big bed


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I don't know crib transitioning etiquette. How, when or why. Not a thing about it.

With my particular two-year-old, there's no time for petty research.

But I do know that Carter was starting to look cramped in that crib. (I'm editing out the part where he invariably insists on sleeping with five stuffed Winnie the Pooh characters, a teddy bear and an elephant pillow.) I talked to him about getting his own big bed before we swiped his crib from under him, but I don't think he grasped that this meant actually changing his sleeping life. I'm betting he thought a big bed would be added somewhere in the house for his own daily, jumping amusement.

Because that's what the other beds are for.

I notice most parents in the facebook/internet world gradually remove crib rails, then buy a small toddler bed with plans to eventually buy a larger bed when the child grows.

Yeah. We skipped all those steps.

One day a couple weeks ago, we pulled apart his crib and turned it into a headboard and footboard for his new, full-sized, big boy bed. I like to think of this cold turkey strategy as having a couple bits of genius to them. Most obviously, this will be his first and last bed transition until he leaves home. Since the crib is in pieces, there's no confusion about going back. I love that he'll be sleeping with that crib, in some form, for his whole life here. I'll always be able to see my baby in that wood while he's all growing up-ish.

While we were on the floor setting up the new bed, Carter was jumping around, squealing with widened eyes when he was finally, truly convinced this new bed would belong to him. But when it came time to go to sleep in it? No thix, Mommy. I was a little annoyed that nobody'd tweeted, facebooked or just screamed out their window that bed transitioning takes the same type of persuasion as say, potty training.

Ok so really, it's not as hard as potty training, but I wouldn't be surprised if there were a book or two out there called Toddler Bed Training. Or somebody's at least written a small, dog-eared chapter in a dusty library about it.

Night one was a small fight, but that's it. The freedom to get in and out of his own bed sunk in fast and has almost completely eliminated bedtime battles. The little rebel giggles in hysteria when he slides out of his bed, as if he's single handedly defied the most militant law on the planet and lived to see an extra minute. He's just been released from years full of hours of solitary crib caging.

Which is a thought so happy, that it would make any toddler sleep pretty solid at night.

If you need a little Big Bed video drama (you do.), have a watch.


11 comments:

  1. We JUST did this too!! I've honestly been fearful of the dreaded day of transitioning to the "big boy bed" we did it on a whim 5 days ago. To make it convincing we had to get the Cars bedding. We had ZERO issues!! Seriously?? My son is so proud of his bed and proud of the fact that he van get in and out by himself. Putting him to bed is cake...heck today he told me he wanted to go to bed....at 7pm. I find myself standing over him at night smiling. He looks so tiny in his bed, yet he's getting to be such a big boy. Agh, I'm gonna cry!!

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    1. we did it on a whim too, without planning. we even changed his room so he doesn't even have blinds up yet. carter looks so small in his new bed too!! it's really cute! if carter told me he wanted to go to bed at 7pm, I wouldn't be able to help him, because i'd be dead on the floor from a heart attack :) haha! maybe i should try changing up his sheets to something more fun and see what happens!

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    2. haha; well Adam caught a cold yesterday and was feeling yucky, but he does normally go to bed around 8. I absolutely love the bedding on Carters bed. We didn't go with a toddler bed, but did go to a twin size. His crib does turn into a full size...or maybe queen IDK, but he chewed on his crib so it's got teeth marks all over it! The bedding is really what made the big boy bed for us and got Adam excited about it.

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  2. We've just moved Vennex into the big boy bed, and I just posted a similar blog! I'm like you, no toddler bed, it doesn't make sense to me if they've out grown the crib. Vennex loves his bed, but loves his freedom more. It's been quite a challenge to get him to stay in his bed. He wants to get up and run around the house. He collects food and puts it in his crib! : ) I think that because our boys share a room that they make the freedom into a party! I don't care if they have fun, but I would love for them to stay in their beds.

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  3. I love Carter's bedding by the way!

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  4. good for you im a bit worried about doing it. plus im like u i dont know what age to do it. philip is 20 months. what do you reckon?

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  5. Meghann, I'm so glad for you & your family! :) Do you mind letting us know what time he does end up in bed/waking up? I'm kinda curious about his "routine", even though you say on your about me, that you don't have one really. ;)

    Kristina
    http://www.yomichaelmichael.com

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  6. I don't know how to write you privately, so I'll just throw it all out there right here. Many moons ago, I asked you a question in a YouTube comment if you have ever considered getting Carter's ears pinned back. I want to take a minute to tell you how deeply, truly, sincerely sorry I am for that rude comment & I hope that you will forgive me. Please allow me to explain why.

    My son (we call him "B" for short), who is now 15 months old, was born with a chromosome abnormality. There are a lot of people with this abnormality but if you don't understand genetics & chromosomes, I can't really explain it through the internet. To get down to it, B is the only person in documented medical history to have this SPECIFIC chromosomal rearrangement. One of the characteristics is ears that stick out, just like Carter's. Actually, identical to Carter's.

    I visited my plastic surgeon recently for a consultation for myself & I brought B with me. My surgeon is a very nice man who means well, but he asked me if I would consider letting him pin B's ears back when he turned 5. I was shocked but I told him that I would think about it.

    When we got home, I sat B on my lap & held his ears back with my hands, trying to get a better picture of what he would like if his ears weren't the way that they are. It completely shattered my heart. He looked like a totally different child, not a child that I recognized in any form other than his cute little teeth poking out as he smiled at me. He just wasn't B anymore. His ears are a part of him that makes him HIM. They are a part of what makes him so different from everyone else in this world & they make me love him even more because they are not just your "average" pair of ears. I gave birth to those ears on that sweet, fuzzy head that endured 43 days in the NICU & five surgeries. Five surgeries that he had no choice to be put through as he needed all of those surgeries to survive. Having his ears pinned back is not a surgery of survival that I would EVER consider putting him through. He is SO much more than that. He is the kid who thinks it's hilarious to be "fake dropped" & the kid who will literally smile at anyone. He is amazing. I just wanted to let you know that I am so sorry for my comment & that I have learned to be more tactful through this experience. B is my perfect baby with perfect ears just like perfect Carter.

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  7. We have always just gone straight from crib to bed with all four of our children too! They all transitioned really well. I do love Carter's linen. Just beautiful.
    Kara.

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  8. Havent visited in a little while, love the new bloginess look :)
    Cute video, Carter is two and a half already wow that's crazy. I remember watching ur pregnancy videos !
    x x

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