by Angela V 
Our 5-year-old is the king of bedtime stalling. I can’t remember the last time he went to bed without it being a long ordeal, it usually takes us about 45 minutes or longer to get him in bed. Every night there are multiple excuses and things he needs to do before he goes to bed, he is forever thirsty, hungry and having to run to the bathroom.
Lately his favourite way to stall bedtime is to ask for long bedtime hugs and cuddles. He would ask for a goodnight hug and he won’t let go, saying he wants to give a “very very looooooooooong hug”. He calls both my husband and I to give hugs and gets hugs from both of us multiple times. He knows that it is a great way to stall bedtime without getting into too much trouble because we do love the extra cuddles.
Is your little one a bedtime staller like ours? Below is a funny infographic from Netflix with some stalling styles. Our little one uses the “Sooo Thirsty/Hungry, The Flatterer and the Master Negotiator” the most. Kids!
Disclosure: I am part of the Netflix StreamTeam, however all views and opinions on this post are my own.
13 Comments on “Children’s Bedtime Stalling Styles”
I know all about this I had two like that,any excuse in the world to stay up….good luck
My children were very good about going to bed. I think because we had five children in eight years and they could go to bed and chat for a while.
I would not necessarily advocate having a large family to keep your children from delaying bed time! I had always wanted a large family and I was able to stay home with them
My girl is slowing becoming a staller…..hoping that passes.
If i had a fun bed like this when i was young it would have been a job to get me ouot of the room
I think most children go through a phase of using various stalling tactics. I’d say about 5 of my 7 did this. I found that letting the older ones read for half an hour before lights out seemed to help. It’s difficult phase to get through though, good luck.
I have a Flatterer and a Soooo Hungry. Too funny.
I had one Master Negotiator… It was a horrible ordeal putting my youngest to bed.
I think I was the Master Negotiator…I’m always like one more book, just one more book before bed
I don’t remember ever getting away with this. My daughter on the other hand…
I’m not looking forward to this! Sleeping is already an issue.
Luckily, my children are adults now and I do not have that problem. I occassionally hear my grandchildren, who are parents, talk about this. One solutiion was to give their son his own iPod. Of course, this entails putting out the light after a certain amount of time and taking the IPod away; Fortunately, he is used to this and does not complain too much.
I hear ya lol , i had 2 that were the same , anything to stay up a bit longer , i need a drink , i need a snack , read me a bedtime story etc lol
Thanks for sharing. It always seems like a battle to get the kids in bed at a reasonable time.