KT

>
>
><<And what do you do when they fall asleep downstairs on the floor?
>Wake them up and coax them upstairs? And when they stay up until
>they fall asleep on the floor, they never feel like brushing their
>teeth...>>
>
>Have tooth brushing at a certain time without regard to sleep-time so they're
>all done, or let them wait until they wake up. I'd carry them to bed or to
>a couch when they fell asleep on the floor. The sleeping is more important
>than the being in a bed.
>

I just cover mine with a blanket, if they don't have one already. I
don't care if anyone sleeps on the floor. It's hard to lug a 65 lb. 8
yo to bed, anyway. There's no way I'd wake a kid up so he can brush his
teeth! He can brush his teeth right after dinner, if it's that important.

One thing I've noticed when some people complain about kids not going to
sleep early enough--their houses are blazing with lights on, there's
activity and noise, and the atmosphere is not conducive to sleep. If
you want your little ones to get sleepy, do things that bring on rest
and comfort. Turn off all of the lights in the rest of the house, turn
down the lights in the room they're in, turn off the stereo or the TV,
keep your conversation quiet. Curl up on the couch with a good
book--whatever.

I've found that even if a kid feels like staying awake after all that,
their activity level is much diminished, and I can go to sleep in peace,
knowing the house is locked up and squared away for the night, except
for the room he is in. I can give last minute instructions ("please set
the sleep timer on your TV before you go to sleep") and go to bed.

I'm always really quiet when I get up, too. It's such a gift to wake up
naturally (poor husband doesn't get to) and according to your own
rhythm. I'm trying to teach my son to listen to his rhythms of
sleep/wake, hungry/full. I want that to last for him as long as possible.

Tuck