Milo's Bedtime Routine

It has become so complex and extensive, it seems like it should be recorded before disappearing into the mists of time.

At about 7:45 we start the process. It should be noted that he resists and stalls pretty much every step of the way, which of course is how we got where we are today. We get him into a fresh diaper and pajamas, then read books. In theory, he gets two books, but he can sometimes get a soft-hearted parent to read a third one. The third one will be from a small or short book: something like 'Chicken Soup With Rice' or 'Cornelius P Mud, Are you Ready for Bed?'. Then he demands a snack, which is usually some fruit and milk and/or water.
Then we go into his dark room and chat about the day. Either Jenny goes with him alone, in which case she sits on the blue chair and he sits on the green one, or Daddy joins them and has to sit on the little stool (note: it used to be that only one parent would go in, and it would be whoever didn't read books, but this changed a month or two ago when he entered a super Mommy-centric stage and demanded her presence every night).

After chatting about the day for a little while, Mommy 'gets the stool ready' for Milo. The idea is that, eventually, he's going to stand on it to be lifted into his crib, but before that there's a procedure where Mommy stands on the stool and moves her feet about. This prepares the stool for Milo, who does more or less the same thing, such that Mommy can get on and 'prepare' it again for Milo, and so on. One night when Mommy wasn't there, Daddy was heavily chastised for not knowing about the foot movements. After maybe three back-and-forths on the stool (there's a lot of giggling at this point), Milo will be captured and lifted into the crib. He gets the option of feet or head first. If Daddy hasn't left already, he leaves now. Then Mommy tells a story, and then leaves with instructions to send Daddy in.

[I started this post a couple of weeks ago. There was going to be an extensive part two, wherein I retell the story that Milo demanded on a nightly basis, but I'll give up on that for now and just post this as is.]