5 Bedtime Excuses We Wish Kids Would Stop Using

For parents, there are few things more frustrating than a child who absolutely refuses to go to bed. It seems that no matter how much we plead and beg -- locking them in their rooms, threatening them with punishment, and bribing them with rewards -- kids will manage to find reasons why they can't (or shouldn't) go to sleep.

My own 3-year-old, although delightful, charming, and generally well-behaved, is a pro at coming up with reasons not to go to bed. Here are a few excuses that I wish I'll never have to hear again.

1. 'I'm thirsty.' This is an excuse that almost always works, because my daughter knows I'll never deprive her of liquid to drink. But, unfortunately, getting a drink of water often turns into an ordeal -- causing her to get up to pee, then ask for another drink, then magically decide that she's also hungry, and so on.

2. 'I need to pee.'

Ninety percent of the time, I'm sure my daughter doesn't actually have to pee, and that she's just using this excuse to avoid bedtime. It's because of the other 10 percent -- and the fact that I don't want to change pee-drenched sheets -- that I let her use the excuse anyway.

3. 'I'm not sleepy.'

Often said while my daughter rubs her eyes and whines, this excuse is a classic. I will never understand the way children's brains work. When I'm tired and offered a warm bed to collapse into, I'll never pretend like it's something I don't want. Of course, there are times that she genuinely isn't sleepy -- like when her preschool teacher has allowed her to nap for two and a half hours in mid-afternoon. That is, of course, even more frustrating because I know there's no arguing with it.

4. 'I'm scared.' It doesn't matter that the doors are locked. Monsters can break locks. It doesn't matter that we can't see a monster under the bed. It turns invisible when you look at it. It doesn't matter that the lights are on. Some monsters come out in the light. And, of course, it doesn't matter that monsters aren't real. When you're 3, that just makes them 10 times more terrifying.

5. 'I'm too loved to go to bed.' My daughter pulled this one out of thin air last night, and it was a hard one to argue with. I am like putty in my kid's chubby little palm, and I'll often go right along with whatever she suggests if it includes the word "love." Unfortunately, though, even the most loved of children need to sleep.