Thanks for your replies!

Netix - I laughed when I read your reply regarding the mental plan before doing something and how things get added/remembered etc etc. I do the exact same thing and I only have one child! So again, my hat goes off to you with mulitple kids!

Panda74 - I think DS also has a bit of separation anxiety too - although I don't think it contributes to his not wanting to go to bed...he just thinks he is a grown up and doesn't need to sleep so early! I know what you mean by trying to pin them down! I struggle to get hold of DS to get his sleeping bag on! He's an escape artist!

KTS - Welcome to BB too then! Thanks for the suggestions - I was doing my pelvic floor exercises last night as a result! Can't believe I didn't think of that before!! I just need to figure out how to relieve the shoulder strain from rocking/bouncing him! I do try talking him through the routine, he seems to definitely know to expect bedtime/sleeping soon, but that's the problem, because he clearly doesn't want to go to bed! (even though he's tired!). If DH comes into help get him to bed, DS gets so excited it actually hypes him up even more! I'm the only one that can get him to sleep at night...I miss out on the mums nights out that my girlfriends sometimes have as a result.... How do you get in and out of the cot with him?? Ours is large enough, but I'd probably hurt myself trying to climb in and out??

Rowellen - thank you for the hug! . Do you rock the whole 2 hours or does that include stopping and starting over again in a little while (there is no way I'd have the patience or back strength to rock for that long!)? I know if I try to rock DS when he is not tired or sleep enough,he won't even stay horizontal in my arms (sounds like your DS is the same) and I end up with scratches and some times even bite marks!!

The good news is that the last few nights he has slightly improved (very slightly) - things got worse (he started biting me when I tried to feed to sleep), but now he has gone back to his usual feeding to drowsy (perhaps he has some teething pain?). The singing, reading, feeding, read again, sing again, feed again, sing again.....feed again, bouncing etc (you get the picture) still takes an hour, but at least its only taking the one 'session'.

I know this 'will pass' (eventually) and I won't know what I was so stressed about when I look back on it - its just difficult (as you all know) at the time when you're looking at things through sleep deprived eyes, trying to ignore the judgemental looks/comments when people find out your 1 yr old still wakes multiple times a night (and their insistence that I need to CC). Also hard when I talk to my mothers group etc and hear how easily their kids sleep and how long they sleep for! I think I am the only 'gentle parenting' follower I know....