Help with Transitioing to Big Boy Bed

My son is three and he can go to his bed with toys play or nap. He is usually asleep within a half hour. But last summer he rarely napped. Now he naps all the time. I think kids go through napping phases. He never climbed out of his crib and he never gets out of his toddler bed. He calls me to come to him in the morning. I don't really know what I did that caused him to not get out of bed. I think it was consistency and telling him no when he tried to climb out of his crib when he was a baby. so if your son doesn't climb out of his crib you may be in luck with the toddler bed. My son was two and half when we switched to a twin bed. good luck.

HI T.,

I just moved my son to a toddler bed but he is much younger than your son, 20 months! I decided it was time because he kept trying to hike his leg up over the side and I thought it was only a matter of time before he got out and hurt himself.

I do not have a baby gate at his door nor do I lock it at night. If he wakes up in the night, he comes into our room (if I don't make it to him first). I still have the monitor so I can hear him when he opens his bedroom door. I do have to say that he is sleeping better through the night since we transitioned to the toddler bed (knock on wood).

We were actually on vacation for two weeks and when we came home we made the switch then. He was really excited about it. It's been about two weeks now and the excitement has worn down some, which I am happy about since it was keeping him awake longer.

I'm not sure how you put your son to sleep now, but we read stories and then I turn off the light and pat his back or just sit with him until he falls asleep. Naps seem to take much longer to get him down but I most days I run errands in the morning and he passes out in the car on the way home. When he wakes up from his nap he just walks out of his room and greets me in the livingroom.

If you are insisting that your son at least have quiet time then I think you should get a baby gate. Or I saw one mom suggested putting a baby door knob lock on the inside so he can't open the door himself, but it's not locked.

Good luck!

I agree with the others that you most likely will not have issues. Have a conversation with your son about being a big boy, staying in bed, and sleeping. It does help to still use a monitor, and for the first few days, check on him every few minutes to see how he's doing, but you will most likely be pleasantly surprised that he actually listens and stays in bed.

Good luck,
T.
www.ReadandGrow.com

When I asked my pediatrician this question, I was surprised to hear her say that my son would most likely stay in his room ... but she was right! Starting at 2.5, my son frequently stopped sleeping during his nap time (this is while he was still in a crib). When I switched him to a big bed (at around 34 months) I was surprised that all of a sudden he started sleeping during his nap time every day. I think he was a bit intimidated by his big bed and was laying down the whole time instead of sitting up and playing like he did in his crib. That only lasted for a week, but he has no problem staying in his room and playing quietly for a while, then sleeping if he needs it. I've explained to him that he is welcome to play quietly before going to sleep, and I help him select 1-2 toys for his bed each time. He's happy to do that, and I'm always amazed that, on the days he does sleep, he doesn't just play to exhaustion ... he plays with his toys for a while then crawls under his covers and goes to sleep when he's ready. A few times he's gotten a bit loud, and on those occasions I've just gone up to his room and reminded him that he can play but he has to be quiet so his brother and I can rest. I've been pretty lucky and he's only left his room during naptime once; when that happened, I just led him back to his room and told him nap time wasn't over yet. I always go up to get him when he wakes up (or when quiet time has lasted for 1.5 hours), just as I did when he was in his crib.

Good luck!

We did our daughter at 3 1/2 and had no problems-she is 4 1/2 and still stays in there will not come out :) until I come get her-we also still use the monitor and I also have a small security camera w/night vision in there for my peace of mind so I can see her. Naptime-she still naps :) and she knows if she does not she still needs to rest for the time-so she stays in her bed and plays w/her animals or sings or looks at books, but it is rare she does not nap.She knows I can hear her so if she needs me she yells and I can come in and tend to her needs-Whatever the case be patient and do not use threats or punishment for not staying in there-u may just be surprised they may stay in the bed-I am about to transition my son who is 3 in july or august and also have a camera identical to sisters and can be used simultaneously on the same screen-it was rather inexpensive for peace of mind-I hate to hear and not see-LOL! We bought ours at Walmart and bought the additional camera on ebay-GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!! :) L.