Well, my 9yo dd is having her first sleep over tonite. I may be sitting her at the 'puter till all hours! ROFL...
The Blessed Fiddy, Patroness Saint of the Disorganized LC in Sunny So Cal Personality Development Specialist (Full-Time Mom!)
H*ell... I'd take a long hot bath, reading my favorite book and knowing that there won't be any interruptions. Alternatively, you could attack your husband and not have to worry about locking the bedroom door.
I *WISH*!!...ROFL...this is my dd's first sleep over, she's wired to the gills, and dh is out of town on a business trip. I am the sole source of sanity, and I also have to get these girls to religious school in the morning by 9:30!!!
So far, I've started a beaded strap for a peyote purse I made my MIL a while ago (she didn't like the first strap), and it's going well...and I've *shared* my dd's snacks (those marshmellow cookies?...ew)...and at 10:00 I'm dumping them in her room in their sleeping bags, with flashlights and instructions to do whatever, but stay in the bedroom.
Whadda life...(wouldn't trade it for the world!)
The Blessed Fiddy, Patroness Saint of the Disorganized LC in Sunny So Cal Personality Development Specialist (Full-Time Mom!)
On Sat, 9 Oct 2004 23:18:07 -0400, LC aka Fiddy wrote (in message ):
As the veteran of at least a hundred sleepovers, I have a little advice. (I'm not kidding. Manda has been having sleepovers since she was three or four, and we've had kids come over every weekend for years) BTW, sleepovers are nowhere near as popular now that Manda is in high school. We have kids come and stay with us, but it's not the group thing it used to be. There's two coming for the December school break, and one Mom is talking to me about having her daughter stay with us for the summer. Fine by me.
At midnight or so, declare that it's time for bed, and that everyone has to go to sleep. Two or three of the girls will be totally relieved, since they are exhausted and will konk right out. At least two girls will totally ignore you, and try to stay awake all night. Wait a half hour or forty-five minutes and give the gabbers a last warning, telling them that it's bedtime or else you'll have to separate them.
Fifteen minutes later, remove the instigator who won't go to sleep. In my house, that means removing the offender to Manda's bedroom, while all the other kids sleep in the living room. The instigator is never as tough as she wants to appear, and I have to tuck her in and give hugs and a kiss on the top of the head. (No matter which kid it is - I have done this with at least a dozen different girls. It just seems to work that way)
We always have at least one kid who is afraid of the dark, so I have a couple of night lights for the hall and the bathroom, and I leave the light on over the aquarium. That leaves a little light to keep things calm, but not so much that the kids cannot sleep. I don't sleep much anyway, so I take a look at the kiddos now and again to make sure no one is crying.
Me neither. I love it when the kids are having a good time.
Kathy N-V
Wierd but true story: I sleep with a CPAP machine to help me breathe. It makes me look pretty strange, but my family is used to it. The kids who sleep over aren't - I've been startled out my sleep more than a few times by a girl who "had to talk to me," but saw me with the gear over my face and screamed her head off. (Always cracks me up)
vj found this in rec.crafts.beads, from Kathy N-V :
]BTW, sleepovers are nowhere near as popular now that Manda is ]in high school. We have kids come and stay with us, but it's not the ]group thing it used to be.
Kathy: start planning now for one near the end of her senior year. i had one, and it was SUCH a trip down memory lane for all of us.
[and i won't go into daddy turning the hose on the boys' open convertible]
hahaha...what time did they finally fall asleep?
ROFL!!!>Wierd but true story: I sleep with a CPAP machine to help me
Hahaha, I bet!!
.Stephanie.
Gotta Question? Search RCB:
Well, good morning (yawn!!)
The visitor child was asleep by 9:30. They watched movies, ate horrible food and then crawled into sleeping bags to "read by flashlight" at 9:15. Like I said...visitor child asleep soon after.
My kid??...she's something of a sleep-retarded child. She listens to music to get to sleep, and has to have a water close by, and ...and...and...about a million things.
She's convinced herself that "getting to sleep is hard". *sigh*
I'm one of those "close your eyes and be asleep in 30 seconds" sleepers, so I have a hard time helping her with this. Every sleep "helper" we try becomes another fetish for her.
So, she came to me crying several times after the friend was asleep, anguished that sleeping is "hard". (I had to wake up to listen to her)... Finally, she crawled into my bed and fell asleep. Poor kid.
But, this morning they're up and eating bagels, and frolicking in the jacuzzi out back!
This is one hurdle down for my kid. She's been petrified of sleepovers, but now that the dam's broken, we'll see what happens next.
They have a week long "outdoor education" experince in the next school year, and she's dreading it. Asking if she "has" to go. My goal in the next year is get her desensitized to sleeping elsewhere...
The Blessed Fiddy, Patroness Saint of the Disorganized LC in Sunny So Cal Personality Development Specialist (Full-Time Mom!)
My oldest loves to sleep, and will sleep anywhere, anytime. The only thing that she says is "hard" about sleeping is waking up... she hates it. My son is pretty easy about getting to sleep and also easy about waking up, but hates naps. My youngest, though, sounds a LOT like yours... sleep retarded! LOL! She hates to sleep, fights it, and wakes up a million times at night.
