Last night I had book club and Zak had parent teacher conferences, so Zoe had a new babysitter come over (I took Ellie with me.) There probably aren’t too many kids that need two pages of typed out instructions, including a 15 step bedtime routine. I thought you might get a kick out of reading the steps.
Bedtime Routine:
1. Zoe had an ear infection last week and is finishing up antibiotics. She gets one teaspoon of Amoxicillin. It’s in the fridge and the syringe is on the counter.
2. Head upstairs at 7:00.
3. Try to get her to go the bathroom one last time before her diaper goes on. She knows that once her diaper is on, she is can’t go on the potty anymore. Occasionally, this is an “issue.”
4. Wash her hands and face.
5. Put a diaper and her pajamas on her.
6. Brush her teeth. She’ll want you to brush them first, while you sing the ABC song. Then she brushes for a bit. She gets a sip of water in a Dixie cup.
7. She can pick out a book from her room. If she takes too long to pick one, just pick for her.
8. We read the story in our room on the bed. She needs to sit against the black pillow and have a blanket on her legs.
9. After the story she gets some Vick’s vapor rub on her chest to help her stuffed nose. I also put a bit of Aquaphor under her nose. She takes a sip of my water on the nightstand.
10. Go into her room. She likes to sit in the brown chair for a few moments. She gets another sip of water. Then you need to take a sip (you can pretend if you want.) BubBub takes a “sip.” Then Zoe throws the empty cup out in the garbage can in her room.
11. Zoe gets into her bed. This is where it gets insane. First, kiss her feet. Then her hands. Then her head. Give her butterfly kisses, and an Eskimo kiss. Kiss BubBub. Say good night to both of them.
12. Make sure the hallway light is on and her closet doors are shut.
13. Close her bedroom door. She might cry out for another kiss and we usually go in just one more time. If she cries, she’ll be ok. Just let her be unless it’s obvious she’s really upset.
14. Turn off the hallway light.
15. She might talk for quite awhile. Just let her be. She’ll fall asleep when she’s ready. You’ll be able to hear her in the monitor.
Every single night (and for nap time) we go through all this!
