Bedtime Stall Tactics

Bedtime stalling tactics tonight:

Greg and I were talking and catching up on our day after we'd put Ava down. Ava got out of bed and came to the door of our salon (all the rooms in our apartment have doors, including the hallway).

A: "Something hurt me."
G: "Okay, go back to bed, turn off the light, and go to sleep."
A: "I see an ant!"
G: "Okay, Ava. Go on,"
A: "There's an ant!
G: "Ava!"
A: "I'm watching the ant!"
G: "Go to bed."
A: "Okay."
Me: "I love you. Good night."
A: "I love you, Daddy"
G: "I love you, too."
A: "I love you, Mommy."
Me: "I love you, too."
Then she stuck her hand into the living room, doing the I-love-you sign, waving her hand around at us.
Us: "Good night, Ava. Go to bed!"
She withdrew her hand, paused and said,"Keep talking!"

We burst out laughing and I got up to shoo her back into bed.

About 15 minutes later, Ava crept up again.
G: "Go back to bed."
A: "I hurt myself."
G: "If you lay down and go to sleep, you won't hurt yourself."
A: "Okay. I love you."
G: "I love you."

It's always something from the classic "I gotta go potty" and "I want water" to "There's a mosquito in my room," "the fan is making a noise, turn it off," "I want the fan back on," "I need a band-aid," "my band-aid broke!" and a whole mess of excuses that a three-year-old mind can come up with. She's has some hilarious excuses that made us laugh but I can't remember them and I should write them down.

A lot of her stall tactics happen when she's too wide awake. I really need to cut her afternoon nap shorter since it's making her stay awake longer at night.