you!!
is there anything better than a sweet smelling freshly bathed snuggly child in your lap while you enter a new land in a story book? we LOVE bedtime around here and my husband and i share it equally with our two daughters.
OMG! My new favorite bedtime moment happened last night, my 8 month old son woke up around ten crying which is unusal for him. He’s pretty good about sleeping though the night. Anyway, he woke crying so I went and changed him and checked his temp (Daddy is sick) and nursed him and tried to put him back down. Well, he just started screaming! I left him for a few minutes to see if he’d calmed down on his own but he didn’t. I went back in and he was sitting in his crib crying and “talking” to his teddy. I picked him up and started to take teddy away and he had a fit! So we took teddy with us to the rocking chair where I started to soothe and rock and shush him. But what was so cute was that he was hugging and petting teddy trying to soothe him! It was so heart warming and funny. The three of us sat there for a little while rocking and cuddling. I loved my son so fiercely in that moment. I will always remember that.
My favorite bedtime moment happens once a day when my daughter and I tuck my son into bed. Before my daughter heads off to bed, she has to kiss her little brother good night and say “good night jakey!” It’s the sweetest thing I hear all day!
Tuesday, June 30, entry. I always make sure I kiss the little ones goodnight. So many parents forget that simple thing.
There was a time my son was obsessed with Shrek and I would make up stories about a little boy traveling through the woods to go fishing when he came upon an ogre. The ogre didn’t want to scare or eat the boy…he just wanted to go fishing. Each night the fishing story got more elaborate with them playing in the woods and treasure hunting. He loved those Shrek stories.
I have a memory from several years ago. I was holding my second daughter and walking with her about 11pm while she wailed. she was 5 weeks old and had just had the diaper and nursed so she was just over tired. I remember walking and humming, walking and humming, endlessly . . . and finally she snuggled in to my chest and sighed and fell asleep. I sat up in bed with her awhile watching her sleep on my chest even though I was dead tired. I remember thinking, consciously, “I have to remember this moment of sweetness forever.” and so I have.
Re-entering yet again.
third time is a charm!
I forgot, but I remembered today! Pick me, we are potty trainng!!
ohhh, today’s the last day! I hope I win! I hope I win! I hope I win! Pick me!
My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with the day’s activities. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
my husband and I take turns putting our girl down so we each have our own routine. But each and every night wall all sit together and read one book each (well my 2 1/2 year old daughter tells a story based on the pictures in the book). Then it’s time for jammies, kisses, water and lights out. On my nights we sit together in the dark and I ask her what her favorite thing was that day and sometimes get elaborate stories. Then I tell her a story and she helps fill in the details. Before she gets in bed we snuggle for a bit and I nuzzle her neck – something I’ve been doing since she as a newborn.
Just another entry.
Hmmm. I thought yesterday was the last day. It said so in the rules.
Every night my son and I exchange the same words, “Goodnight, I love you, and have sweet dreams.” As I walk away I make a kissing sound and he makes one back to me.
Another day, another entry.
In case this still counts I’m entering yet again. Plus, it’s my grandma’s birthday! Happy 78th Grandma!
p.s. yeasterday was my mom’s birtday
Happy 4th of July!
We love to sing songs after we let the kids read books before bed…and NO TV bedfore bed!!
Both my kids got the same nite nite routine. After a shared book or two was read I’d go into each boys room and ask ‘what was your favorite thing today?. It opened us lots and lots of conversation.
The really cool thing is one of my ‘babies’ is now 36 and he does this with his three kids.
This is GREAT !
When we get our kids ready for bed, we all snuggle in one bed for storytime. It’s so cute to see each of my kids cover up the other and make sure they’re nice and cozy for listening to the story.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world.
Floating on the Clouds:
Bedtime is special time at out house. My twin daughters have gotten in the routine each night by turning on a CD, with soothing music that is almost magical. We have several CD’s from bruce Deboer. No singing , just music. With the girls in their beds all tucked in, I tell them a story about the moon and stars and if they close their eyes, and imagaine they are floating on the clouds ever so high and far.. By the time the story is over they are fast asleep.. They enjoy the stories so much and the music each night..
My kids are adults now, but I look forward to bedtime rituals whenever my grandson is old enough to spend the night.
We count our blessings every single night. My son is two, and he is learning how to count. I use it as a time for us to thank God for all of the wonderful things that he has blessed us with. We thank God for our family members, our toys, our clothes, our home, and much much more. At the same time, my son is practicing counting. We count up to ten, but our blessings always go beyond that.
I have always sang “You Are My Sunshine” to both of my kids at bedtime…it is one of those very special songs to us. What really warms my heart is that now both kids sing it to ME. There is nothing sweeter!
Everynight we go upstairs, change into jammies, get under the covers together and read a story. Depending on my mood, we will read anywhere from 1 to 5 stories. He likes more, I like less. Then I lay down with him until he falls asleep. Generally, I fall asleep too, but, hey, I think I’m entitled too.
Our son does not go to bed easily – although his twin sister does. When we sneak in to check on him, he’ll often beg us “for just five minutes”. It’s hard to resist, and oftentimes my husband and I climb in. It’s one of the few one-on-one moments we get with him. He’ll tell us stories and dreams during those five minutes. We both treasure them dearly.
Our bedtime routine is music on, diaper change, pjs, story, a nursing, then kisses, lights out and in bed. My baby boy’s favorite part is the story. He turns the pages himself.
My grandson and I have a great snuggle session with toys or books, he just turned 9 months old. This is followed by a big hug with his “ellie” a security blanky with an elephant on the end, his music goes on and he roled over to his side hugging ellie and off to sleepy land he goes, it’s the best part of my day!!!
So . . . my daughter has OCD, we just diagnosed it, which means she has more than the average amount of night time anxieties. She’s personified “it” Mr. Man and every night my husband or I lays with her and talks about Mr. Man and why she’s stronger and smarter and why she will win in the end. It can be tiring, but every bit I help feels massively important to me.
I make sure I kiss my kids goodnight, every night. So many parents miss that one important thing.
We are adopting, and in the quiet time before bed, we often talk about our “new baby” and whether it will be a boy or a girl. My son is 3, and we were talking recently about baby names. My darling son fervently wishes to name our new baby “Jesus”. He has stuck to this name ever since Christmas!
July 7th entry: I make sure I kiss my kids goodnight, every night. So many parents miss that one important thing.
