Your kids go to bed at what time?!?!

7pm. That's right, you heard me. 7pm is bedtime for both of my boys on any given night. Many of our friends ask us as the weather/seasons change but the answer is always the same: 7pm.

Of course everyone loves to comment that it's waaay too early, that as the boys get older it should be later, that I'm not giving them enough time to play after dinner, etc etc. But the little fact that they all seem to be missing is quite simple. On most days my boys get up by 5:00am. Yup, you read it right. If I put them to bed at 9 or 10pm, up at 5am. If I take them to the pool all day, then the zoo, then somewhere else, 5am. Their internal clocks are set with such precision, it's amazing. So, getting up at 5am, spending the day at school and the late afternoon hours playing, they truly are tired by 7pm. We have our regular routine and they are both asleep within 5-10 minutes.

On the flip side, I have friends that say 'oh my gosh, (name) didn't go to bed until almost 11pm last night!' Not 'didn't fall asleep', but 'didn't go to bed'. To each their own I suppose, but my thought is you have no right to complain if you put a 4/5 year old in that position.

My boys are rough and tumble boys, constantly moving, and never take naps. It's my responsibility to mandate a firm bedtime to ensure they get enough rest for the next wild day. Yes, there are days throughout the year when they go to bed later. Please don't think we make them miss any fun things because of it. But, general rule of thumb is 7pm.

Ok, I feel better now that I said that...