Bedtime Routine

Lately, we have had a lot going on (more than normal weeks and weekends) and the kids and our sleep schedule has been less than satisfactory. So much so that yesterday, Max slept in until almost 9 am, and didn't take a nap, and then didn't get to sleep until almost 11 pm. Then, of course, he woke up this morning at 5:30 a.m. - go figure! So, tonight, I purposely started the bedtime routine at 7:30 pm. And, I am happy to say (or you can assume with the fact that I am actually blogging at the moment) that it kind of worked! Both kids were in bed and asleep by 9 pm!! Well, at round 9:15, their little brains must have sensed that they were sleeping, because they both woke up, wanting water, to go pee-pee, and just plain wine. But, luckily, the strategy of taking then to go potty and get in bed themselves, got them back in order by 9:30! Woo whoo Mommy!!
All of this action made me think about our "bedtime routine" and how exactly it all works. And, how its been working for about the past 2 years now. Both kids will be graduating to different beds (hopefully) this summer, so it will probably change. SO I felt the urge to record it here. (Note: this is the routine when Daddy's teaching - so he usually would get home after the kids are asleep) Here goes:
It starts with a song - based off of Dora's "back pack" song that is "bath time - bath time" and both kids march with mommy holding hands up the stairs to the bath tub. Lately, they have been racing to the bath room to see who gets there first. Max sits on the little potty and Kar on the big potty. Then each one gets there clothes off. When taking the shirts off, I ask "where's Max" or "where's Kar" and they get a kick out of the altered peak-a-boo. Then, the ceremonial taking off of the socks and sometimes shoes, which always ends with a "PEE UUU!! Stinky feet!" and then we have to each "smell" each others feet to make sure they are stinky. They smell each other's feet every time!! They don't ever pass it up or refuse - this is comical to me, since they usually really do stink, yet, they never refuse.
Then next in the bath. On busy nights, I try to do this in 10 minutes. We have timers on our fans in the bath room, so its easy to know when bath time is up. The next challenge, especially on short bath nights is actually getting the kids out of the tub. My latest "ploy" is to say "Don't let Max go down the drain!" when I pull the plug. He is convinced (and I'm sure he'll be in therapy for this later in life) that he could actually go down the drain with the water. BUT, he jumps out of the tub none the less! He then turns to his sister and says the same thing to her. She's not quite convinced, but as a good sister, she goes with it and usually gets out soon there after.
A quick bath towel dry-off, and next step is brushing teeth and hair. Both have been really good about brushing their teeth every night. They know the front-back, up-down, little circle actions, and don't complain. Then into their room, on goes the fan, night light, and they get their PJ's on. Max usually gets a shirt that he'll wear to school the next day (for my simplicity in the morning) and Kar selects her favorite pj's. Then, we try to remember to pick out Kar's outfit for the next day - to prevent arguments in the morning, but again, we've slacked on that lately. Next we read at least 3 books in Kar's bed, and she's usually ready to pass out. Max is usually full-throttle, but starts to relax. He then gets his blanky while I kiss karmann and tell her "good night, God bless you, I love you, sleep tight" with a kiss in between each phrase. She turns to her side, starts to suck her thumb (for which I attempt to remove) and then she's out!
On to Max, we usually read a couple more books in his "seat" and I try to rock him to sleep. I only do this for about 5-10 minutes before I tell him its time for his bed. He'll usually lay in his bed while I rub his back "just for one minute" and he'll reply "just for one minute Mommy - not two!" I'll finish and give him kisses, and try to walk out, but just then he wants water ("you forgot the water Mommy!") so one sip and that's enough. Kisses and I'll see you in the morning - and he asks if he can turn the light on - a remnant from  previous phase when he'd turn the lights on from his crib - just to annoy Kar - but I say yes, and then he won't actually do it.
On a good night, that is it! On a not so good night, well, that's another story!
P.S. A quick update on the fish - we got our other clear fish tank that weekend and have the three "big" fish in it in the kitchen now. The 4 baby fish are growing really fast and are liking life in the tank in the kids' room. We need to make the tank in the kitchen a bit more home-y since I am guessing that will be their permanent home now...