We're working on perfecting a night time routine that will suit both our needs and that of Tommy. For example... if we finish up our nightly rituals and have Tommy to bed by 9:30...he tends to wake up about 4 or 4:30 AM for breakfast. Since I am a bit of a bear in the morning, especially when awoken suddenly (and without a few moments for a cup of coffee), we thought it best to push back his bed time to 10:30. However, Tony usually ends up falling asleep on the couch while Tommy naps (I am in bed by 10)...so the feedings tend to be closer to 11 by the time Tony wakes up and wake Tommy up too. (If we let Tommy sleep through that last bottle he wakes up at 2 or 3 AM starving...and it is really hard for me to function at that hour!).
Well the 10:30/11PM feeding worked for a while, until recently. We have been playing with Tommy at night after everyone enjoys dinner time (around 7), then giving him a bath, changing his diaper, getting him into his pjs, then giving that last bottle before bed. We're trying also to feed him, then read to him before he falls asleep as we've come to understand that it is a bad habit to let him fall asleep with a bottle in his mouth. Anyway - the last two mornings he has slept until 7! Not that I'm complaining. I wake up feeling refreshed at 6:45 and have that 15 mins to get myself together (and start my coffee!!). But... I feel bad for Tony. He has to get up quite early for work, him staying up every night until 10:30 or 11 has been rough. So we're thinking about trying the 9:30 PM sleeping time again. We're hoping that Tommy will eventually go to bed around 9 and wake up in the morning between 6:30 and 7AM, so that we can have just a half hour or so to hang out and watch tv or something together before we too head off to bed at night. I know we'll get there eventually.
Last night was fun. It started with Tommy's dinner bottle at 6:30. I finished giving him his bottle, but I don't think he believed me when I told him he drank it all, because he started grunting at me and staring at the empty bottle. I ended up giving him some cereal and juice around 7.
Then, Tony was playing with Tommy on the couch. Tommy was grunting back and forth with Tony. It was hilarious. I had to video tape it because it was just too cute.
A little later we gave Tommy a bath & he was not pleased. He cried the whole time, while kicking his feet and shaking his fists at me. He looked adorable once clean and wrapped up in his alligator towel. He didn't take an evening nap (instead we had a bit of a dance to the 80s music channel on our tv), so by the time we gave him his bedtime bottle he was falling asleep...it took both Tony and I to entertain him and keep him awake during the feeding. He fell asleep as Tony walked him up to his bedroom to go to sleep. As quickly as the nights go by, and as exhausted as I feel when my head finally hits my pillow, I really enjoy them. I wouldn't trade the busy busy nights (and days) for anything - I'm so happy to have my little family. 
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