Always Choose a Good Book Before Sleep

So, tonight (the day after Halloween) was my turn to put Miss O to bed. Before we were going into the bed, she reached for her usual bedtime story suspects - "Hug", "Brown Bear, Brown Bear", "Mouse's Paint", and "I Went Walking".  Tonight, however I put another book in her hand. I took out Robert Munsch's "MORTIMER".

Good lord, that was a mistake.  First of all, I thought she might be too young to get it. I was wrong. If you don't know the story, it's about a boy who does not want to go to sleep. Instead he sings on the top of his lungs "CLANG, CLANG, RATTLE BING BANG, GOING TO MAKE MY NOISE ALL DAY....".  Olivia really got a kick out of it!  She enjoyed the fact that everyone kept going upstairs to tell him to be quiet, and as soon as they left he would sing louder.  Of course, when I read it I was changing my voice and intonation for the characters - which made it more interesting. So interesting, that we read it 5 times.  Sigh.  Finally I had enough and it was really really time to go to bed.

She decided to bring the book with her into bed and read it in the dark. Not a good sign.  I bargained her out of that, and we lay in the dark trying to sleep. All of a sudden, you hear "CLANG, CLANG, RATTLE BING BANG GOING TO MAKE MY NOISE ALL DAY!.....".  UGHHHHHHH!!!!!!
I literally had to tell her to stop and go to sleep 10 times.  Everytime she would get quieter but still sang it. Did I mention that I clap my thighs in rhythm as I read it?  Yup, she was copying that too.

In the end, I threatened her that I was going to sleep in another room because I was tired and wanted to go to bed.  She quieted down and then it was actually quite for about 2 minutes. Yay!  She got the message. Then she started whispering good night to everyone she could think of.  She knows ALOT of people.   Cute and she was calm.  Then the singing came out.  You would think they were lullaby sleepy songs. Nope.

* See the Little Bunnies - after that she proceeded to hop in the bed
*Five Little Monkeys
*Sur le Pont
*Danse Des Canards (Birdie Dance)

Are you kidding me??? Each song I stopped it 3 seconds in.  It was crazyyyy!
I read dozens of articles about putting your child to sleep, making the most of bedtime.  In those articles, I remember reading to do calming activities with you baby, to soothe them before going to sleep - read a book, no tickling, sing quiet songs.  Man...they didn't tell you specific stories to read to your toddler. So learn from my mistake everyone.  "Mortimer" is a childhood classic to be enjoyed over and over - but not before bed.

    Have you heard of this one?