Bedtime Trivia with Little L

I was relaxing all throughout the school hols. By relaxing,  I meant me being lax with the kids' bedtime.
Make that very lax.

While I was a stickler with no. 1 making sure S went to bed by 9.30pm when he was younger, the bedtime somehow just stretched well beyond 10.30pm for L. (I guess most no.2s and beyond would enjoy that 'privilege' as parents get lazier and lazier along the years.)

And now, in prepping them for the re-start of school in just a few days time, I'm working towards inching their bed time back towards 9.30pm.

While S more or less sleeps without much fuss on his own, I am not having much luck with L.

Forty five minutes later into bed, she is still wide-eyed and fidgety, and very much chatting away. It seems that she is doing it all on purpose during bedtime just so she doesn't need to sleep.

It is always in the dark that she launches into her out-of-the-blue trivia questions. And boy, do they often get me stumped. 

"Mommy, what do giraffes like to eat?"
"Are you taller?"
"Do snakes have teeth?"
"Are you happy or sad?"
"I have three bottles! Here's one for you!" (And proceeds to hand me an imaginary one.)

Every bedtime, I'm half part exasperated, half part amused, and mostly exhausted.

Given any normal daytime situation, it would certainly be enjoyable and funny having these chats with her. But not during bedtime. I mean, I'm sure all mothers (and some fathers) can relate to that golden moment between them sleeping and our bedtime, where we can have that precious block of time all to ourselves.

This girl however, seems intent on depriving me that block of time. She will go on and on like little ms chatty on an energizer battery. Often needing many 'shush-es' and explainations that bedtimes are for keeping quiet and resting instead of talking, she'll lull awhile and just when you think she's almost falling asleep, she suddenly starts her trivia chats again.

"Mommy, are you angry?"
"What's that sound?"
*yawn* "I'm so tired, mommy."
"What colours do you like?"

And so goes the questions.

I've tried answering her questions,  ignoring her, threatening her (yes, with me stepping out of the room since she isn't sleeping), shush-ing her, hugging her to sleep, patting her while singing (aiyoh, sing until throat dry with no sign of her sleepiness anywhere around the corner), and whatever ways my mind can come up with.

And just when I don't think she is going to nod off anytime soon, she suprises me.

Suddenly and quietly, she closes her eyes and dozes away into dreamland...

Pffftt....
So, I guess the battery has gone flat.

Goodnight everyone. Shhh....