Hellobee

In a post earlier in the year, I mentioned that my 3 year old was still in a crib. I was hesitant to make the switch over to a toddler bed because I had a feeling naps would end indefinitely, wake up times would be earlier, and putting her to bed for the night would be a struggle. Well, a few weeks after I wrote that post (which was also a few weeks after her 3rd birthday), I decided to make the switch. Even though I was a bit weary about the transition (and how it would impact me), I knew that it was all a part of helping Lil’ Pizza grow up.

Lil’ Pizza loved to pretend her crib was a trampoline.

Before making the transition, I bought the OK to Wake! Children’s Alarm Clock to use with her while she was still in the crib. I wanted her to get used to the idea that the clock would let her know when it was time to start the morning. If you’re not familiar with this product, it’s a clock that you can program to light up at a designated time to signal to your child that it is okay to get out of bed. It also has a nap timer that lights up after the designated period of time you want your child to nap. When I explained the clock to Lil’ Pizza, I made sure to say that the green light was a way for her to know when she could call out for me. I didn’t want to get the idea in her head that she could actually come out of her room if she wanted. For the first few days, she didn’t want to have anything to do with the clock and asked me to leave it out of her room. Then one day, we left it in her room and she forgot that it was there and got used to it. When she first saw it light up in the morning, she screamed, “Umma! (means mom in Korean) The light turned green! It’s green! It’s time to start the morning!”

She loved to show me how easy it was for her to climb in and out of the crib.

Before the big switch over the weekend, I talked to her about the upcoming change to a big girl’s bed. She showed excitement about this new change and on Saturday morning, she helped Mr. Pizza disassemble the crib and reassemble it in Baby Pizza’s room. She seemed happy about the new bed but once it was nap time, she was a hot mess. She begged to sleep in the crib, crying and refusing to go into her own room. She finally went to Baby Pizza’s room herself, climbed into the crib and fell asleep. That night, it was surprisingly easy. I read her a couple of books, told her a few stories and then we talked about her growing up and needing a big girl bed now. She asked if she could sleep in the crib some time, so we agreed and said that we could do that one of these days. After I left her room, she quickly fell asleep and woke up the next morning, even waiting for the green light on the clock to call for me. I was pretty amazed and thought that maybe this would not be a difficult transition after all.

Here she is, celebrating her easy escape.

It was definitely too good to be true and that was probably the best night we’ve had since.

I think what you have to understand first is what Lil’ Pizza’s sleep was like when she was in the crib and how good we had it.  She was in the crib by 7:30pm after I read her a book and told her a story. She would often ask for more, but I was able to be consistent most of the time and simply close the door and be done for the night. Sometimes, she would cry for about ten seconds and then abruptly stop and start to entertain herself by reciting books or singing songs. She often chatted away for over an hour by herself before I could hear silence from her room. In the morning, even if I heard her talking to herself at around 6:30am, she rarely called out for me until about 7:15am. For naps, I would put her in her crib around 1:30pm and she would do the same thing and entertain herself for about an hour, and then fall asleep and wake up around 4-4:30pm. She was starting to have some days when she couldn’t nap, but she would let me know after about an hour of entertaining herself in the crib. Sounds pretty amazing right?

Well, it’s a much different story today. She still goes to bed around 7:30pm but falls asleep much faster. Unfortunately, she comes into our room about one or two times in the middle of the night. Lil’ Pizza has become my permanent alarm clock, waking up and coming to our room around 5:30am, before Baby Pizza starts to stir in her crib. Naps are gone, but she does have quiet, alone time in her room with her books, which can last anywhere from 10 to 45 min. The two things that I have struggled the most with is getting her to stay in bed once I say good night, and her frequent wakings in the middle of the night.

After a week of struggling with our bedtime routine and her coming out as soon as I left her room, I decided to write out a bedtime routine for her. She liked it at first, but then she started stalling for more stories. It’s set at one book and five made up stories in bed now. I know, it’s quite a production. Thankfully each story I tell her is about a minute long.  This is the norm, but there are many days when she comes out of her room requesting one more story (but it can be as many as her coming out three more times).

It’s been nearly three months of this and for the first month or so, I was trying really hard to be strict and consistent but she cried and would refuse to go back to her room without a story. I even said things like, “I’m going to take out all the books in your room if you come out one more time!” (not a proud mommy moment) to which she responded by sobbing and saying, “why would you do that?”

More recently, I’ve just accepted that she will have those nights when she comes out to request more stories. However, I’ve decided to try harder to simply be kind and patient, let her know that she needs to stay in bed and then tell her a story and tuck her to bed once again. Whether I act like a crazy mom or a gracious mom, I’ve noticed that the outcome is the same.

For her night wakings, I just have to usually take her back to bed and tell her a quick story before I leave her. But between Lil’ Pizza waking up a few times a night and Baby Pizza still waking up in the middle of the night, I feel like a walking zombie once it’s time to start the day.

So, you may wonder, do I regret switching her out of the crib? Honestly, when I’m especially tired, I long for those days when she was in her crib again. However, I know I couldn’t keep her in that crib for much longer. I’m starting to accept that helping my daughter grow up requires me to let go of what was comfortable. I am trying to teach her boundaries but also try to show her grace when she needs it. I’ve even started to embrace the night time stalling, as I leave her room with extra hugs and kisses and a final, “I luva ya!”

But still, I can’t help but wonder, is this just a phase? What are some things that have helped your children stay in their bed once they have the freedom to come out?