DS moving into 'big boys bed' tonight

[sheeplikessleep]

So we're going for the cot to bed transition tonight with DS1, who is 2.3 years old.

Any advice / tips very gratefully received, as I am quite dubious of the likelihood of him staying in the bed .

We've been talking to him about his big boys bed, bought new duvet cover etc. Also, he hasn't had a nap this afternoon (not intentionally on our part, but just overexcited as we had visitors), so I'm hoping he'll be cream crackered this evening.

We're leaving the cot in his room too for a few days just in case. Is it a really bad idea to put him in it, if he is literally refuses to stay in his bed for hours of trying? (Pessimist I am!)

Thanks

Is he climbing out of his cot? If not I wouldn't bother!
We were ok for first week until dd realised she could get out and for the past yr and a half we have been puuting her back to bed
some evenngs it is twenty plus times
some nights it is once

Personally I wouldn't revert back to the cot. OK so you will maybe have a bit of an unsettled night with him getting up out of his new bed but you might not - ds2 and 3 never got out of bed, they were so delighted to have a big boys bed they went right to sleep

Do all the bedtime routine just as you always do and make the bed as cosy and welcoming as possible and just be prepared for having to go back to put him into bed a few times in case he does get up with the novelty of it all.
Good luck!

Compo - DS2 is due in 7 weeks, so I'd like need DS1 in his bed really. Otherwise, I'd be leaving it for as long as possible, believe me

Displayuntilbestbefore - I'm planning to do his bedtime routine exactly the same. He always settles better when he has loads of attention and cuddles from both DH and myself, so we are going to make sure he has our undivided attention for next few nights (although I'm working away 2 nights this week - poor DH!)

PS thanks for posting so quickly

I think if you have another baby on the way (congratulations!) then you're wise to get ds1 settled in good time before the disruption of a new baby plus it will make him feel very much the big brother being in his own bed. Mine were all in full sized beds before they were 18mths as they either climbed out of their cots or were too chunky and got cross being restricted by the size of a cot (they all like to spread out when they sleep).

Talk about the bed before bedtime starts so you're sowing the seed and then by the time it's time to get into it, it won't be such a new thing as you will already have been discussing it.

Display - we've been talking to him about it all day, I think he's getting a bit bored of it all to be honest

sound like you've got it all in place nicely so fingers crossed he stays in bed tonight.

i'm playing the 'i can't keep picking him up, being 7 months pregnant' card with dh

My LO went in the bed around the same age. The thing we have done with both our children is as soon as they get up I put them straight back to bed. NEVER do I let them come down and play or really engage too much. I just say bedtime now. They soon learn there isn't much point getting up!

Well after an initial (and normal!) protest at not having more books read to him, we left him, 3 minutes of crying, then 10 minutes of chattering and now 20 minutes of silence.

I presume he's asleep but too nervous to go in and check. I will do in 20 minutes, when I know he'll be in a deeper sleep and less chance of disturbing him. Either that or he's playing in silence.

I'm not expecting it to be this 'easy' every night

how did it go?

hi compo - really well, i'm still in shock!

he fell asleep within about 20 minutes and apart from one instance in the night (he cried out, dh went in and he was at the other end of the bed, on top of the duvet and very cold!), he slept until 7.15 this morning, when he called out for us

he's asleep now too - after trying to get out once when i put him in, he cried. i said goodnight, gave him a kiss, put him back in and left the room. i heard his little 'thud thud thud' footsteps across the room, so went back in, he was sat on his bed and started crying. i laid him down and he after a few minutes of protest, he's had his nap

i'm very very pleasantly surprised! (mind you, i'm sure we'll have some hiccups along the way in the next few weeks, but it's started very well)

Pleased to hear you had such a good night - and impressed your ds had his daytime nap in his new bed too. I had to give up any idea of naps when my boys went into their proper beds as they just wouldn't settle!
Well done!

He's just gone down for the night tonight. I really do think this is the calm before the storm .

Thanks for posting.

How did it go? Just interested as going to do ds2 this weekend. Ds1 was no bother when he was 2 but think this one might be worse!

If everything went well so far, I wouldn?t worry at all. My DS is sleeping in a big boy?s bed since he was 15 months and in a separate room since he was 20 months, and he?s been absolutely fine!