When my girls were 2, we started the bedtime march.. My Father had started this years ago when I was young with my sisters.. We would march arond the house in our jammys and sing.. Hi Ho Hi Ho, Its off to bed we go.. with a pencil and a book and a dirty look.. hi ho hi ho hi ho.. As we approaced each others bed, they would get in bed, and we all kissed each other good nite, the proceeded with the march till we all were in our own beds.. I will always remember that .. and pass it on to my own children…
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Re-post
Every night my almost two year old comes to our bed for snuggle time with mom and dad. With eight children the little one relishes in that time of being just the three of us. After his 250th roll over with his favorite blanky he finally drifts to sleep. I then relish in that beautiful sound of baby sleep. It is hard to believe that litlle boy will soon be needing GoodNights!
Everynight we go upstairs, change into jammies, get under the covers together and read a story. Depending on my mood, we will read anywhere from 1 to 5 stories. He likes more, I like less. Then I lay down with him until he falls asleep. Generally, I fall asleep too, but, hey, I think I’m entitled too.
Our bedtime routine for my 9 month old is music on, diaper change, pjs, story, a nursing, then kisses, lights out and in bed. He crys sometie but only for a minute or two. Then he’s out for the night.
Our special bedtime ritual is I read to my children a short story or poem and say prayers and then my older one will read to his little brother or they read quietly for 30 minutes then it is lights out and sweet dreams!
I kiss my children good night EVERY night. So many parents miss that one little thing.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Re-post 2
Everynight we go upstairs, change into jammies, get under the covers together and read a story. Depending on my mood, we will read anywhere from 1 to 5 stories. He likes more, I like less. Then I lay down with him until he falls asleep. Generally, I fall asleep too, but, hey, I think I’m entitled too.
Repost
My favorite bedtime moment happened about a week ago, my 8 month old son woke up around ten crying which is unusal for him. He’s pretty good about sleeping though the night. Anyway, he woke crying so I went and changed him and checked his temp (Daddy is sick) and nursed him and tried to put him back down. Well, he just started screaming! I left him for a few minutes to see if he’d calmed down on his own but he didn’t. I went back in and he was sitting in his crib crying and “talking” to his teddy. I picked him up and started to take teddy away and he had a fit! So we took teddy with us to the rocking chair where I started to soothe and rock and shush him. But what was so cute was that he was hugging and petting teddy trying to soothe him! It was so heart warming and funny. The three of us sat there for a little while rocking and cuddling. I loved my son so fiercely in that moment. I will always remember that.
I am in
One more time please
One more for me!
I like to make up a story to my kids every night. They love it because they are “real” stories to them (not make believe), even though they really are.
Pick me, please!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Re-post 3
Everynight we go upstairs, change into jammies, get under the covers together and read a story. Depending on my mood, we will read anywhere from 1 to 5 stories. He likes more, I like less. Then I lay down with him until he falls asleep. Generally, I fall asleep too, but, hey, I think I’m entitled too.
Repost3
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I make them up; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
My baby boy and I just had did his bedtime routine. I put him down and left the room. I’m now listening to him cry. The last few days he has been not wanting to go to sleep. He cries almost as long now as when I was sleep traning him. I’m pretty sure it’s separation anxiety. He cries when I leave a room in the day. But it’s still hard to listen to.
Good morning! It’s Friday, July 10th, and time for my Friday entry! I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I make them up; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
Great idea! I just had a particularly rough night with my 5 year old and newborn, so I’m all about anything that contributes to a peaceful bedtime and good night!
WOW! Great Contest!
My son is 9 months old and we’ve been doing it since he was 5 months old. We start off with turing on his lullaby/sound machine to lullabies. We change his diaper, put on pjs. Then we read a book. Then we say our prayers. Then we get up and turns off the light (which he loves to do) then we go to the rocking chair and I nurse him until he’s nice and sleepy. I get up kiss him and say good night and put him in his crib with teddy. I go switch the lullabies to white noise and then leave the room. At first it was hard because he cried but now I hear nary a peep and he puts himself to sleep. So I love that I started young and hung in there with the CIO method.
Let’s hope you win! Donating and winning is awesome!
I entered my same entry again –
Here’s my entry -
I’m an auntie and one of my favorite things is sleepovers with my niece or nephews: One on one time with my the little people who make my heart the happiest. Prime spoiling time: Straight from warm baths to snuggly pajamas; full of food that’s not good for you and movies their parents have neglected to share with them. It was during a sleepover with my youngest nephew that a whispered conversation revealed that he had been the one to suggest my nickname for the name his brand new little sister should get ~ I’d never known before why they’d picked it, although I was honored. Finding out (almost 2 years later) that the suggestion came from the new baby’s big brother, and that he suggested it, because “she was going to grow up to be a nice girl like you, auntie” filled my heart up to bursting, I’ll tell you.
my 3 yr old son (& his mama) needs this!
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I make them up; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
My DD is 8 years old and still wets the bed every night. We have tried the alarms and the DDAVP nasal spray to no avail. The only thing that keeps her and her sheets dry at night are Goodnites, which are very expensive.
Honestly I love bed time, because it is my break time. My husband gets the kids in their PJ’s, helps then brush their teeth then reads them a story. After that is all done I swoop in say my good-nights and we call it a night. I do so much with the kids all throughout the day that this has been a perfect solution for us. He gets special time with the kids and I get a break.
My son is 5 and is still in pull-ups at night, but soon those will be too small for him so I would love to win this and get some Goodnites for him.
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I fabricate them; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
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this is my Sunday entry. One per day. LOL
I love bedtime with my 9 month old son! I’m a SAHM with him but even thou I’m with him all day it is my favorite time. It’s the only time he’s actually calm! If there is such a thing as baby ADD he has it! He would rather expolre then sleep (or eat, or get his diaper changed, or pretty much anything!) He’s usually so hyper and active and playing in the day but when naptime or bedtime comes he lets himself be cuddled or held. I love that. My favorie right now is his teddy (or lovey). He found it himself. We were at a yardsale and he saw it and screamed with excitement. We took it and didn’t think much of it. Now he can’t sleep without it It’s funny to see him looking for it when I put it down in his crib. He hugs it, squeezes it, chews on it, hits it, and if he’s mad throws it. It’s funny to see an attachment to an inanimate object.