-Kalera
On Sun, 10 Oct 2004 10:56:18 -0400, LC aka Fiddy wrote (in message ):
Take her to a hotel. If you're incredibly brave, take one of her friends, too. Once Manda discovered hotels, that was the end of her fear of sleeping away from home. If you can find one of those weekend deals for cheap at a hotel with a pool and/or room service, you're golden. (A pool in wintertime is a big deal here, because it's a real treat to swim when it's snowing outdoors)
One caveat: take her to an inexpensive hotel. Once I took Manda to the Meridian King Edward Hotel in Toronto (five stars and one of the nicest hotels in the world - paid for with frequent flyer miles), she started asking me how many stars were at each hotel we'd visit during our travels. (If I'm paying - two stars. period.)
I laughed myself sick when she asked how nice the hotels would be on her school trip to Spain. I explained the concept of youth hostels to my daughter, and she was appalled. Having done my share of budget travel in my youth, I assured her that she would survive, even if the bathroom is down the hall.
Another idea is to check out your local Girl Scout camp: all the ones in our area have a program for girls who are fearful of being away from home. It's a two week program, and the first week and a half is day camp. They spend the whole time building up to the last two or three day overnight, and parents are assured that if things get too scary, the camp will call home.
My nine year old niece did that last year, and loved it. Her parents are trying to decide if they'll give in to her begging and let her go to a full two week overnight session.
Kathy N-V
Yep, that's my kid! And here I am, the sleep queen. My dh is just like her, tho. When she was littler, I "invented" a key that she had to insert "in" her forehead to "turn off the thinking".
The Blessed Fiddy, Patroness Saint of the Disorganized LC in Sunny So Cal Personality Development Specialist (Full-Time Mom!)
Funny thing is, she's our world traveler child. She's been with us on LOTS of trips, and as long as I'm in the room, she's fine. (Oh, and as long as she has her music)....
That would be too awesome! I spent the last two years as a prisoner in our girl scout system and they don't have such a program, alas. I should send them an anonymous suggestion they start one. (They didn't like me much, long story!)
She has no problem, per se, being away from home so long as one of her parents is there. We're revving up to her sleeping at her grandparents house down the street on the nights that her dad and I have symphony or play tix.
Wonder if there's a good parenting book on the topic? I've looked at Ferber and one other one, but they're all about infancy and early childhood.
Here I am..another kvetching mom...it'll probably be like potty training where I got all verklempt "gearing up" for it, and it just happened and we all looked around and went "did we used to have diapers around here?" ROFL
The Blessed Fiddy, Patroness Saint of the Disorganized LC in Sunny So Cal Personality Development Specialist (Full-Time Mom!)
On Sun, 10 Oct 2004 13:31:13 -0400, LC aka Fiddy wrote (in message ):
I kiss each finger and palm to "fill up" with spare kisses for every time she needs one. Then I have her "hold" the kisses very tightly so they don't escape. It takes her mind off whatever's keeping her awake, and the clenched hand makes her konk out in no time.
We started this when she was very, very small, and still do it once in a while. She also likes to listen to books on tape, and those help her sleep as well. I'm not a good sleeper, either - but I read until I am tired enough to sleep.
Bob, OTOH, is like one of those dolls we all had as kids. If he is horizontal, he's asleep. I'm so jealous.
Kathy N-V
vj found this in rec.crafts.beads, from Kathy N-V :
]I kiss each finger and palm to "fill up" with spare kisses for every ]time she needs one. Then I have her "hold" the kisses very tightly ]so they don't escape. It takes her mind off whatever's keeping her ]awake, and the clenched hand makes her konk out in no time.
what an absolutely SWEET idea!!!!!!!
Yup. That's me. I even sleep in airplanes, if the ride is more than an hour! lol...
We always know when Alissa is about to drop off. She calls out with some COMPLETELY off the wall, intricate, esoteric question...to which I respond "we'll talk about it tomorrow". I guess the effort of "holding that thought" wears her out! LOL...
I love the kisses. I did that for my dd in first grade, when her best friend moved and she felt like she didn't know a soul. She rationed them out during the day...awwww...those were some sweet days...
The Blessed Fiddy, Patroness Saint of the Disorganized LC in Sunny So Cal Personality Development Specialist (Full-Time Mom!)
I do this on Monday nights before I leave for chorus rehearsal, because I know I'll be home well after DD's bedtime. Kids are so cute...LOL.
That's really cute... I'll have to try it.
-Kalera
Lol. Glad to hear you all survived!
Glad your daughter's first 'sleepover' went well. :) Sorry to hear about her sleep problems tho. Try some chamomile tea next time. :)
And here I thought it meant that _she_ was "sleeping over" at someone else's house... or I would have NEVER said attack your husband and don't worry about locking the door!! LOL... guess terminology has changed since my kids were young. :)))))
ROFL...well, like I said, if he weren't outta town! BAWHAHAHAHA....
I still liked the idea!
The Blessed Fiddy, Patroness Saint of the Disorganized LC in Sunny So Cal Personality Development Specialist (Full-Time Mom!)
InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.