I didn’t realize there was a two year sleep regression until we went on week three of crappy sleep, and I found myself googling dramatic things like, “my toddler stopped sleeping, am I dying?” A regression coupled with her recent word explosion (little miss is speaking in sentences!) means that bedtime has gotten to be a nightmare. Chloe has also been fighting a cold, again, so her nighttime screams turn into a coughing fit and a snotty mess. This book has never been more appropriate. We sleep trained shortly after her first birthday and she slept like a champ for so long! Why, after her second birthday, did she start refusing naps and bedtime?
The top 20 reasons why my toddler isn’t sleeping:
1. I’m thirsty.
2. I have a booboo. This invisible booboo took 20 minutes to locate.
3. It’s dark.
4. I need a couch pillow.
5. I want to sleep on the couch.
6. I want to tell you that the couch is for sitting on your bum.
7. I want to show you my eye.
8. I need socks.
9. NO SOCKS!
10. My knee hurts — different location that previous “booboo.”
11. I need a hug.
12. I need papa.
13. I want to sleep on the floor.
14. I need more pillows.
15. Sleep on the couch?
16. I want to show you my eye again. Mama has eyes. Daddy has eyes. Yes darling, we all have eyes. CLOSE YOURS AND GO TO SLEEP.
17. I pooped. Nope. Good try, though!
18. I need a hug.
19. Read Horton. Read Lorax.
20. I’m sleepy!!! You don’t say….
Did your toddler have a two year sleep regression? What is their #1 excuse for not sleeping?
pomegranate / 3595 posts
Ohhhh, I feel your pain! My LO is not quite 2 but sleep has been really rocky lately! We never really sleep trained but this has been a really difficult patch regardless. She also has a cold/cough/nasty gunk thing, so her favorite thing to tell me, just when I think she is asleep, is “mocos” (boogers) to mean that she needs her nose wiped. She is fully capable of doing this herself of course…
Hope they both start sleeping better soon!
blogger / kiwi / 675 posts
My oldest has always been like this! The excuses are quite creative and maddening.
I think the excuses started before she turned two and have gotten more creative the entire year until three. We completely regressed in sleeping since baby sister was born and now my oldest is back in our room because she would scream in her room and/or get up and walk to our room. I realize what she really wants is just me. I guess shes just not ready for sleep independence this season. I feel like she has gone in and out of it since birth. Hoping someday she stays in the independent phase rather than the dependent phase.
blogger / persimmon / 1398 posts
Oh yes… we went through this phase too! I’m so sorry! It’s rough stuff.
kiwi / 511 posts
Oh yes, for our 3.5 year old it starts out as “Mommy (or Daddy) I need something” he whispers this because he knows we can hear him on the monitor, so that is something since he doesn’t wake his younger brother. Thank goodness for small blessings?
So what do you need we ask, the results are usually one from this list: A hug, a kiss, my pjs hurt my foot, I have to go potty (he had just been 5 minutes ago), I miss you, I don’t like the shadows, I heard a noise, I don’t like the bad guys, you forgot to check on little brother, I don’t like to go to sleep. And the lovely stammering for a few minutes until he comes up with what he thinks is the best excuse ever, which can usually be found on the above list.
apricot / 253 posts
Oh my! I just have to comment because when I was little I pulled the same “Read The Lorax” trick – it was the longest book in my collection! My poor parents…
blogger / grapefruit / 4836 posts
haha finding humor in the chaos
Love it!
blogger / nectarine / 2600 posts
I could do this list not only for sleep but also about eating, going places, not wanting to go potty, etc
These kids and their imaginations!
persimmon / 1295 posts
My 2 year old is killing me lately!!!! The naps! Oh god I miss easy napping
blogger / pomegranate / 3300 posts
Lilly cries out “mommy, mommy, I have to tell you something.” Then I go in and she laughs hysterically and says boo, or hugs, or kisses. The boys still come out with all kinds of excuses!