After I read them a book I always lie down in the bed with my children and we talk about the best, worst, funniest and happiest part of their day. It is amazing the things they come up and how little moments mean so much to them. We then give hugs, kisses and tell each other to have sweet dreams and that we will see each other in the morning. It is my favorite time of day.
My twin girls are still in cribs, so it’s harder to cuddle with them just yet. But we love to go in at night and before they lay down I ask for a smooch and some love pats. My daughters wrap their little arms around my neck and pat my shoulder then give me a big kiss!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Repost
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I fabricate them; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
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this is my Monday entry. One per day. LOL
I love bedtime with my 9 month old son! I’m a SAHM with him but even thou I’m with him all day it is my favorite time. It’s the only time he’s actually calm! If there is such a thing as baby ADD he has it! He would rather expolre then sleep (or eat, or get his diaper changed, or pretty much anything!) He’s usually so hyper and active and playing in the day but when naptime or bedtime comes he lets himself be cuddled or held. I love that. My favorie right now is his teddy (or lovey). He found it himself. We were at a yardsale and he saw it and screamed with excitement. We took it and didn’t think much of it. Now he can’t sleep without it It’s funny to see him looking for it when I put it down in his crib. He hugs it, squeezes it, chews on it, hits it, and if he’s mad throws it. It’s funny to see an attachment to an inanimate object.
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I fabricate them; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
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This is my Tuesday entry.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Another repost.
Our bedtime routine is music on, diaper change, pjs, story, prayers, a nursing, then kisses, lights and music out and in bed. My baby boy’s favorite part is the story. He turns the pages himself.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing.
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I fabricate them; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
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This is my Wednesday entry.
Just politely re-entering!
*hangs head in shame as I enter for the first time*
I love bedtime with my 9 month old son! I’m a SAHM with him but even thou I’m with him all day it is my favorite time. It’s the only time he’s actually calm! If there is such a thing as baby ADD he has it! He would rather expolre then sleep (or eat, or get his diaper changed, or pretty much anything!) He’s usually so hyper and active and playing in the day but when naptime or bedtime comes he lets himself be cuddled or held. I love that. My favorie right now is his teddy (or lovey). He found it himself. We were at a yardsale and he saw it and screamed with excitement. We took it and didn’t think much of it. Now he can’t sleep without it It’s funny to see him looking for it when I put him down in his crib. He hugs it, squeezes it, chews on it, hits it, and if he’s mad throws it. It’s funny to see an attachment to an inanimate object.
Each night after my twin girls have gotten their bath, and all smelling sweet and nice, we all cozy up with one big blanket on the couch ready for each of us to tell one short story.. I will always remember the one night when my daughter Alexis told a story about the far away moon, that glowed in the night and how it was always there, playing with the stars hiding in the clouds, and watching over her and her sister from the window and giving them light in the night to see.. Whenever I see the moon, I always remember this story and smile..
My twin girls are still in cribs, so it’s harder to cuddle with them just yet. But we love to go in at night and before they lay down I ask for a smooch and some love pats. My daughters wrap their little arms around my neck and pat my shoulder then give me a big kiss!
This is my Thursday entry.
My twins were in NICU after they were born and the hospital staff always had soft music playing next to them to comfort them. It usually had the sound of a real heartbeat with soft singing to make the babies feel as though they were still in the womb.. After my twins came home a month later, I also bought the same cd and every night before bed, I would play the cd as I lay them in their cribs.. They knew it was time for sleep and its funny the way they would lie down on their stomachs with butts up in the air and they seemed to look forward to this moment.. I still play the same cd for them now… It settles them down and relxes them so much!!
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I fabricate them; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
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This is my Thursday entry.
Bed time is always a special time in our house.. After baths and sweet smelling girls, they love the bed time stories, and one of their favorite story is when I turn on the cd with the soft playing music, almost magical sounding and I tell them to close thier eyes and imagine they are soaring high into the night skies up towards the clouds where they will float ever so soft on a cloud and wave at the twinkling stars, and the moon will guide them and watch over them while they sleep.. By the time the story ends, they are usually asleep dreaming of the clouds and stars and moon..
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. RP
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I fabricate them; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
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This is my Friday entry.
My favorite bedtime moment is when my son (who was 8 months old at the time) woke up around ten crying which is unusal for him. He’s pretty good about sleeping though the night. Anyway, he woke crying so I went and changed him and checked his temp (Daddy was sick) and nursed him and tried to put him back down. Well, he just started screaming! I left him for a few minutes to see if he’d calm down on his own but he didn’t. I went back in and he was sitting in his crib crying and “talking” to his teddy. I picked him up and started to take teddy away and he had a fit! So we took teddy with us to the rocking chair where I started to soothe and rock and shush him. But what was so cute was that he was hugging and petting teddy trying to soothe him! It was so heart warming and funny. The three of us sat there for a little while rocking and cuddling. I loved my son so fiercely in that moment. I will always remember that.
Bedtime is special. I use to rock my tiwns (one on each lap leg) and sing to them.. My favorite tune that I sang was “You are so Beautiful to me” Now they are a little older and just love for me to sing this tune… They smile and say Mama We are so beautiful to you? I say yes indeed .. you are my most 2 beautiful angels in the world.. Then they ask me to sing it again…..
I always tell my children a story before they go to bed. I fabricate them; they think they are “real” stories so they like them even more.
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This is my Saturday entry.
Our bedtime routine is music on, diaper change, pjs, story, prayers, a nursing, then kisses, lights out and in bed. My baby boy’s favorite part is the story. He turns the pages himself.
I make up a story every night and tell it to my kids. They think they are “real” like they think fantasy stories are real. They just love them!
Another bedtime favorite story the twins love to hear is the story called “Papa Please get the moon for me” They always have loved this beautiful little story about a little girl who was fascinated by the changing face of the moon..
Her father gets a ladder to get the moon for her, but each night the moon gets smaller.. Its a great story my twins will always cherish.
My favorite bedtime moment is when my son (who was 8 months old at the time) woke up around ten crying which is unusal for him. He’s pretty good about sleeping though the night. Anyway, he woke crying so I went and changed him and checked his temp (Daddy was sick) and nursed him and tried to put him back down. Well, he just started screaming! I left him for a few minutes to see if he’d calm down on his own but he didn’t. I went back in and he was sitting in his crib crying and “talking” to his teddy. I picked him up and started to take teddy away and he had a fit! So we took teddy with us to the rocking chair where I started to soothe and rock and shush him. But what was so cute was that he was hugging and petting teddy trying to soothe him! It was so heart warming and funny. The three of us sat there for a little while rocking and cuddling. I loved my son so fiercely in that moment. I will always remember that.
