Moms of multiples! How do you do bedtime routine?? I babysit two boys 2-3 nights a week (6&8yo) and have my 9yo son. By the time I’m tucking them all in I get so flustered at my son (who is always last to finish getting ready). My son is adhd and has oral sensory issues, so brushing his teeth is a huge chore. The boys I watch get to my house at around 9pm full of energy…. So we don’t start bedtime routine until around 10-10:30p. We homeschool so the time isn’t an issue but I’m always so tired by then! We are hoping to conceive soon, and I’m worried mostly about bedtime. I need a better bedtime routine! How do you get your kiddos into bed smoothly? It that even a thing??
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7pm, we start getting ready for bed. Rooms picked up, brush teeth, fill up water bottles, if they want a small snack, Bed at 8.
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I have 4 kiddos, 2 younger- 8 Boy and 2 girl, I give them a ten minute warning, then it’s clean up, tubs/ shower/ brush teeth/ pjs- all that stuff then we sit and read a book, I put my toddler down then just me and my youngest son read a book together. All my kids have fans/ noise machine we snuggle a bit then they’re out. We also wake up early so they’re tired by bedtime. Try getting them up earlier so they’re tired earlier- I know easier said then done, but it makes a huge difference! Get a good routine with something calming before bedtime. Rub backs, sing a song, etc…
we definitely have our crazy nights at times too, so I hear that!
Good luck Mama!
My kids all go down at 9 ( ages 4 years, 19 months and 9 months) I get the smallest down first then tackle the big one 
at 8:30 we start getting butts changed and Jammies on, the. Take turns brushing teeth, and then we get water cups and bottles and make sure everyone has their respective blankies and into bed 
We normally only do bath night once or twice a week and on those nights we start a little earlier to make up the time
I would make sure the parents of the babysitting children bring them bathed, brushed and in PJs so that they just need tucked into beds after a little down time. This will allow you to just focus on yours for major bedtime needs. Set a routine that works for you one tv show, bathroom, story and lights out. 30 minutes of play, bathroom, bed.
For my son it’s dinner, about an hour of free time, bath, teeth, say good nights(myself, grandma and dogs), story with Dad (this has been their thing since birth), tucked in with his Google home playing nature sounds. From there he has a flashlight and knows he can read to himself until tired but he must stay in bed and quiet. He also is ADHD and GAD.
My kids start showering, brushing teeth, picking up rooms at 730ish. Sometimes later depending on sports, etc. The “time for bedtime” call usually goes out at 845 and by 9 they are all tucked in and lights are off. (3 kids, 10,8 and 6). Since sports do tend to mess up our schedule we just try our best. The kids know what the bedtime routine is which is to shower and brush teeth so on days when we are home late they go straight to the showers and bed. We have had the same routine since they were babies so it’s nothing new to them. During school nights it’s always the same regardless of what is going on.
Id get your son to bed before the others arrive if you can and start having parents of the other two bring them over in pajamas with teeth brushed and ready for bed. Any change from what they are used to is going to be tough. They are going to resist no matter what you do. Make a change and hold the line, they will settle into the new routine. Not going to be popular for this but i have 3 year old twins and so tired of the bedtime struggle so I put my kids in bed a little early, turn on cartoons with volume down and screen dimmed, set the tv timer for 30 minutes. They know when the tv goes off its time for sleep and it avoids the struggle of actually getting into bed.
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Later routines only work if it’s consistent and they’re not waking up as early as they would if they had gone to bed earlier. However for us, I give my son warnings before it’s time to get ready. “Okay, if you want a snack now is your last chance (about 20 minutes before bed)” “You have about 10 minutes left until it’s bed time” “you only have 5 minutes left” then when it’s time we take our medicine (including vitamin gummies), brush our teeth, and put on deodorant. My son also has sensory issues and struggles, we found a toothpaste he really likes (Hello brand Unicorn Sparkle flavor) and it helps a lot. He also uses a “soft” toothbrush. But after that he gets in bed and then I go tuck him in. It’s okay to need to do this one child at a time, but consistency is key. Especially for kiddos who struggle with disabilities or extra awareness, etc. Setting up your own routine could take about a month to set in, but once it is it’s a lot easier.
My 3 youngest (13, 12, and 9) all have a 9pm school night bedtime. At 8pm, I have them go into their own rooms and get things “bed and school ready” such as brushing their teeth, picking up their rooms, gathering dirty clothes for their hampers, getting the next day uniforms ready, getting a drink of water, use the restroom before bed, etc.
At 830pm, I tell them they must each be in their own rooms with their main room light off…they can have a lamp or nightlight on…and for the next 30 minutes they can lay in their own beds and read, or draw, or watch tv at low volume (but no video games BC it hypes them up). At 9pm, we hug and kiss them goodnight and it’s lights out bedtime. Don’t get me wrong lol, they don’t instantly get in bed and fall asleep. They still need a couple reminders over the next few minutes. But this system overall has been working really well at winding them down and getting them ready to bed down. It used to be hours after bedtime and we were fussing. Since we started this time frame and routine, they are all usually completely asleep by 920-930!
A bedtime routine will never go well when your doing it at 10pm at night. You said it yourself your tired, the kids will be tired also, no doubt leaving them grumpy and irratiable. My kids are in bed by 8:30 every night. Routine is key given your only babysitting 2-3 times a week and its not consistent is hard. Do you keep your son up till 10 on your off nights also? Maybe you should consider dropping the babysitting for your sons benefit and the possible new baby
Yeah the parents should have the kids ready for bed prior to arrival. Then straight to bed. Start your kid well before they get there, so they all lay down as soon as they arrive.
I had Irish twins and bedtime was always a bath brush your teeth and then a few books for each and then I sang to them and that was the easiest way for me to handle bedtime as a single mother.
My kids are age 6, 7 & 11.
They have baths around 6pm why I am getting dinner ready. Dinner around 6:30-7pm. Watch a family movie together on the lounge. Brush teeth and go to the toilet around 8:30pm then bed. There asleep by 9pm.
Sometimes it can be later as some nights I don’t finish work till 6pm. It will probably be later once it’s summer and warms up 