Bedtime issues - twins will be five this week

My boys share a room and if I'm not sitting on their floor at night, they will literally never goto bed. They get out of their beds...play with toys. Go in eachothers beds. It's nuts. I'm currently writing this from their bedroom and I have a million things to do after I put them to bed other than play fun police. Lol

Any advice? I know they're tired....even on days they don't nap they still talk and keep one another up. I hate yelling at them and nagging them to "GO TO BED!!"

 

Reading to mine seems to help relaxing them. But often we just let them play until they crashed (they still do it occasionally). We have better things to do than waiting for them to settle down, lol.

 

WE have the same issue with out now 5 year olds. Bedtime has been ridiculous for the last few weeks and there's been no downtime. I don't have a solution, but I just wanted to commiserate. They haven't been getting enough sleep either so their behaviour in the daytime is ridiculous too. At our wits end.

 

How long would it take one to go to sleep by himself? We had tons of trouble until I started putting them to bed one at a time. Now it takes about 1/2 an hour but it's not stressful at all.

 

I would put them down and walk out.  If they play, they will have to clean up in the morning.  Once they realize that they are creating more work, it will slowly stop.  I would just make sure the door is closed and the lights are out.  They have figured out that they get your attention by playing, and the longer they act out, the longer you stay.

 

I take away things if they get out of bed or play. So they lose the right to quietly read a book or their flashlight or having the door open or having the hall light on or their stuffed animals. I've never had to go very far down the consequence list. At 6, it's not even an issue. If one starts talking, a quick reminder is all that's needed.

 

I agree, you need to stop the cycle.
 
They are old enough at 5 to understand consequences.
 
Sit down (not at bedtime) and draw up 'new bedtime rules'. Stick to them.
 
Also decide how much sleep they need & what time you have to wake for the day. Then decide a bedtime on that. If they are still napping, they may not need as much nighttime sleep. And/or may be ready to stop napping.
 
I also suggest taking toys out of the room and/or make them non-accessible (or if they play with them at night, they lost them the next day).
 
We also explained parent jobs (making sure kids are in bed on time) and kid jobs (lay down and take care of their bodies by getting enough sleep). That everyone has a job to help make sure they feel their best in the morning. It helps to put some of the responsibility on them. But talk before bed not AT bedtime when everyone is tired.
 
Is it an option to split rooms?
 
Also, if they get wired at night, make sure that soothing/calm activities and a steady routine are happening before bedtime. Dim lights, no running around/electronics. Those are suggestions by our pediatrician - especially since TV before bed can alter the ability to sleep deeply (adults & kids).

 

At five, they are definitely old enough to understand rules and consequences.  Like others have sad, come up with new bed-time rules and what the consequences will be if they don't follow them.  Pick consequences that will mean something to them and  motivate them to change their behavior.  After that stick with the rules.  It might be tough for a few days, but will get better in the long run.  I would also look at their bed time and how much sleep they are getting in a day.  You mentioned naps, maybe they are getting too much sleep and not tired at bedtime.  Good luck!

 

For me, as a mom of 7 kids that have all shared rooms, I send mine to bed and as long as they don't come out of their rooms they can do whatever they want until they fall asleep. Will they stay up a little late some nights? Yes but its not an every night thing. I know I can't fall asleep on command so I can't expect my kids too.
 
If they have behavior issues then I might remind them to try to go to sleep early but they all do a great job of listening to their bodies and go to sleep when they need too. Even my 3yr olds will go to bed early if they feel tired.