Bedtime, One Night Only

Ah bedtime.  That glorious span of time spent after you get the kids down and before you pass out from exhaustion on the couch. The time you check out all that stuff on the dvr you haven't had the time to watch.  The time you get to make a phone call without anyone tugging on your leg.  Isn't it just the best!

It think that no-kids evening time seems even better because the process leading up to it can drive parents nuts.  It used to be that The Girl went right to bed, no fuss.  She watched her show, brushed her teeth, read a book and that was it.  You didn't see her or hear her until the next morning.  Now as she's gotten older she is a bit more tricky to get down.  Most nights she gets out of bed at least once before it's all over.  But, I still consider myself lucky because she's always been a great sleeper.

The Boy, on the other hand, is driving me to drink lately.  I'm not sure if it's a growth spurt, teething or the cold he's got but he has woken up every night for over a week.  I get him down and then between 11pm and 1am he wakes up.  I tried letting him fuss it out, but this inevitably wakes up The Girl.  Who the heck wants two kids awake in the middle of the night!  So he and I go downstairs to the recliner.  I attempt to keep myself awake with the tv, but inevitably I fall asleep and wake up hours later with a stiff neck.  Generally I'm either too tired or too lazy to take him back to bed.  This has been my standard operating procedure for the past three nights.  Hopefully this is just a little phase that will pass.  Time will tell.

What were/are your time-tested methods for keeping the baby asleep at night?  I've tried upping his cereal amount and I know he's tired since he generally has to wait until Talia is down before he gets to bed.