Transition to big boy bed at 16mo

[gemma2313]

Hi,

I haven't encountered a problem *yet* I'm just looking for some advice.

My 16mo angel boy is getting too big for his cot and I am 7 months preg with bub2. Generally we haven't had a lot of issues with him (fingers crossed it stays that way), he sleeps independantly and has been sleeping 10 - 12 hrs most nights for some months now. About a month ago we moved him to a new room (still in his cot) and put a big boy bed in there (bunk) which we occasionally sit on together to read books at bed time or play with soft toys during the day. He really likes the bed and has started (in the last week) laying down on the pillow at nap time indicating that he wants to sleep there.

For the last 2 days he's napped in the BBB with relative success. He was really really tired due to full on mornings so was virtually asleep as soon as he laid down. First day was a great 2.5hr nap, today was 1.5.

I intend to continue napping him in the BBB for a few more days and then tackle nights.

My question is do I leave the bedroom door open or not? We have an open plan house so with his door open he will hear a lot more noise AND his door has a lock (unfortunately!).. I have a safety catch thing on it at the moment so he can't open it even though he can nearly reach it (I didnt want him to lock himself in). I had intended to shut the door and I realise this will teach him to yell for us - I just think that if I leave it open he'll either be so distracted he doesnt go to sleep easily OR will wake at night and come out to play with his toys. While he's been in his cot I've shut the door.

So any suggestions? advice? I think I'm going to leave the door shut as that has been his "normal" and maybe when he is a little older and used to the BBB, I'll remove the safety so he can start getting out of his room by himself when he wakes.

[mmom]

I don't have any suggestions.  I just wanted to say you are a brave woman!! My LO is 19 months and I am also expecting #2 and I am keeping him in his crib as long as possible.

[scucci1979]

Following along as I am due in August and will be trying to transition my lo to her BGB in July.

[KathyM]

We moved my dd when she was around the same age as your lo. In her case, it was because she kept climbing out and I was worried she'd hurt herself. We left the door closed because that was what we had done in the past. There were a few nights where she played around a bit, but after that it was no problem. We also have a rail guard on her twin bed too so she doesn't fall out. HTH

[gemma2313]

well Day 3 hasnt been very successful at all. We stayed home today so lo wasnt as exhausted as last 2 days (he had swimming lessons yest and day before).. I've just spent an hour trying to get him to stay in his bed... i think he is just so excited he can't sleep!  - and its 39 deg today! argh!Unfortunately as he is such a good independant sleeper I don't really have any methods to "put" him to sleep... he doesnt have a bottle (he's eaten anyway), we've never co-slept (he just ends up kicking me or rolling on my head!) and I havent cuddled him to sleep for such a looonnngg time.. he's just too big for me... if he nw I only ever sort the problem (nappy / water / teething etc) and then put a hand on his back for a few minutes til he settles then leave)... I haven't actually been in the room when he goes to sleep for probably 6 months.

I only have a sound monitor so left the door not completely closed so I could listen and respond quickly. After about an hour with 12 attempts of putting him back in his bed, he was quiet so I thought I'd check... and there he is sitting in the corner with a book.. blankets / sheets / pillows / teddies / books / empty nappies spread accross the floor. argh! AND he'd done a poo.. there was no way he was sleeping. I tried twice more with the bed and now he's so overtired that its just not going to happen... he's gone bonkers! so I just put him in his cot and within 5 mins he's asleep....grrrr...

now what? should I transfer him to his bed and risk total disruption of the nap? I don't want to back track but I don't want him to miss the nap completely!!!

I would wait til he's a bit older but my dh works long hours and probably wont be able to help me much when I have no2 AND ds1 transitioning to BBB so I thought I'd start now while I still have a few months to go. Also ds1 is tall, and cot is not so big so he can stretch and touch all edges.. its not quite waking him at night yet but I don't think it will be long... He can't climb out as it is a safecot (completely sealed with netting and has doors).

[MasynSpencerElliotte]

Hi,

I switched my youngest to a BGB at 16 months too...for different reasons though, and her new "bed" is just the crib with the drop side off.  The only things I did differently were to change the crib's position in the room (to hide her fan behind it) and secure her dresser to the wall (climber!!). Still keep it pitch black in there and shut the door. So far it's been 3 months and she still hasn't figured out the she can actually get out of bed!

I can sympathize with not knowing what to do for putting him to sleep...up until now I have only had to "help" Spencer to sleep about 6 or 7 times since she was 7 months old. Last week I ended up in her bed with her because I didn't know what else to do! 

Is it at all possible to get him a bigger cot or use something else for the baby for the first while? I ask this because it is bound to get worse before it gets better when you add a new sibling to the mix. When we had Spencer I left Masyn in her crib and bought a 2nd one for the baby. It was so worth it in the end, even though we had Masyn in a BGB 5 months later. NW's and naps were much easier to deal with when she was contained.

HTH
Heidi