The day has finally arrived. Ellie's big bed has made it's debut in her bedroom. Sunday evening was her very first night in her big bed as a big girl. She was so excited. The problem is that she has only slept in it only once.
She absolutely LOVES her bed and really wants to sleep in it - or so she claims. But after dealing with her not staying in her bed at all during nap time yesterday (thus not getting a nap), I decided that the new rule was this - if she stays in her big bed for her nap or bedtime, she gets a skittle when she wakes up. But if she gets out of her bed, she gets put into her crib for the rest of the night/nap. So far we are 0-2 with the new policy and Ellie has cried and wailed at being put into her crib.
But what's a mom to do? She has to know that she can't leave her big bed. She needs to know there are consequences when she does get out of bed. And we can't have her getting out of bed. The scariest thing happened last night. Ellie got out of the big bed and decided to give Annie, who was in the pack n play, a blanket. Annie nearly suffocated. Fortunately she started wailing and we could hear Ellie running around upstairs, so we went to check on them. I'm so glad we did, because I don't know how long Annie would have been able to breathe. It was really frightening. Clearly, we need to find a solution to Ellie putting things in the pack n play and her getting out of the bed in the first place - hence the harsh rules.
I don't know how long it's going to take for Ellie to learn the lesson. Hopefully not too long though cause it's a real pain. But this I know, my will power is stronger. For good or for worse, I am the queen of stubbornness. To this my family can attest.
7 comments:
Ellie seems so young for the big bed! We decided to wait until a minimum that Jasmine is 3 before that move - I would hate it if she started getting out of bed all the time and getting into trouble! Scary about Annie! Hope all goes well.
I wish we could leave her in the crib, but Annie can't sleep in the pack n play forever. And when we go on our trip to Utah next month Ellie needs to be ready to sleep in a big bed - she's too big for a pack n play.
Have you considered something like this?
http://www.greatbeginningsonline.com/store/item.asp?DEPARTMENT_ID=63&ITEM_ID=15167
It is meant for pack and plays and should help prevent situations like this. It is expensive, but might be worth the peace of mind (not to mention it acts as a Cabana of sorts as well, so you can get more then one use out of it depending on your potential needs)! We considered getting one for our cat, but so far, so good. She has stayed out thus far!
It is good that Ellie wants to help her little sister, but I am sorry it nearly came at a cost!
xoxo,
C
Naps ended when I put Nick in a big bed when Ryan was born (2 1/2). Bedtime was a nightmare for, oh, a year and a half?! But it's mostly faded memories as he goes to bed great now at 4 :) That's exactly why I kept Ryan in a crib when Gavin was born. If it doesn't go well, you can always buy a second crib on Craigslist to keep your sanity.
Both of our girls transitioned to big beds well before they were two. Mostly because they either climbed out of the crib or I needed the crib for another baby.
With both, they stayed in their beds. At first, Em would not and we ended up putting a gate on her door to keep her in the room and a lot of pillows on the floor. She didn't always sleep in her bed but it only took a week to figure out that the bed was the more comfortable place to sleep.
And Madi's bed had a railing that went almost the length of the bed (it was meant to be a top bunk). I always picked her up and placed her in bed and I don't think that she learned that she could get out of bed by herself for a couple of months.
I think that this transition sometimes hard for the kids. I've also had friends who made a 'deal' with their kids that if they stayed in their bed for 10, 15, or 20 minutes and didn't get up and they still were not asleep, then they could move to the crib. Again, it took some time but it eventually worked out. I've also read that sometimes you need to have the big kid bed in the same room as the crib for a few weeks so the child can get used to the idea before making them sleep in it.
I don't know if any of that helps you and I'm sorry to have written a book. Take comfort and know that it WILL succeed some day!
Nicky just barely got a big girl bed at 3. We just borrowed a crib from my mother-in-law. She had a couple of bad nights at first but it is a little easier reasoning with her since she is bigger. She is doing fine now. That is really scary with her putting blankets on the baby. That was one of my big fears. I'm with keeping them in the bed with bars for as long as possible. Good luck with everything.
We had to move Barrett to a toddler bed right after Charlotte was born. (We figured it was time when I'd go in to get him out his crib and find him sitting on the railing.) At first it was a disaster and I figured his days of sleeping were over. He wouldn't take naps and the day after Christmas we found him downstairs at 5:00 a.m. playing with his toys. We have no clue how long he'd been up. Maybe I shouldn't admit to this but we had to start locking him in his room so he wouldn't roam the house. (I know that doesn't help with the Ellie/Annie issue.)
Once he realized that he wasn't getting out of his room and the novelty of his new freedom wore off, he started sleeping again. If Ellie was a good sleeper before, it may just take a few weeks for her to adjust. Maybe let her pick out a fun comforter or something so she feels like it's hers. This is the longest blog comment I've ever written. And with unsolicited advice! Sorry!
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