P.S. Today is my dad’s birthday.
I make up a story to tell my kids. I do this every night. They love them because they think they are “real” stories, like the fairy tale ones are to them.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post
Sometimes for a exciting bedtime story, We will all sit under a blanket with flashlights and I will tell a very imaginative story… the twins just love it.. Always asking questions about the story when it ends..
These are special moments for them..They will always cherish.
My twin girls are still in cribs, so it’s harder to cuddle with them just yet. But we love to go in at night and before they lay down I ask for a smooch and some love pats. My daughters wrap their little arms around my neck and pat my shoulder then give me a big kiss!
This is my Monday entry.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Tuesday
We have a lot of bedtime memories.. Bedtime is so special in our house. Its a quiet time that starts with a war bath and comfy jammies, and snuggle up to a good story..
My twins love the many bedtime stories.. A new one each night and many times they love to hear the story “The hungry hungry catepillar” One of their favorites.
We have a lot of bedtime memories.. Bedtime is so special in our house. Its a quiet time that starts with a warm bath and comfy jammies, and snuggle up to a good story..
My twins love the many bedtime stories.. A new one each night and many times they love to hear the story “The hungry hungry catepillar” One of their favorites.
ooops sorry … didnt mean to send two.. just use the second one above
I tell my kids a story every night. They think they are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them so much.
My 9 month old baby boy has been crying and fighting his sleep routine lately. Just when I thik we’ve turned a corner and he settles down without fussing. He wakes up last night at ten and when I go to get him he’s very upset and MAD at me! He won’t calm down and I finally give up trying to put him back to sleep and take him to our room when he’s so exicted to see Daddy! He completely ignores me for the next 15 minutes while he plays with Daddy then turns back to me to nurse and fall asleep! I felt so used!
Okay, so the twins finally got big girl beds and now we’re looking for a new ritual to get bedtime off to a good start. Will read some above comments and try to dream up a new scenario. But until then, here’s my entry for Tuesday. Thanks!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Wednesday
I just love bedtime in our house.. Its the closeness I feel with my twins, when we can tell stories together and talk about the days events and what we will do tomorrow. Its the time we settle down and cuddle and give hugs and kisses..
And later I peek in on the girls and see them sleeping so soundly, one with her arm around her favorite stuffed toy and the other with her favorite stuffed animals laying above her pillow.. This is a sweet picture in my mind….
My 9 month old baby boy has been crying and fighting his sleep routine lately. Just when I thik we’ve turned a corner and he settles down without fussing, he wakes up the other night at ten and when I go to get him he’s very upset and MAD at me! He won’t calm down and I finally give up trying to put him back to sleep and take him to our room when he’s so exicted to see Daddy! He completely ignores me for the next 15 minutes while he plays with Daddy then turns back to me to nurse and fall asleep! I felt so used!
I’m in the cusp of having my last child at home at becoming a Gramma for the first time, so I am having to “dust” of the old stories and maybe even making up some new.
I had a lullaby for each boy and they still remember them.
My son’s latest bedtime ritual is asking us what we want to eat for breakfast the next day. His dad always makes up something funny like “Elephant Ears with Giraffe Juice” and it just cracks him up!
I tell my kids a story every night. They think they are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them a lot.
My kids love for me to read them books, but when my husband is putting them to bed, they always say, “We want daddy to tell us a story from his brain!” I guess he has a better imagination than me.
I’m too tired to post something long because we need some good nites here.
night
I tell my kids a story every night. They think they are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them tremendously.
Our new routine has been to put the baby down about a half hour earlier then our older boy. They used to go down at the same time. Now even though he is still going to bed at the same time as before he feels much cooler since he gets to stay up longer then the baby. We are just glad he doesn’t know how to tell time yet so he doesn’t realize what is going on.
As we were getting ready for bed, my 4 y/o daughter said “Mommy, do you love me this much?” and held her arms wide. I told her I loved her more than I could stretch my arms. She asked “Do you love me all the way to grandma’s house?” Yes, baby, I do. She kept asking getting further and further away each time. Finally, she asked, “Is China far?” I told her it was very, very, very far. She thought for a minute and said “Mommy, I love you all the way to China!”
Now, we tell each other that we love one another all the way to China almost every night.
My Twins look forward to bed because of the stories we read.. They like to tell a story themselves and then I read them one.. This way.. after baths and in jammies, they know the stories are coming and they especially love to tell one of their own..:)
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Thursday
My son’s latest bedtime ritual is asking us what we want to eat for breakfast the next day. His dad always makes up something funny like “Elephant Ears with Giraffe Juice” and it just cracks him up!
This is my Thursday entry.
Our bedtime routine for my 9 month old is music on, diaper change, pjs, story, a nursing, then kisses, lights out and in bed. He crys sometie but only for a minute or two. Then he’s out for the night. Usually, hopefully.
I have two sweet girls, the oldest just turned three, and the youngest is one. Ava (3) just started going to bed on her own in her room, and I was excited to start a tradition of picking a story before bedtime. My one year old, Charlotte, was happy to get in on the action, and after we each pick a story, they both go to bed in their own rooms…I wasn’t expecting the youngest to follow suit after her big sister like that, but she was happy to go straight to her bed instead of being rocked to sleep. It’s so bittersweet, but so nice at the end of the day to connect by snuggling and reading.
Book. Milk. Brush teeth. Night-night!
I tell my children a story every night. They think they are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them tremendously.
In My twin girls room are stars on the ceiling that glow when the lights are turned off. When I turn the lights off, they point to a star and tell me something good they did that day. They pick 3 stars a night and tell me 3 good things.. They enjoy this and also the glow of the stars on the ceiling at night.. They have a thing for the stars and the moon!! ha ha Oh yeah.. theres a moon on the ceiling too.
