So as i told you guys about a week ago we are in the process of transitioning Monkey into a toddler bed. Well.....I am. My husband is out of the country till the end of the week so I am at this alone. (He has been gone for almost two months!) Well, the first 3-4 days went great! I would lay him down, we would talk for a few minutes, say our prayers, and then I would tell him that I love him give kisses and leave the room.
Not so much anymore! He DOES NOT want to stay in his bed. I spent probably the last 45min-1hr trying to get him to stay in his bed. I would put him back in, leave the room, and then he would be opening his door....over and over and over. I felt absolutely horrible doing it, but I finally after an hour of battling I had to hold his door closed with him crying and trying to get out. It broke my heart but I didn't know what else to do. He finally calmed down and went to sleep.....I hope that he went to sleep on his bed. I will feel so bad to find him in there in the morning laying on the floor sleeping!
What do I do!!! I need advice. How do you get an almost 2 year old to actually stay in bed without fighting them for an hour?? And then how do you get them to take naps in a toddler bed when all they want to do is play.
HELP!!! I'm gonna go crazy!
Gosh I remember those days...not fun, but you get through it. Being consistent and not giving into the battle...he wants to win! I had to do the same thing with my younger son...he is still so strong willed. Perhaps have a book to read and make that the routine...you tell him to pick the book, that way he feels that he is in control with that at least then you tell him after the book you say your prayers and night night...keep the routine, I bet in about a week or so, he will see Momma is not giving in.
ReplyDeleteOur little buggy never tried to leave the room. She loved her bed for the first 2 nights, and then after that wasn't a big fan. You have to make sure that you put the bed in the same spot the crib was in and have the head in the same place (so it's like the same position as if they were sleeping in the crib). She would come to the door with blanket and pillow in hand and lay down by the door. We would tuck her in every night before we went to bed. This went on for about 6 mos. Now she has a whole queen bed! What 2 1/2 year old has that. :) As far as him opening the door and coming out....all I can do is tell you what I saw Nanny Jo do. She would have the parents pick up the kids and retuck them in, only to talk to them the first time. She would have them repeat after that saying nothing, and just keep doing it. I remember some parents would have to do this for over an hour the first time, but every night after would be less and less. I hope this helps in some way. He'll get it. :) Good luck and thinking of you.
ReplyDeleteI'm praying that you get some great advice on this one. I'm about to tackle the same project. I'm not looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteat all.
But, at least I'm not alone. Hope it gets better soon! :)
When our oldest was moving into a bed, he did great at first but after a few nights would scream as soon as we left the room. We had a child lock thing on the door knob so he couldn't get out. We didn't know what else to do, and he would fall asleep with his face against the door.
ReplyDeleteWe decided to try leaving the door open, and didn't have a problem after that! He just wanted to have access to us if he needed it. We told him and he understood if he got out of bed, the door would be shut, and this agreement worked for a long time. Good luck! We're facing this soon with out second youngest and not looking forward to it :/
I would check out the no cry sleep solution for toddlers by Elizabeth Pantley. We loved her book for babies and will use the toddler one when we get to that stage.
ReplyDeleteWe just went through this with our 3 year old! I could not get him to stay in his bed for anything. Every night and every afternoon it was a struggle. He was even getting up in the middle of the night and coming all the way down the stairs to our room-like 2:30 in the morning! I was scared to shut the gate at the top of the steps for fear that he would try to climb it and come crashing down the stairs. I was also worried about him going into the baby's room. I never knew if he might try to cover him up or put unsafe toys in the crib. I was already not getting much sleep with little brother getting up at all hours. His bed is one of the ones that converts from a crib to a toddler bed to a full size bed. We got a convertible bed for the baby too. We felt it would save in the long run since we will never have to buy either one of them another bed. We ended up having to buy a crib tent and converting his toddler bed back to a crib. I know you have little brother on the way, and you need the crib, but this is what worked for us. My little guy is at full speed all day so getting him to stay in that bed was just not going to happen. I hope that this helps you. :) Here is the link to the crib tent...http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00014PLAY/ref=oss_product
ReplyDeleteOh dear, you poor thing! I wish I had some advice. I didn't move mine to a toddler bed till 2.5 but it went exceptionally well. However, Lily loves to sleep in her bed with like 10 bears and their 10 blankies all around her so before bed we set them up and they're her "bedtime friends." I also talked about how it was her SPECIAL big girl bed and no one else could sleep in it with her. She seemed to buy it...good luck :(
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