First night in big boy bed

[sweetbasil]

We've wanted to wait as long as possible to take DS out of his crib because I know it's one of the last "baby" things we've got with him....A few days ago, we moved a twin mattress into his soon-to-be big boy room, and have been talking to him about the bed, etc. We were hoping for a good transition into his new room so that he wouldn't feel like the new baby (due in June) was taking over. Tonight we were about to put him in his crib, and he got hysterical. He started saying, "not the crib, my big boy bed!" DH and I looked at each other, shocked, and moved as swiftly as possible. Hey- if he initiates this transition, then OK! We put sheets on the bed, he climbed in, and we pulled up the sheets. He just kept talking about what a big boy he was, with his big boy bed, and his big boy haircut- crackin' me up! I told him that if he decided to get up, he'd sleep in his crib tonight, and he said "okay," tucked his little bottom under the sheets, and fell asleep within 15 minutes. Don't know how long this is gonna last :) but we're kind of enjoying this state of shock ....

[mama2be]

OH after reading your post I have images of my lil Tristan doing that one day!!! What sweet thoughts!!!

Your DS sounds adorable...congrats...!!! I'm sure he'll do fine tonight!!!!

[sweetbasil]

Thanks a bunch, Neve! This just reminded us was that while we might have the most planned-out transitions for DS, he likes to do things on his own time, and they often work out better that way (with guidance, of course!).

He slept in his bed from 8 pm-7:15 a.m., and when I first heard him this morning, I went up there and he was just laying in his bed talking to himself. I climbed in and we stayed there, talking, and told him what a good boy he is and how proud we were of him. That really made him grin. It's like he went from our baby to a little boy overnight. Kind of bittersweet, really!

[luvbeinmama]

Good for him!! Our son did the same thing. We were getting his bed all cleaned up (a used gift from someone in our church), put it in his room, moved all his wall stickers and other things to his "big boy room" and he was sooooo excited he slept really well in his new bed and didn't give us any trouble at all.... for about a week. Then, he started with the getting out of bed several times trying new ways to stay up and get away with it. We eventually had to start locking his door behind him so he would stay put! Okay, maybe that sounds cruel, but we warn him and tell him, and we do go in if it's an emergency, and not him just wanting another book! A few times he ended up falling asleep right behind the door, so when we'd check on him before going to bed, we had to push him in with the door and put him back in bed (he never woke up during this). Now it's been 4 months, and he usually goes to bed and doesn't get up again, or gets up once.

All that to say, once the newness of the big boy room wears off, they discover a new freedom they didn't have with the crib. You will have some trying nights ahead of you, but it will eventually calm down into a nice routine (make sure you have a routine!!), with him going to bed nicely most of the time.

Good thing you did this so far ahead of the baby, too. We only had a month between the move and the baby being born, so that delayed some of the adjustment.

Good Luck! And Congrats!!

[brubeck]

To avoid this problem we have a safety gate in the hallway between my daughter's room and our room. She can go out, she can wander into the playroom and get to her toys, but she can't get to us. The bathroom is also behind the gate for when she becomes night-trained.

[sweetbasil]

Thanks a bunch, luvbeinmama and brubeck for your advice...I'm sure this isn't finished, but it's a nice start :)

[atlbaby]

After reading about your DS going to bed in his big boy crib w/ his big boy haircut etc, and then about his talking to himself happily this morning I had to smile--so cute! Sure you'll have little bumps along the way, but it must be reassuring that he decided to try out his big boy bed on his own, before you and your husband had even planned! Sounds like a great start :)

-Rachel
Mom to Arielle Jill, 10/30/01