It smiles…
I lay down with my daughter every night so that she can fall asleep. Everyone says it’s a bad habit. honestly, I love it. One of my favorite parts of my day is when she gets all comfortable, snuggles in and says “Nite, nite mamma” in her sleepy, sweet voice. Nite nite, my baby.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Friday
One of my favorite things about bedtime is when I nurse my baby. It’s just me and him. He looks so peaceful and he looks in my eyes with such trust and love. It’s the only part of our bedtime routine that I won’t be able to always do with him. The day he stops nursing is the day he stops being a baby. I know I’ll miss it. And cry.
c/p: I have two sweet girls, the oldest just turned three, and the youngest is one. Ava (3) just started going to bed on her own in her room, and I was excited to start a tradition of picking a story before bedtime. My one year old, Charlotte, was happy to get in on the action, and after we each pick a story, they both go to bed in their own rooms…I wasn’t expecting the youngest to follow suit after her big sister like that, but she was happy to go straight to her bed instead of being rocked to sleep. It’s so bittersweet, but so nice at the end of the day to connect by snuggling and reading.
I cannot express how wonderful it is with bed time stories. Bed time stories have been passed on for generations. Its a time for closeness at the days end. Its a quiet time, an imaginative time, and a time for parents to bond with their children. I cannot imagine bedtime without a wonderful story. Your child will love hearing the stories and his imaginatin will take over.. Your child will look forward to telling you his own bedtime story either by an imaginative one they made up or reading one themselves which is good for them because they are practicing reading and having fun at the same time.
Our bedtime routine for my 9 month old son is music on, diaper change, pjs, story, a nursing, then kisses, lights out and in bed. He crys sometie but only for a minute or two. Then he’s out for the night. Usually, hopefully.
My son’s latest bedtime ritual is asking us what we want to eat for breakfast the next day. His dad always makes up something funny like “Elephant Ears with Giraffe Juice” and it just cracks him up!
This is my Saturday entry.
My twins love the music I play on the cd before they go to bed.. The music is very soft and sometimes a soft piano playing along with a soothing sound of a flute. Almost magical.. Great for those far away stories from other lands.. Soon as the music starts to play, we settle down with a few of their favorite books… This is such a special moment for all of us.. That ends in lots of hugs and kisses.. and looking forward to the next nights story adventures…
Okay, so the twins finally got big girl beds and now we’re looking for a new ritual to get bedtime off to a good start. Will read some above comments and try to dream up a new scenario. But until then, here’s my entry for Sunday. Thanks!
Our bedtime routine for my 9 month old son is music on, diaper change, pjs, story, a nursing, then kisses, lights out and in bed. He crys sometimes but only for a minute or two. Then he’s out for the night. Usually, hopefully.
My twins each have a goldfish on thier dresses beside their bed and a small soft light shines in the bowl.. Sometimes they like to tell me a story about their fish and all of his adventures( of course they are imaginative)… They love the adenturous stories at night with lots of imagination.
They actually look forward to bed because of the stories.
Then its off to slumberland…ZZZZZZZZZZZZ
My twin girls are still in cribs, so it’s harder to cuddle with them just yet. But we love to go in at night and before they lay down I ask for a smooch and some love pats. My daughters wrap their little arms around my neck and pat my shoulder then give me a big kiss. It’s the sweetest thing!
This is my Monday Entry.
Good Morning! Here is my Tuesday entry:
My twin girls are still in cribs, so it’s harder to cuddle with them just yet. But we love to go in at night and before they lay down I ask for a smooch and some love pats. My daughters wrap their little arms around my neck and pat my shoulder then give me a big kiss. It’s the sweetest thing!
The twins routine is soothing warm baths right before bed,smellng all sweet and then cuddling on the bed with one of their favorite stories.”Where do kisses come from”
They love to hear the part where kisses come from their smiles and the way their eyes shine and my daughters would widen their big brown eyes and stare at me and say Mama, are our eyes shining?
I love it when they asks me this because I always say to them.. Your pretty eyes and smiles and your heart always shine for me…..
My baby boy’s bedtime routine is music on, diaper change, pjs, story, a nursing, then kisses, lights out and in bed. He crys sometie but only for a minute or two. Then he’s out for the night. Usually, hopefully.
My girls always know when its bedtime.. I start to play their favorite soothing music on the cd. We snuggle up with a favorite story The “bedtime music” plays and you hear The sound of soft playing piano, and a mystical flute.. makes you feel as though you are floating on a big cloud and almost always the girls are asleep before the cd is finished.
my husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too! This is my Wednesday entry!
I tell my kids a story every night. They think they are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them very much.
Honestly I love bed time, because it is my break time. My husband gets the kids in their PJ’s, helps then brush their teeth then reads them a story. After that is all done I swoop in say my good-nights and we call it a night. I do so much with the kids all throughout the day that this has been a perfect solution for us. He gets special time with the kids and I get a break.
My son is 5 and is still in pull-ups at night, but soon those will be too small for him so I would love to win this and get some Goodnites for him.
I read to,or was read to, my boys every night till they were 9 or 10. And now they read to their kids.
Bedtime snuggles are the best. The funniest part is that my daughter is SO specific. The blankie goes here, teddy goes here, mommy, you lay just like this! And when all is perfect, she drifts off to sleep.
we need these more than ever
yay!
I’m in! Thanks!
I’ve posted about how I love to nurse my son. But I love the whole routine. Another of my favorite parts of the routine is when I read to him. I LOVE to read. I can’t stress this enough about how MUCH I LOVE TO READ!!! So, I love reading to my son. I love the way his little face lights up when he sees me pull out a book for bedtime. I love the way he snuggles up to me and gets himself comfortable to listen. I love how absorbed he gets in the pictures. I love how he turns the pages himself. I love how he looks up at me every once in awhile and smiles his pleasure at me esp at the end as if to say “Great story Mom!” I love that. I love bedtime. I love my baby boy.
I can never seem to tell her “I love her” too many times! Sleep tight!
I make sure to tell my kids that I’m proud of them every night. Not because of anything they did that day, but just because of who they are.
I tell my kids a story every night. They think they are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them alot.
My daughter is so used to her routine before bed that we can NEVER miss part of it, even if she’s exhausted! We must read two books. Watching her try to keep her eyes open until the end of the story is both sweet and heartbreaking. It’s just another little thing that melts my heart about my girl!
pick me please.
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Thurs.
