If you have a young child that resists going to bed and wants you to sit with them, work together to make a giant hourglass out of two 2-Liter soda bottles and filled with enough salt to last 15-20 minutes. (This can be achieved by leaving the cap on one bottle and punching holes in it, then adding the sand and taping the two necks together with duct tape.) Each night when you tuck the child in, turn over the hourglass to start the timer. Tell the child to keep an eye on the sand and you promise to return before it runs out, but he must also promise to stay in bed, with the knowledge that you will be back for a nice little visit before the sand is done flowing. Keep your promise, and the child will begin to trust that you are coming back. In a few days' time, the child is usually sound asleep when you come back. If he is not, then spend a few happy minutes with him -- without nagging, yelling or punishing -- then turn the timer over again and repeat the promise to return. If you happen to have a child that doesn't settle down in 15 minutes, redesign the hourglass with 30 minutes worth of salt.
