And this too shall pass...but not soon enough!

Adilyn's tantrums have continued, and unfortunately they have been happening mostly at night during our bedtime routine. I have always strived for calm, easy, and relaxing bedtimes. There have been some rough patches here or there. I remember when Kacy was about 3 months old and Cory was out of town all the time bedtime was a nightmare! Kacy would be tired, but she wouldn't sleep so she would just cry all through Adilyn's bath and story time. I remember a couple times Adilyn would say, "Mommy, no read tonight. Kacy too loud." A couple of nights, I remember leaving Adilyn's room with her crying in her bed, Kacy crying in my arms, and just feeling so overwhelmed! Of course, we had some issues when Kacy moved into her big bed, but that chaos only lasted a couple weeks. Now our newest night time issue is at least 2 or 3 times a week Adilyn totally freaks out at bedtime. She won't leave Kacy's room, she won't get out of the bathtub, she won't brush her teeth, she doesn't want to wear the pajamas that I laid out for her, etc, etc...She will not listen to anything we say, and even though I always "win" the battle it's still a sad way to end the day. Luckily, during all the drama, Kacy is usually pretty good. She will say, "Mama, Adilyn being not nice today." Tonight was a good one! It would have been very entertaining to watch, I'm sure. It was not entertaining, however, to be a part of it. It started off with Adilyn and Kacy being super silly and hyper before bath. I finally got them in the tub, and it was going to be a very quick bath. I got Kacy washed and out, but Adilyn wouldn't stand up, so I had to "help" her out. Then, she didn't want me to clip her fingernails. She hasn't fought me on that for at least a year or so. She was making her hands in to a fist and kept trying to run away, so I pretty much put her in a leg lock and forced her hands open. It was awesome. After that, I fought her on drying her hair and brushing her teeth. The whole time I had her trapped some way in the bathroom. She wouldn't listen to me at all! I stayed pretty calm through the wrestling match, and I kept trying to talk to her and calm her down. Unfortunately there was no getting through to her. We finally got all the tasks complete, and I put her pajama top on. She told me that she did not want to wear those. I told her that she didn't get to choose. Then, she took the shirt off and said, "Ha ha, ha ha!" and threw it at me. :) Cory finally took her out of Kacy's room, so I could Kacy to bed peacefully. She was screaming and crying by this point. After Kacy was in her bed, I went to Adilyn's room and I finally got her calmed down. (Oh, and she was wearing the original pajamas that she earlier refused to wear.) She never really says why she asks the way she does, except for saying she is just really tired. I thought for a while that it may have something to do with watching tv before bed. We stopped watching tv, but it hasn't helped. I just hope it's some random phase, but what I really hope is that it ends, and that it ends fast!