You can't get sign offs once someone has sent their docs off for licence issue as they have already met the requirements of the licence. Getting the solos is a pain, and you will have many more than 100 hrs by the time you get the sign offs.
The night restriction is pretty easy to remove, only an hrs flight. Plus, you can get sign offs for the solo part of it, so this might be the way forward baring in mind the time of year.