2 1/2 year old who refuses to sleep without a fight

[Alanab]

My husband and I refused to be strict about schedules when our son was born.  We loved that he could stay up late and we didn't have to rush home like everyone else because it was bed time.  That was obviously a huge mistake and we are paying for it now.  Our son is still in a crib because if he wasn't, he would never sleep.  We have started trying to make him go to bed at 9pm every night (starting a bedtime routine at8:30pm).  Every night he screams when we put him to bed.  This has been going on for about 2 weeks.  He has gotten better and better and we are down to about 5 minutes of screaming before he lays down.  My concern is that every night he screams and begs for us to come and get him out of bed when we first put him in.  What can I do to make him stop this?   I want to be able to transition him into a toddler bed sooner rather than later, but I know if he was not in a crib he would be running out the door.   Any help is appreciated. 
Also, we have a newborn at home right now (who we are definently putting on a schedule) so I'm not sure if that could be affecting this/making it harder.
Thank You

[<Catherine>]

Hi there and welcome to the site.

Is he still napping? What are his nights like, and wake up time?

It could be a bit of separation anxiety, especially with the newborn in the mix, have a read here http://babywhispererforums.com/index.php?topic=80822.msg697500#msg697500

With regards to the toddler bed, I was determined to keep my DS in his cot for as long as possible and I completely dreaded the transition. We made the switch about a month ago (he climbed out of his cot) and it has gone really, really well. We've only had trouble for one nap, and bedtimes are a lot better than before the switch. We were getting all sorts of antics at bedtime (I need a drink, a poo, etc), hence why I thought the toddler bed would be even worse as he could actually get out, but all that has improved and he's actually sleeping for longer (falling asleep a bit earlier, and waking a bit later).

I have also heard many horror stories when it comes to the BBB transition, so I'm not necessarily recommending it, but just offering a bit of hope that it may not be half as bad as you think! Do you need him to be in a toddler bed yet?