Last night my daughter asked me if her deceased dog was in heaven.. I would tell her a story about how all animals when they die go to a special heaven and if you look each night in the sky, you will see them twinkling at you from the night skies.. Last night I told them a bedtime story about all the animals in heaven and how they are playing and happy with each other .. but mostly at night they always remember their home here on earth and who took care of them and thats when they twinkle in the night to say I have not forgotten you and I love you…
My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
Now, I gotta go check out that Kohls deal for Xmas…
One of my favorite things about bedtime is when I nurse my son. It’s just me and him. He looks so peaceful and he looks in my eyes with such trust and love. It’s the only part of our bedtime routine that I won’t be able to always do with him. The day he stops nursing is the day he stops being a baby. I know I’ll miss it. And cry.
I think it’s just amazing to see my daughter’s mind work. Last night, she told me that when she is “growed up” when she is “seventeen old” she will be able to come to work with me and we can share an office. It was just so sweet that she was thinking about how she could be with mommy all the time, right before she went to bed!
As my girls settled down last night, we alked about the days events. They laughed and told me the funny and silly things they did.. Alexis caught a grasshopper and how it flew at her when she let it go.. She said, maybe he realy liked me Mama and didnt want to go.. She was very happy with that thought.. Erica her sister said, I think he did Alexis, but I think he will stay in the yard.. Maybe he will be there tomorrow.. They snuggled into bed with that happy thought!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Fri.
My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
This is my Friday entry! Hope I win!
I tell my kids a story every night. They think the stories are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them a lot.
Each night after my twin girls have gotten their bath, and all smelling sweet and nice, we all cozy up with one big blanket on the couch ready for each of us to tell one short story.. I will always remember the one night when my daughter Alexis told a story about the far away moon, that glowed in the night and how it was always there, playing with the stars hiding in the clouds, and watching over her and her sister from the window and giving them light in the night to see.. Whenever I see the moon, I always remember this story and smile..
I’ve posted about how I love to nurse my son. But I love the whole routine. Another of my favorite parts of the routine is when I read to him. I LOVE to read. I can’t stress this enough about how MUCH I LOVE TO READ!!!! So, I love reading to my son. I love the way his little face lights up when he sees me pull out a book for bedtime. I love the way he snuggles up to me and gets himself comfortable to listen. I love how absorbed he gets in the pictures. I love how he turns the pages himself. I love how he looks up at me every once in awhile and smiles his pleasure at me esp at the end as if to say “Great story Mom!” I love that. I love bedtime. I love my baby boy.
I tell my kids a story every night. They think the stories are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them alot.
As my girls settled down last night, we alked about the days events. They laughed and told me the funny and silly things they did.. Alexis caught a grasshopper and how it flew at her when she let it go.. She said, maybe he realy liked me Mama and didnt want to go.. She was very happy with that thought.. Erica her sister said, I think he did Alexis, but I think he will stay in the yard.. Maybe he will be there tomorrow.. They snuggled into bed with that happy thought!
I tell my children a story every night. They think the stories are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them alot.
One of my favorite parts of the routine is when I read to him. I LOVE to read. I can’t stress this enough about how MUCH I LOVE TO READ!!!! So, I love reading to my son. I love the way his little face lights up when he sees me pull out a book for bedtime. I love the way he snuggles up to me and gets himself comfortable to listen. I love how absorbed he gets in the pictures. I love how he turns the pages himself. I love how he looks up at me every once in awhile and smiles his pleasure at me esp at the end as if to say “Great story Mom!” I love that. I love bedtime. I love my baby boy.
I tell my children a story every night. They think the stories are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them a lot.
My twins were in NICU after they were born and the hospital staff always had soft music playing next to them to comfort them. It usually had the sound of a real heartbeat with soft singing to make the babies feel as though they were still in the womb.. After my twins came home a month later, I also bought the same cd and every night before bed, I would play the cd as I lay them in their cribs.. They knew it was time for sleep and its funny the way they would lie down on their stomachs with butts up in the air and they seemed to look forward to this moment.. I still play the same cd for them now… It settles them down and relxes them so much!!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Mon.
my husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too! This is my Monday entry!
Sweet Mir,
Hoping to win this time!!!
I tell my children a story each night. They think the stories are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them a lot.
Now that my daughter has learned to read we have had to compromise when reading at bedtime. I like her to read to me, she likes me to read to her . . . I’m so glad she’s picked up the book bug from me and hope it lasts her entire life.
I cannot express how much my daughters look forward to the bed time stories each and every night. They love to hear the music on the cd I play with the soft flutes playing while I tell them the stories from faraway lands. Their little eyes soon turn so big with wonder and excitement as if they were in the story themselves.. So many questions are asked as I tell the story as if they can really imagine themselves in the story themselves.. They love stories so much and I love to tell them.. Its the best time of the whole day!!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Tue.
Bedtime is special for this Mom of 7. Our daily ritual is brief; however we make up for it on Saturdays when we unwind with a pajama contest. He/She who is ready for bed first chooses the official book. Occasionally we allow runners up to choose books also and then skip read pages from all the books together. That’s always good for a laugh! Next we run up to bed and snuggle together while singing our favorite songs. Finally, I give my kids a special “dream” to think about and wish each one good night individually after brief prayers.
Title: Starry Starry Night
My super active toddler used to think of sleep as a punishment until he discovered the Twilight Sea Turtle, a nightlight that projects a blue, green, or aqua starry night on the ceiling. When I tell him it’s time for bed, he starts playing with his bedtime buddy by pushing the buttons on the turtle shell and watching the changes in the “sky”. After some fun star gazing, he lies down beside the turtle, listens to me humming a lullaby or telling a story, and falls asleep with a smile on face. He must be savoring the special bedtime moment with mom and his new friend in dreamland.
my husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
This is my Tuesday entry
I always let my child keep her nightlight on. But on the rare occasion, someone will accidentally turn it off or otherwise it will go off. My child told me letting her keep the light on shows love because she knows light isn’t cheap. I don’t know where she got that phrase, but she always tells me to keep the light on. “Light isn’t cheap,” she says. I think she is telling me she knows I am doing her a favor and she appreciates it. I think she heard the phrase “Light isn’t cheap” before and uses it even though she leaves out a lot. Oh, I love her!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Wed.
I cannot express how much my daughters look forward to the bed time stories each and every night. They love to hear the music on the cd I play with the soft flutes playing while I tell them the stories from faraway lands. Their little eyes soon turn so big with wonder and excitement as if they were in the story themselves.. So many questions are asked as I tell the story as if they can really imagine themselves in the story themselves.. They love stories so much and I love to tell them.. Its the best time of the whole day!!
