Monday, September 3, 2007

Mission Completion


We did it! We did it! We did it! Hooray! I finally took the plunge...I moved The Fred from her cage (crib) to a big girl daybed today. She was so excited about the transition that she "helped" me convert her crib to a daybed. Needless to say, her "help" turned a 20-minute project into a 1-hour fiasco, but at least she was excited about the idea.

I have been avoiding this transition for quite some time now because of my own concerns for her safety...as well as my desire to keep her a baby as long as possible. I have had this overwhelming fear that if I put her in a big girl bed, she would climb out in the middle of the night, unlock the front door, and go traipsing around the neighborhood in her pajamas. I know that this is probably a ridiculous thought, but I wouldn't put it past her.

Most of my concern has revolved around the fact that neither of the kid's bedrooms have doors on them. Instead, they have shutter-style double doors that pull closed. I wanted to have a real door on her room if she was going to be in a big girl bed...knowing that I could hear her door open over the baby monitor (or that I could lock her in her room if we had escape issues). So, the Husby began the project of putting a real door on her room yesterday. Until then, she has a blanket hanging over the space as a pseudo-door.

When I put her down for a nap this afternoon, I knew that I would probably have a problem with The Fred staying in her bed if there were not rails to contain her. She pitched her usual fit about having to take a nap, and I laid her in her bed with a cup of milk. I waited to see her run through the blanket hanging in the doorway...but there was nothing...not a peep.

Two hours later, I returned to her room to find her laying in her bed in the same spot where I left her. She was awake and had not even thought about getting out of bed. I am beginning to think that a lot of these transition issues have everything to do with me and nothing to do with my children...can't we keep them small forever?

2 comments:

Candice said...

I hope that you have many more nights and naps in this new toddler bed. Abby has been in her toddler bed for a while and at first the freedom was overwhelming. I moved her when she was right at 2 years old, because I was pregnant for Ryan and couldn't bend over the railing to put her in her crib. So I wimped out. (I don't know how you put her in her bed when you were pregnant.) Anyway, we still have struggles for naptime, but I think it is more of a power struggle than that she is a a big girl bed. We have never had a problem getting her to stay in her bed at night. I think that she is just too scared to get out of her bed and roam around. Good Luck!!!

I'm a Mom!..? said...

This may be our weekend project. It seems the Munchkin as figured out the concept of climbing out, only she does not have the strength to heave herself over the side. Plus she got her leg stuck again yesterday for the 3rd time in about 4 weeks.... I think it's time.