17 Month Old Nap and Bedtime Trouble

Hi T.. How about changing the bedtime routine just a bit... walking together as a family is a great thing, no matter what. Its great exercise and together time so I'd keep it up, then follow your normal routine up to the point of reading. Maybe you could read her one book while she sat in your lap, then move her to her crib and read the rest from there. Say prayers or sing a song that's just for bedtime. We sing "Think of Me" from Veggie Tails each night as my kids lay down to sleep... we still sing it after prayers and my kids are 11 and 9, they ask for it if it isn't done. Things like this not only show them togetherness but also help to relax them. Create a calming routine but one that can happen while she's in her bed, then kiss her good night and leave the room. Let her self-soothe for the 10 minutes if she needs it. I know climbing out of the bed is a concern. How about putting her in light weight footie pj's, that always helped keep my little climber in the crib. (she couldn't grab the rails with her toes!) Or maybe putting cloth mesh up over the rails all the way around so she has no opportunity to access the rails. The climbing out is gong to be your biggest challenge in my opinion. As much as you don't want to move her to a toddler bed, if the climbing persists and nothing seems to keep her in the bed, it may be an option you can't ignore. I wish I could offer more advice. Reading to my kids, while they were in bed, then following that with prayers and "our song" worked great for both of my kids. Hopefully you find something to work with your little one too. Good luck.

T.,
I am not very good with the bedtime routine, so I won't offer any on that, but have you tried one of those zip over crib covers to keep kids from getting out? I almost got one for my daughter when she started doing that, but I put her in a toddler bed. Anyway, the covers are mesh and fit like a dome over the crib. You might want to try that, then you don't have to worry about your little one falling out. Good luck!
M.

I always kept a few soft quiet toys in my sons cribs. They would play for awhile if they weren't super tired but they eventually tired themselves out. Fabric books were my youngest favorite. When they were really young and not as mobile as your daughter I had a lava lamp near their cribs and the soft moving light helped them relax, get bored and eventually fall asleep.

If she is not attached to a sleep thing by now she probably won't be. My oldest wasn't but my youngest is 8 and still has a nightie.

T.,
My daughter is now 2 1/2. When she was 12-13 months, we did the "cry it out" routine. We would read her 1-2 books, then rock her for about 5 min, then put her down. Check on her in 5 min, then tell her you love her, then check on her in 10, 15, 20 etc. It's a very hard thing to do. My daughters tears made me cry so much, but it's only becuase they can't understand. You just have to keep telling them how much you love them and that your still there for them. After about 1 1/2 weeks she was able to self soothe herself to sleep almost every time. I agree with putting something up so that she can't climb out of the crib. Putting her in a toddler bed before she can self soothe herself to sleep my be more than you bargain for. She may be perfectly fine with it, or she may be like my daughter. We tried a month ago (29 months) and she just kept getting out of bed and comming into our room. When she's in her crib, she knows that's where she's supposed to stay, but the toddler bed was too easy for her to get in and out of. We keep our bedtime routine to about 1/2 hour to 45 min, and make sure to include at least one book. Reading to your little ones is very important, not only is it extreemly soothing to them, but it helps to build their vocabulary and early learning skills. Hope my experiences as well as the others helps you in some way!

S.
Lancaster, OH

I know one thing that may help you at this stage, my son is now almost 18 months and we moved his bedtime up when he was about 16 months. It went from 7:30 to 8:30 and it was like a switch was flipped. No more fighting sleep at all!! Oh and we kind of adjusted his napping. He naps from about 12 or 12:30 until usually no later than 3. That way he gets a good 5 hours awake in between sleep sessions. It has totally worked for us. He is in the tub at 8, Reading at like 8:15, then bed at 8:30. We are also in the very small majority of parents that have not taken away the bottle yet. (Personally, we feel that 12 months is just tooooo early, but thats just us. I'm sure other moms will have opinions about that.) So, our son still gets a bottle at 8:30 - while we are in the room with him. He drinks away, then when he is finished he hands it over, says all gone and rolls over and goes to sleep. If your little girl is off the bottle, try sitting in the room with her for 5 or so minutes, holding her hand through the crib, singing to her...etc. Then at the end, tell her good night, and mommy will be downstairs or wherever, and leave. She may be having a little bout of seperation anxiety, so she probably needs a little extra reinforcement that you are there. I think it's easy for us to forget that seperation anxiety can come and go for quite some time, but is very very normal! She may take a while to get used to a new routine, but have faith, it will eventually take hold. I think she is probably emotionally ready to fuss herself to sleep by this time. I also feel that 10 mins. is too long, if the child is actually crying. If they are fussing, 10 mins or longer seems ok, but for actual full force crying - we ususally do 5 min. intervals. As for the getting out of the crib, they make crib-tent things. I have never personally used one, so cannot attest to their ability to keep a little one in the bed - I only know they exist. Maybe she is letting you know she is emotionally ready for the transition to a toddler bed. If she is in a convertible crib, try doing the conversion and adding a toddler rail, that way she would still be fairly well protected. Good luck, and I hope some of this may be helpful for you!

You absolutely CANNOT keep letting her fall out of the crib. She can get seriously hurt. That means a toddler bed, you can get one with side rails. She will figure out that sleeping in a bed is more comfortable than anywhere else. Put up a baby gate at her doorway so she can't get out of her room and wander around the house in the middle of the night.