Yay! Glory in your success (it'll help buffer the nights it's not so easy).
The chatting thing - unless it's to work out some of those more scary issues from a vivid dream - what we did is gently but firmly redirect without engaging. "I am looking forward to hearing about that in the morning, but I can't tonight. Remember that it's time for bed..." followed by a retucking in. When they didn't get the engagement they wanted, the forays dwindled away until they mostly stopped.
Raising gifted kids is such a challenge from the very beginning, but they're a joy as well.
