Brayden has always been a pretty great sleeper, I won’t lie. Sleep training had it’s rough moments, and I still currently rock with him in the chair for about 5 minutes before I put him down awake. For him, I have noticed that the transition from playing to bedtime can be difficult, and he needs those 5 minutes to settle down.
Which leads me to being absolutely terrified of making the transition from crib to big boy bed. Terrified.
His new big boy bedroom is right next door to the nursery. It currently houses a twin bed with cute, boy bedding, his dresser, bookshelf, and toy box. The only thing left that needs to go in there is everything from his closet that is his to make room for the new baby. Oh, and the closet door and window trim so that there can be curtains. Which also means, there will not be a second crib nor will we transition the crib to a toddler bed, because frankly, when he has a twin bed, what is the point? I have foam rails that go under the fitted sheet so that he won’t fall out. And the other side is against the wall.
So WHY am I so scared?
I don’t know. I am afraid to mess up a good thing. I am not even sure how to go about doing this. Since he isn’t talking as much as I want him to, I am slightly afraid he won’t get it. (Even though deep down, I know he will.) I am scared of those first few nights where he might cry and get upset just because I want him to sleep in another bed.
As much as I am itching to get baby’s room started, I know that I can’t rush Brayden out of there just to get it ready for a baby who will probably sleep for the first couple of weeks in the bassinet. He has to be ready. I have to be ready. Curtains have to be up because my boy is very picky about the level of darkness in his room.
So I need some advice. What worked for you when you did this transition? Any tips? I could sure use them!
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You read my mind. This is the same conversation that I have been having in my head for weeks. We need to move him but we have nothing…we need black out shades, window treatments, a new bed, bedding etc… We are going to make the transition in June so that we can get him sleeping well again before #2 comes! We might be suffering together through this one!
I confess, I'm afraid of the transition and Dylan will still be in his crib – just the front rail removed & a toddler rail in it's place. He will sometimes play a bit in his crib before falling asleep and I envision him climbing out & playing with all his toys. That said, the day isn't too far off and, unlike me, you do have an easier start in a way as it doesn't have to be too abrupt. Taking a cue from friends – try having him take naps in the big boy bed for now. Just naps. Once that becomes familiar and is working, try overnight. Expect you might find him sleeping on the floor from time to time (that's happened to friends of mine) but he'll be ok and will eventually sleep just fine. Now that I think of it, that's exactly how I transitioned Dylan & me when I moved him from bassinet in my room to the crib in his room. It was a nice way to slowly make that change. Good luck!!