So here's what I tried this week...
12 years ago
Saturday, December 1, 2007
Oh Dear God,
The inevitable thing that I've been in denial of actually happening, has actually happened. Our 2 1/2 year old son has figured out that he can climb out of his crib on his own. It happened during nap time today. We had done our normal routine and he had been in there talking to himself for awhile, close to an hour, when my hubby heard a suspicious jingling sound coming from his room. He opened the door and, sure enough, there is Ethan rolling balls down a ramp on the floor. Oh crap. I am not ready yet! Sure, lots of people (many of my dear mommy friends) have already moved their little ones to big boy and girl beds. I was just hoping I could stretch him out a little longer, (at least until Salla stopped giving me sleep trouble), because I don't think I can handle two kids waking me up at night. So, needless to say, there was no nap to be had today, and I am truly fearful that there will be no more naps from here on. My husband thinks I'm being slightly irrational and overreactive, but with the combination of his new "rebellious" attitude and the recognition that he now has the option to get out of bed, I just can't see it turning out any other way. Thinking about the big picture, I suppose I could handle giving up naps if we got him to bed earlier at night. But I think I might actually have a break down if I start seeing his face next to my bed at 4am every night. This whole sleep deprivation thing is for the birds...
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5 comments:
I promise it will be OK! Here are the couple things I did that helped me get Gunner to nap, may not all be for you, but here goes:
1) we took all toys out of his room, we added some back later so he felt like he was getting away with something now and again.
2) we put a tall gate on his door to avoid him being drawn to the exciting world outside his room
3) he had to stay in his room for the 2 hours he usually napped..even if I heard him running around for most of it
4) at night, if he woke up, we would just put him back in bed & give him a kiss without even talking to him...no matter how much crying went on.
Anyway, he never gets up at night now, but he will still occasionally play for part of his nap and then fall asleep on the floor. However, I still get my 2 hours of bliss in the afternoon, so that's ok with me!
Okay. I am going to tell you...you are being completely irrational! And I feel like I can say that because I went through the SAME feelings with Joey. As much as I hate to admit this, I had a love affair with Joey's crib. Because when I put my son in there, I knew where he was, I knew he was safe, and I knew that I could have some "me" time. I was so enamored by Joey's crib that I didn't put him in a big boy bed until he was 3, and I just couldn't rationalize keeping him in the crib any more! But I had the same visions of him running around (forget nap times), of me waking up in the middle of the night to find him standing next to our bed, staring. But just give it a try. You're just exhausting yourself with dire predictions and worry. I promise you all the bad scenarios that have hatched in your mind won't come true. Some will, maybe. But not all at the same time. But you are a clever girl and a great mom. You'll handle this. I was lucky. Joey does not get out of his bed unless we give our okay. He does use the "Mo-om-ma, Dad-dy, I have to poo-poo" shout a bit too often. I swear he can produce on demand. I don't care if it has only been 5 minutes since he last pooped, he ALWAYS poops when he says he "needs" to. It's downright amazing. And he "always" needs to about 5-10 minutes after putting him down for the night. Looking back over my agitation and doubts about moving Joey from crib to bed, I think what bothered me was throwing a wrench into a system that was working, or at least that I was familiar with. Just give it some time, and you'll figure out a new system, one that (surprise! at least it was for me!) may have some advantages over the crib routine.
On a completely different note, Dave and I both received, in separate instances, our first unsolicited "I love you"'s from Joey. It melted our hearts.
little-big
Thanks for your support ladies!
Carrie, your advice was VERY helpful. Those are great ideas and a good game plan to follow. It helps to hear your exeperiences with your boys!
Becky, thanks for being a great big sister and a great mom to look up to. I understand the "love affair with Joey's crib". I live for routine, control, and knowing what to expect. I love days that go exactly as planned and changes that screw with my system screw with my head! I should know from experience that my anxiety of a major change is always worse than the actual outcome. I guess I should admit that I like to be prepared for the worst so that I am relieved when it doesn't go so bad:) Not a good way to keep a positive, glass half full, kind of outlook on life! I should work on that...
Love you guys, Leah
well i am with becky and carrie. I let troy play and when he is tired he gets into bed an sleeps. if not he sleeps great at night with some quiet time. and the excitemtn of a new bed, he might not want to get out of a sleep longer because he has room and covers. heehe goog luck. it will be great. kel
buy a bed yet? i need more to read. hello leah, come on.
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