2 1/2 Year Old Who Won't Stay in Bed!

I am not ashamed to say: I bribed my kid. It worked great. I put a little pack of fruit snacks on her night stand and told her, if she stays in bed the whole night and doesn't come to mommy's bed, she can have this pack of fruit snacks after breakfast. Worked like a charm. And it only lasted a couple weeks, became a habit and we didn't have to bribe anymore. She just did it. (And just to put it in there, my DD is a very healthy average sized kid. She's not like chunked out on junk food or anything). LOL!

if a family bed is not what you want, you have to be uncompromising. pick her up each and every time and carry her back to bed. it'll take a while for the message to get through, but IF you are consistent (and patient, and kind during the process) it will happen sooner rather than later. probably you'll do what 99% of parents do and allow 'just this once' to keep happening, which will delay the process indefinitely.
but if you really really really want this to take, be firm.
khairete
S.

If you really don't want the visit, take her back to her own room. Even at 3AM.

In our house, we have a baby door handle thing on the inside of DD's room. At night, if she gets up, she calls and knocks, but doesn't get out of her room. I always go to her, even if it's just to say it's time to sleep. My brain is wired to hear anything from that room and sometimes I'm awake before she reaches the door.

Some children can sleep all night no problem, others need more attention. You might try to find out what the cause of her waking is. For instance, my daughter used to wake up and then be scared of the dark, so she would come get in bed with us. So we got her a special night light she could turn on by herself, which helped. I think you can just calmly and consistently put her back and she would learn. Or, you could let her naturally progress to sleeping alone. That's what we did with my son. By the time he was 4, he was sleeping alone. We followed Dr. Sears' advice on that one, which was to let them learn on their own timetable. Good luck!

I haven't reached that bridge with my 2.5 yet as he is still in a crib and not complaining. However, I have read up on this recently in preparation, and the most common advice I see is to quietly bring them back to their bed each time they show up in yours. No talking or playing, just bring back, tuck back in, say goodnight. Probably easier said than done. Also consistency is key like with everything else. I know I sometimes like to cuddle with my son when he wakes up early, so that probably doesn't help. Good luck!

I am with Gamma G. Just move over, make room, snuggle and enjoy the
closeness. They are young for such a short time. They just need human
contact sometimes. Some mornings we would wake up and have three out of
four kids in our bed. They did not stay forever.

If she doesn't get in to bed and then fall right back asleep she is going to still be up and getting more upset then staying awake for hours. So we alsways just make room and go back to sleep. Otherwise we end up with a kid having a temper tantrum then they are wide awake for hours with all that adrenaline pumping. The next day they are way cranky and I am totally irritable. We just figure they need contact with a person and we snuggle up and get much needed rest.

They only do this for a few weeks at most. Then their cycle goes back to sleeping all night. I would suggest they may be getting chilly or a noise disrupts their sleep cycle. It should be temporary though.

Baby gate at her room door. When you put her in bed for the night, remind her that you will see her in the morning. At first she might cry a little, since her room in just accross from yours, you or dad can say, "______", not time to get up go back to bed. Give it a few minutes, if she continues to cry, go to her, put her back in bed, sit with her for bit. You may have to do this for a few days until she understands. Be consistent.

Blessings...

We have taken the one side off of our crib and have pushed it right next to the bed and we have a barrier, (huge round noodle thing) that is in the gap. My son goes to sleep there and sleeps all night. That could work for a bit so everyone gets sleep.

How about a baby gate on her door?

Get a baby gate. Thats what I did

Sticker chart. Ten days of staying in her big girl bed all night deserves a special treat! Make sure she has a nightlight so she isn't frightened. This worked great for us. Getting my daughter to stay in her bed was my MOST challenging part of mothering her!

What would a gate or other barrier do besides make your child feel unwelcome and ashamed? My son (almost 4) knows to stay in his bed and if he needs me, he calls and I go and stay in his bed for a bit. Sometimes I stay till morning. I would much rather be there than him in our bed. You are right...too snug! But my son has a full size bed so it is very comfortable! I would just walk her back, stay with her a bit and remind her that if she needs you, to call.

Baby gate her bedroom door, and don't worry if she falls asleep on the floor. Eventually she will learn to stay in bed or go back to bed. I found a nice tall one with vertical slats that can't be climbed : )