Sleep Disruption, Again

Both kids were sleeping pretty well. Talia was sleeping through the night (mostly), and Alex was only getting up once (or twice). Talia's nighttime routine, however, was taking FOREVER and she would freak out if I left her room before she was asleep. I implemented a plan:

Phase one: After bath, hair, teeth, potty, 2 to 3 (really long!) books, making sure she had her softie, her hexagon blanket, her kitties, wasn't too hot, had the right covers, maybe her babydoll, etc. I would set my watch for 10-20 minutes (depending on my assessment of her readiness for sleep) and then I would sit outside her door until she was asleep. This worked pretty well, especially since I could sit and read which is what I wanted to do anyway! The problem has been the days she takes a nap at school (or falls asleep in the car on non-school days). She wouldn't fall asleep until 10 or later. She got used to me sitting outside her door though and therefore got used to falling asleep on her own.

Then Phase two: I reimplemented the bribe. Sleep through the night for 5 nights (with a sticker chart, of course) and you can get a prize. She really wanted ballet slippers-- which I would have bought her anyway-- so we used that for the first prize. I set my watch for 10 minutes and then instead of sitting outside her room I told her I would be in my room. It worked slendidly. The second prize was a ballet skirt. She didn't get it as quickly. It took about 10 nights to get her 5 stickers because she had been "putting herself to sleep" but waking up in the middle of the night as well (There have been some minor illnesses going around). Even that was kind of different though because I didn't have to stay in her room until she was asleep again, just settle her and stay for a few minutes. At the same time, after a while the new plan becomes routine and even last night Talia "put herself to bed" without us setting up a new reward. She woke up once though and only needed me for a few minutes but still, I would like for her to sleep through the night!

Alex, on the other hand, decided to sleep through the night TWO nights in a row. The EXACT SAME TWO NIGHTS that Talia started waking up! Ron wanted to know if they have a telepathic conversation before bed-- "I'll sleep through the night tonight, so you need to wake up, ok?" Then Alex got a little bit sick and he has been waking up about 6-10 times per night for the last few nights. Last night he got up about 8 times and Talia got up once. Can you say TIRED?!?!?