Re-post wed
My entry
My super active toddler used to think of sleep as a punishment until he discovered the Twilight Sea Turtle, a nightlight that projects a blue, green, or aqua starry night on the ceiling. When I tell him it’s time for bed, he starts playing with his bedtime buddy by pushing the buttons on the turtle shell and watching the changes in the “sky”. After some fun star gazing, he lies down beside the turtle, listens to me humming a lullaby or telling a story, and falls asleep with a smile on face. He must be savoring the special bedtime moment with mom and his new friend in dreamland.
my husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
This is my entry for Wednesday!
I always let my child keep her on a nightlight. But on the rare occasion, someone will accidentally turn it off or otherwise it will go off. My child told me letting her keep the light on shows love because she knows light isn’t cheap. I don’t know where she got that phrase, but she always tells me to keep the light on. “Light isn’t cheap,” she says. I think she is telling me she knows I am doing her a favor and she appreciates it. I think she heard the phrase “Light isn’t cheap” before and uses it even though she leaves out a lot. Oh, I love her!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Thur.
My girls look forward to bedtime because of the many many stories they love to hear.. They love the snuggling close together.. They love to hear me read with exptessions and make beleive voices of the characters in the story.. Its fun and silly and we love it.. They love books so much.. Always wanting me to read to them and I love it.
wow…should have read the other comments here first…so I could have avoided the same mistake. I too hit submit before copying my entry (thought I’d see a preview…oops). So here’s a paraphrased version:
My younger son, unlike his older brother, has a blissful bedtime. By the time my second-born was a one-year old I made sure to establish a bedtime routine, for us: nursing, a song while rocking, and tucked into his crib. Now, as an older toddler, he loves his crib. One of my favorite parts of the day are these last moments before bedtime. As I lay him in his crib he will smile, tuck his hands under his cheek and close his eyes. Peaceful and sweet.
Here is my entry for 8/6:
When Gabby can’t get to sleep right away, she will often pop up in her crib, lean over, and say, “Hug?” Once she gets a couple of hugs and kisses in, she lies down and falls right to sleep.
my husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
This is my entry for thursday!
Lay on the bed and talk. Separate time for each boy.
I’m a dork and forgot to copy and paste as well, but I talked about how we ask Alexis what she’s going to dream about each night as we tuck her in. It’s our little way of helping her control her nightmares, and it always leads to laughter because her answers are crazy creative.
daily entry
Recently we’ve switched to no more swaddling and having her fall asleep on her own. The first night she did laps around her bed for about an hour – so confused I think she was! But really, I so do miss watching her all but fall asleep in my arms. Tomorrow is her 7 month birthday and it truly does go so fast.
My favorite part of our bedtime routine is nursing Em before she goes to bed. It is the time of day when we are all alone and get to connect. It helps that she goes straight to the crib and puts herself to sleep too!
ok I know I’ve submitted before but it’s been a while . . . my favorite part of bedtime routine is snuggling and singing with a clean child who is drowsy from reading a story or two. Going back to check on them when I go to bed and seeing the sweet angel faces is the perfect ending to every day. the world is a good place.
Our new routine has been to put the baby down about a half hour earlier then our older boy. They used to go down at the same time. Now even though he is still going to bed at the same time as before he feels much cooler since he gets to stay up longer then the baby. We are just glad he doesn’t know how to tell time yet so he doesn’t realize what is going on.
I tell my children a story each night. (Sometimes I tell them two, LOL!) They think the stories are “real” stories, but they are, in fact, made up. They enjoy them a lot!
When my daughter was born (she just turned 9), I started singing her lullabies/songs before bedtime. She still asks for songs now and has even called from a sleepover at a friend’s house to say goodnight and request her songs. So sweet. Have to enjoy this while it lasts.
We always read books before bed. It’s a ritual at our house.
Every night I read “How I Became a Pirate” to Simon before bed. He has perfected a hearty “arrrggggh.” I believe this will pay off later in life.
My real entry on the site…
Pirates!
Every night for the first year of his life, I read my son “Good Night, Moon.” I know it by heart, and I know that whenever I see that book, my heart will melt and will tear up remembering that amazing first year.
Now that he’s 2.5, we’ve moved on to pirates. Every night, we read “How I Became a Pirate.” Simon tells me everything I need to know about being a pirate, like where to bury treasure, and how pirates like to play soccer, and that the best gift ever is a flag with a skull and crossbones. He has also perfected his “arrrggggh,” and I know this skill will pay off later in life. Somehow.
Reading with Simon lets me learn more about him through quiet play and discover and pretending and laughter. A whole lot of laughter.
When both of my kids were babies, I started singing them “you are my sunshine” as I rocked them before sleep. Eventually, as they grew older, they decided this was a “baby” song and asked me not to sing. However, one night I was scratching my son’s back before bed, and I heard him start to hum the song (which I hadn’t sung to him in years). It made me realize just how special those memories were to him.
I could use me some swag. Pick me.
I just put my son to bed knowing that the tooth fairy will come for the very first time! I’m thrilled! And crushed! It’s craziness, it is.
My baby is starting Kindergarden and I’m desperately trying to hold on to our bedtime ritual, and all the others! I have a feeling it will change all too quickly once he goes to school and starts deciding that he is “Too grown up”
I always let my child keep her on a nightlight. But on the rare occasion, someone will accidentally turn it off or otherwise it will go off. My child told me letting her keep the light on shows love because she knows light isn’t cheap. I don’t know where she got that phrase, but she always tells me to keep the light on. “Light isn’t cheap,” she says. I think she is telling me she knows I am doing her a favor and she appreciates it. I think she heard the phrase “Light isn’t cheap” before and uses it even though she leaves out a lot. I just love her so much!
I told about Raphael’s old night time routine when he was two. He had a blanket with hearts on the back and he would flip it over and point to a heart and say, “What dis mean?” I’d reply, “I love you.” And he’d point to another and another and another and say, “and ah nuv you and ah nuv you and ah NUV YOU!”
I know. Sappy. But I can still hear him.
Okay, here’s my story…
When I was a little girl…yada, yada, yada…my sister calmed me to sleep by conjuring “Wendy, the Good Fairy.” I could tell my thoughts and troubles to Wendy…yada, yada, yada…even today, when I am having trouble sleeping, I tell my troubles to Wendy.
pick me!!
