Hello there! I moved my 26 month old to a toddler bed becaue he was climbing out of his crib daily. It's the crib that transitions to a toddler bed so everything is the same except the front part. Anyway, the first few nights he escaped constantly... so I put a cover on his knob so he can't get out of his room. This worked well.... whenever he needed me, I would go in quickly and see what he wanted, but he got the hang of it quickly. The hardest time was for naps. He usually runs around playing in his room and eventually falls asleep either in his bed or on the floor with his pillow, blankets, etc. Recently though he's been going into his closet with his pillow, blanket, etc. closing the door and sleeping in there. Although his room and closet are safe, it's pretty warm in there and I just don't know why he goes in there. I tried turning off his nigh light thinking maybe his room is too bright????? BUT when he was in his crib he had the same nightlight. I was just wondering if any other moms out there experienced this or something simailar?????? THANKS!~
it is a sensory thing about the closed crib and the closed spavce of the closet. totaly fine and he is a smart boy for being such a good problem solver.
J.
The crib is a closed-in space & so is the closet. He feels comfortable & safe there. If he's sleeping & happy than he's fine. I would just let him do it. It won't last forever, he'll go back to his bed eventually.
Hi K. - It sounds like you have gotten some good responses. When we switched my daughter to a toddler bed she was always finding a new place to sleep. We also put one of those covers on the door knob to keep her in - until a friend of mine pointed out that she could be trapped in her room if there was a real emergency (i.e fire). This had never occured to me. I was just worried about keeping her in her room when it was time for bed. We decided to keep the lock on her door, but as soon as she was asleep we would go up and open her door so there was no chance of trapping her in.
It seems that he might enjoy being in an enclosed, quiet, secured space. He is probably using his imagination and making the closet into a tent, hiding place, fort etc. Let him explore! Just make sure that he is safe. When you feel that he is into a deep sleep just put him in his bed. Good Luck!
He is seeking security. why not make it more comfortable for him? He WILL outgrow this in time. Can the mattress fit on the floor in the closet? Let him be independent in his own way. .....how about asking HIM why he does this? xo
Could be a sensory issues...
maybe the bed is too soft.. some sensory kids need a Harder firm one...
the floor helps.. My son did that for about 2 months wanted to sleep on his little bed on the floor... Finally he got in bed and slept....
IF he likes the closet it could be if you just got a bed tent... WE have a toddler racecar bed. so they dont make them for toddler beds. just regular twin size.. But many kids need that TENT feeling.. calms them down....
having a younger child at times can kick a 2 year old in Sensory mode.. it is a change for them...
Hope he will sleep well soon...
PS.. we have a baby gate up so Josh cant leave his room.. His is down stairs our is up.. so I dont want him to get hurt...
My daughter did the same thing too. I couldn't figure out a way to stop her and I didn't think it was that big of a deal. It's the novelty of "hey, look, I can go anywhere and sleep anywhere." I found my daughter a couple times under her bed. I just picked her up and put her back in bed. Eventually, the novelty wore off and the bed was slept in again.
I'd just recommend that the room is totally baby-proofed. Anchor the furniture to the walls (especially dressers) and remove or baby-proof anything that may harm him.
My son is 9 and he stil likes to sleep in his closet occasionally when we clean out the bottom area. I think they think of it as like camping. He also likes to sleep on his floor as opposed to his bed most of the time. He is my second child, and I have learned that if they are sleeping, no matter where, it is fine with me.
How bout putting a gate at the door if he tries to get out of his room. I would take the door off the closet just to be on the safe side with finger pinching and stuff. My girlfriends son did the same thing so it just must be the age and stage!
He's probably just exploring his new surroundings and new night time/naptime "freedom." My son has been in a toddler bed for about 9 months (he's now 26 months old too) and I still sometimes find that he's fallen asleep on the floor, or on the rocking chair, etc. As long as he's getting sleep, I wouldn't worry about it. It's probably just a phase and he'll likeky soon realize his bed is more comfortable and will go back to sleeping in it. As long as his room & closet are safe, he should be fine. I just move my son back to his bed when I check on him on my way to bed. He always falls right back asleep. Good luck!
My son did the exact same thing. He eventually grew out of it. I just made sure that his closet was safe. We did end up taking the door off because I was afraid he would get his fingers rolled over. He just seemed to like the security. Good luck.
He probably misses the safety of being enclosed in the crib. Putting something on the door knob is not the answer. How could he get out if something went wrong? Put him to bed and tell him it's sleeptime, once. If you have to carry him back to bed 20 or 100 times, don't talk to him, just put him back. He'll learn in 1-2 nights. Just don't give in. Don't explain, just do it.
Hi K.,
I have a four year old son who is now sleeping in his full size bed but for months he slept either in a sleeping bag in his tent or his closet. I did not worry much as I figured eventually he would realize his bed was more comfortable. I though as long as he's sleeping and in his own room I did not really care where he was sleeping. HIs closet is warm also because there is a heater vent in it so we jsut made sure to keep the door open when we went to sleep. They are so funny!
I would suggest you get your son a tent for his room. they make them out of a canvas sort of material. they are open screened at the top so lots of air flow. they just pop up. their sold at any toy store current ones have things on them like lightning maqueen from disney. my daughter got the kind that fit the top of a matress for the boys beds. t hose are cool to. the boys love them.
One more thought here....closing the door might be freaking him out a bit so that might be why he is seeking out the secuity of the closet. Both our girls (and me when I was a child) feel isolated and alone with a closed door. We used a gate on the door to keep them in...they could still see and hear us but couldn't wander out.
My sister and I went through periods when we slept in the closet. It was like a fort, and felt warm and secure, and adventurous at the same time!
My kids do this all the time. It's just something different & fun for them. At first they would just take their blankie in with them but now they take a pillow too & a blanket to sleep on top of. It's simply a phase. Let him explore & use his imagination. Remember to take a picture for your photo album.
