My daughter climbed out of her crib last weekend and didn't have a graceful fall. She turns 2 in three weeks and we were planning on giving her a big girl bed for her birthday but the fall scared us so much that we turned her crib into a toddler bed that afternoon. She thought it was really neat that it was all for her but that sure didn't make her want to sleep in it. Bed time has become a nightmare! I've tried the "supernanny" route (putting her back in the bed over and over until she stays there, sometimes 15 times) Well, she never stays! She's so stubborn that when I put her in bed she gets up and tries to follow me back out of the room. She cries and cries until we snuggle with her and then she gets to a point where she has no more fight left in her and finally goes to sleep. She used to go to bed willingly, without a fuss between 7:30-8:00 and now she's not getting to sleep until between 9:00-10:00. What do we do??
If she was scared when she fell she might not try it again. Maybe try the crib again and see how it goes. If you decide to stay with the toddler bed you might just have to let her cry it out. Some people told me it is okay for the child to fall asleep on the floor the first few nights and eventually they will learn to stay in bed. My almost 3 year old son tells me he has to go potty 4-5 times a night to get out of bed.
Good Luck!
S.
My 2nd was 15 months when he learned how to crawl out and we went through the same thing. I did the Supernanny thing for about a week until I got tired of sitting in his room for 45 minutes every night, repeatedly putting him back in his bed. I finally just shut the door and let him cry himself to sleep. It was heartbreaking, but it only took 2 or 3 nights before he started just staying in bed and going to sleep. Much better!
He's 2 1/2 now and every once in a while he'll have a relapse, but it only takes one or two times of shutting the door before he gets the message and stays in bed.
Hi B.! How frustrating I know! If you have it in you here is my advice: clear her room of anything that she could reach that could be an unsupervised hazard, cover all open sockets, and then that night put her to bed. Do the SuperNanny thing up to 3 times then tell her (setting expectiations) that you are putting her to bed, shutting the door and NOT coming back in. Then the hard part - doing it. You can tell her you're there from outside her door once or twice, but do NOT go back in. She will cry, throw a fit, throw things, etc. Eventually (and I mean this may take 45 minutes) she will get tired, and she will likely crawl into her bed and go to sleep.
This is obviously not for the faint of heart but with a strong willed child sometimes its the only way to keep them from setting the habit of sleeping in your bed.
Whatever you decide on, best of luck to you !!!
Persistence is key. And consistency. I have a 2yr. old who does the same thing. It has been going on since December. I was lucky enough that she didn't climb out of her crib. Finally in April I put her back in her crib and she sleeps like a baby. She can climb out and will after nap now and sometimes in the morning but she just isn't ready for the freedom a big girl bed gives her. My sister's girl climbed out at 15 mo. as well and it was not graceful at all. But she did not take her out of her crib. She made it very clear that she was not to climb out and that she would get hurt. She did leave the side rail down so that if she did climb out she didn't have far to go. She put her back in her crib every day about 20 times a night for about a month but she figured it out and finally stayed.
When she was 2 she got a toddler bed and went through the same thing again with her. But persistence paid off. She didn't sit in there and any cuddling was very brief (hugs, kisses, nite nite time).
I am actually going to start the bed thing again as mine is almost 3 and my 2 mo. old is going to need his crib mattress pretty soon.
Good Luck.
My daughter did the same thing at almost 2 and we converted her to a queen bed with side rails. We did however put up a gate in her doorway so she couldn't get out. I caution you because if she is a climber, you will need to be careful that she doesn't hurt herself trying to climb the gate. We had a video monitor in her room so we could see what she was doing at all times. We also did the supernanny thing in putting her back in her bed everytime she got out of bed when we would lay her down. It didn't take her long to catch on. And she will learn that when she wakes up, she will call for you either from the bed, or holler out of the doorway. Make sure you communicate with her that if she needs something, she can say so.
Good luck and I hope this helps!
K.
We had the exact same situation with my son. I can only tell you that it does get better. I tried the same things and he responded the same way - it was the worst few months!! I took him to the store & bought him his own pillow and bedding & thought maybe that would get him excited to sleep in his own bed, but it didn't. The hardest thing was to just let him cry. He actually ended up preferring to sleep on the floor. I thought it was weird, but he would sleep on the floor in my daughters room or in his room. He also would sleep in the top bunk with his brother. It has a railing, so he won't fall out, but I don't prefer it because he can't climb out. Even with those alternatives, he would still get up in the middle of the night crying & coming into our bed. I set up some pillows on the floor & he was content to sleep on them sometimes. For the last week or so, he's been sleeping in his own big bed :). Although, he does come to me in the middle of the night. I know for you its tough being pregnant. He's my 3rd & I never had a problem with bedtime. A specific routine doesn't seem to matter with him. He has a special blanket, sippy cup of water & a small toy that he likes that he sleeps with. I know I'll be regretting the water soon when trying to potty train though. I do like my sleep, but I can't resist snuggling with him either, so I don't do anything about him coming into our bed. Be strong and consistent and she will eventually sleep in there.
Give her the new big girl bed anyway and make a big deal about it. Talk to her about if she gets this new bed she will need to stay in bed when you put her there. Have her pick out sheets that she likes and make a big deal about those too. Make it seem like a special privilege to sleep in that fabulous new bed. Good luck.
My daughter started climbing out at 12 mos so we got the tent for the crib. I too am interested in how to keep them in bed ... it's the reason why I haven't taken the crib down yet.... do you have to remove all books and toys form their room? or is that too much like a punishment?
We just stay with our children until they fall asleep. Sometimes we doze off with them, sometimes they fall asleep so fast and I'm not tired, I get up and go do my own thing. I find it's just easiest and everyone's happy. My husband and I take turns - who ever feels most tired usually stays with them because it's an opportunity to rest and maybe even catch some sleep. This method works for us right now. They are 2 (a girl) and 4 (a boy) and have a bunk bed. But, my husband's been working second shift the past week and so I just lay one on each side of me in our King bed and they go right to sleep at bedtime. Sometimes we transfer them into their own beds, sometimes not. They know that they may wake up in their own beds. The "No Cry Sleep Solution" was a helpful book for evaluating the issues for us as well.