After teeth are brushed and pajamas are on, I hug my almost 4 year old to me, and her daddy comes up behind her and hugs us both, in a big ball of family. My daughter says “We’re a family!” with great enthusiasm, and then toddles off to bed.
It’s the best.
you don’t have to pick me!
i hope you get those books!
When my daughter was a toddler, I would carry her around to every picture in the livingroom and we would tell all of them goodnight. They were wildlife pictures so she’d be saying night night to the bear, fox, deer, owl…
bedtime meant I could lay awake in bed and talk with my grandmother. She instilled in me the world of reading.
bedtime meant I could lay awake in bed and talk with my grandmother. She showed me the world of books.
I guess this isn’t strictly bedtime, but I love it, so here goes. Every night before she goes to sleep, I tell my daughter to have “sweet dreams”. My favorite part of the morning is listening to her tell me what dreams she hsd. She’s always so excited!
I entered something like this — I didn’t save it.
I always loved bedtime and feel very fortunate that my children (now 10 and 12) let it go on for as long as it has. My 12yo just recently stopped requesting bedtime reading by an adult and songs. He is an avid reader and I sometimes pass books I’ve read onto him. My 10yo does her own reading, but still requests songs.
Here’s my entry, Mir…sorry to be such a slacker.
When my daughter was a baby, I would read the same three books to her, each night, before bed. She loved them and, even though she couldn’t talk, she pointed at the pictures and smiled, as I read the stories to her. I believe that, in addition to giving us quiet, close time together, it enriched her in other ways, too. We both looked forward to our reading routine, each night.
I also hit the submit button before I had copied and pasted my entry. If I can go back and see my entry, I will cut and paste it here (it’s actually about my dog, Morgan).
The Boy…and his mama NEEEEED THIS.
Special bedtime moments usually are about small kids and I have a bundle of bedtime memories from when they were small. But the ones I remember from my childhood and the ones I hold dear to my heart now are ones that involve bedtime talks with teens.
I remember my mother coming into my room and talking to me as I went to bed on one of those horrible no-good life is all bad, I have made so many mistakes and screwed up so bad I will never be good for anything teen days. It made more of a difference than I would ever tell her.
Some of my best talks with the teenagers over the years have been at bedtime. They have wound down enough from school and their day to be snagged into a good conversation at the end of the day.
I hope you win the books for your community Mir!
My son reads books and looks for the moon with his dad and I nurse the baby.
Each night we read our 2-year-old son his favorite books. As we go through we pick out “ourselves” in the book – there’s Mom, and Dad, and Frank the Bear. There’s Uncle Josh driving the fast car and Cousin Anna playing in the water. He gets so excited to be involved in reading, instead of just being read to.
Hope you get the books for your library!
Bedtime is my favorite time – because my son is such a mover all day long, this is the only time he relaxes. The best part of my day is sitting in his rocking chair with him cuddling in my lap, drifting off to sleep. : )
I hope you get the books for your library, Mir!
We have a 2 year old who might be needing the GoodNights soon. Might really help with the potty training. Like everyone here, bedtime is a very special time at our house too, with each child having their own “ritual.” Reading books, singing songs, and prayers. Then each of our girls (6 and 2) has her own special way to get tucked in. I wouldn’t trade bedtime for the world. Funny story about our 2 year old: My wife always sings “You Are My Sunshine” to her before bed. The other day, my wife asked her, “Do you know that you are my sunshine?” My daughter responded. “Do I make you happy when skies are gray?” We about died laughing. Re-Post Fri
My son has started sleeping in my bed, I think he is afraid of his room. I could really use the good nights so I don’t get peed on. Everynight before bed we read a story and pray and then lay down together. As much as I don’t want him in my bed, I really enjoy him there.
My 2 1/2 year old son is starting to get the idea of potty training, so he’ll be needing GoodNights soon. I love it when he is going to bed because it’s the best time of day to cuddle up in bed, read a story and pray together as a family. He loves it too, I can tell, because he enjoys every step of our little routine: bath, song while putting on his pjs, then a book, a little prayer, then we review our day’s happenings, and then kisses and hugs for mom and dad. Thinking about it just brings a smile to my face : ) This is a great space to share my story with everyone!! Thanks!
The twins routine is soothing warm baths right before bed,smellng all sweet and then cuddling on the bed with one of their favorite stories.”Where do kisses come from”
They love to hear the part where kisses come from their smiles and the way their eyes shine and my daughters would widen their big brown eyes and stare at me and say Mama, are our eyes shining?
I love it when they asks me this because I always say to them.. Your pretty eyes and smiles and your heart always shine for me…..
I love you my baby girls so very very much.. YOu will always make my own eyes shine every time I look at you..
We love to read our library books before bed. Then, we turn off the lights, put on our Twilight Turtle and talk about the stars. Each boy gets a kiss good night and then it is off to bed for mommy, too.
We have our one two three bedtime plan. One song, two stories and three kisses.
I always let my child keep her on a nightlight. But on the rare occasion, someone will accidentally turn it off or otherwise it will go off. My child told me letting her keep the light on shows love because she knows light isn’t cheap. I don’t know where she got that phrase, but she always tells me to keep the light on. “Light isn’t cheap,” she says. I think she is telling me she knows I am doing her a favor and she appreciates it. I think she heard the phrase “Light isn’t cheap” before and uses it even though she gets a little mixed up. I just love her so much!
As a librarian and a great believer in the importance of a library in every community I truly hope you get the books for your local library. Good luck!
my husband and I take turns putting our girl down so we each have our own routine. But each and every night wall all sit together and read one book each (well my 2 1/2 year old daughter tells a story based on the pictures in the book). Then it’s time for jammies, kisses, water and lights out. On my nights we sit together in the dark and I ask her what her favorite thing was that day and sometimes get elaborate stories. Then I tell her a story and she helps fill in the details. Before she gets in bed we snuggle for a bit and I nuzzle her neck – something I’ve been doing since she as a newborn.
my husband and my son have a special moment each night before he goes to bed. My husband asks my four year old “What did you do today?” and for every activity he tells him, my husband holds up a finger until all ten of his fingers are filled up with what my son did. Then my husband tells my son ten things he did that day. It’s a cute way that they re-connect each day and it helps with counting too!
This is my entry for friday!