As of this coming Friday, I'll be officially 30 weeks pregnant.
Which means that I've known I'm pregnant for about 26 weeks.
Which means I really haven't slept well in about 25.5 weeks because I've been so nervous about THE BIG MOVE.
I've been researching it, analyzing it, preparing for it, and talking about it with anyone who will listen nonstop since we found out that we were pregnant with Landon. And finally, the time has come. Tanner officially moved to his bigboy room/bed last night, which is a little bit sad (sniff sniff) because it truly means that he's a big boy! But what a relief that we are finally doing it! Whew ... I can breath again. And maybe in a few days, I'll even be able to relax and just enjoy these last several weeks of pregnancy. The rest of this post is just details on how we're doing so far with the transition -- more for me than for you since I know I'll have to do this again and probably won't remember WHAT I did when it's time for the next one to make the big move! (Sidenote: it's amazing how quickly you forget these things! I remember asking my mom after Tanner was born about specific details on how she parented us as newborns. She always said that she couldn't remember and I would look at her like she had a second head and think ... "what kind of mom is she?" Now, I understand. :)
Night #1
Blackout curtains hung -- check
Bedrails installed -- check
Stool ready to help him up into bed -- check
Room baby-proofed -- check
Cutesie fabric stapled to bottom side of top bunk -- check
Nightlight -- check
Everything was planned to a T and ready to go. Just before putting him in the bathtub and starting his bedtime routine, I decided to check the guard that we installed on his door handle so that he couldn't "escape." I wanted to make sure we could still open the door from the outside when the guard was on. NEGATIVE. I quickly took off the guard, dismantled the door handle and reversed it so that the lock is now on the outside of the room. Yes, we've decided to start by "locking" him in. It sounds barbaric, we know, but a fireman just came and talked to us at our last MOPS meeting and stressed the importance of sleeping with doors CLOSED and always making sure you know where your children are during the night in case of a fire. So ... that's that.
Went through our bed-time routine. Got in bed with Tanner. Read a book. Said a prayer. As soon as I got up, he shot out of bed and I practically had to race him to the door. I tried the "stand at the door and calmly walk him back to bed" SuperNanny trick a few times, but he was literally getting back to the door before I was. Then I thought I would just let him cry, but after 5 minutes I couldn't take it anymore. I went in and laid down with him. He thought it was play-time and took about 90 minutes to fall asleep. After he was asleep, I got up and went into my own bed and tossed and turned all night, checking the video monitor literally every 10 minutes. Tanner slept most of the night, but woke up around 5, so I went in and laid down with him again. It took him another hour to fall back asleep.
Nap #1
Talked to some other moms at MOPS. Our leader (who has 4 children) said I really shouldn't lay down with him while he falls asleep or else he'll expect it. The speaker actually recommended that I try the SuperNanny thing again. Another mom said she just held the door closed (it didn't have a lock) and let him cry. Sooo ...
Tanner fell asleep in the car. He usually transfers pretty easily, so I just took him upstairs and laid him in the big-boy bed. Then, I closed the door and locked it and waited outside, glued to the video monitor (I love that thing!). He came to the door and cried for about 3 minutes, then went to his bed, then got out, got his "man-purse" filled with animal figurines, took them into bed with him, got out of bed, played and read books for about 30 minutes, and finally fell asleep on the floor right next to the bed. Slept for about 2 hours.
I'm feeling encouraged ...
Night #2
Go through bedtime routine again. Tanner shoots out of bed almost before I do after I say "Amen." I close the door and let him cry for 8 minutes. Then, I start the "SuperNanny" walking him back to bed. After 15 minutes of this, I decide it's really over-rated. I close the door and lock it. After 5 minutes of crying at the door, Tanner climbs back into his bed and falls asleep. (Once again, the video monitor ROCKS). He's been asleep (in his bed) for about 30 minutes now. Hopefully tonight will go smoothly! Although, I'm definitely prepared for some middle-of-the-night tears and tantrums.
More updates soon!
Pray for us!
8 comments:
Awesome job so far, Rachel! This is a tough transition for such a little guy, but it sounds like he's already headed in the right direction. The Super Nanny routine is what I would have suggested, but it sounds like merely closing the door is working great. Also, I'm glad you got some *fantastic* advice about not lying down with him--I've heard of parents that now have to continue to sleep with their elementary school children bc of starting it way back when! Don't go there! :)
If you have greater problems with T staying in bed, you could always incentivize cracking the door as long as he stays in bed. You could tell him that as soon as he hops out of bed, you'll close the door (which I assume he doesn't like.) This method worked great for some friends of ours who were having trouble with their daughter and the bedtime process...
Prayers for you!! You're doing wonderfully!!
You're doing great, Rachel! Be consistnet and everything will be ok :)
oh wow!! What fun stuff that lies ahead for us! I never would have thought it would be such an ordeal, but i guess why wouldn't it be?! thanks for sharing the details..i am sure they will be helpful for us newer mom's someday! good luck and keep us posted!
You are doing fine. Take advice from all angles and find what works for you. The super nanny thing would not work in our house. I have 3 stubborn children. The youngest being the worse. The video cam is great! I am not sure I would want to know what my girls do when I leave the room! HA HA Anyway, its a process, nothing to be nervous, overly concerned with.
We still struggle with Rylin and although we knew better, we laid with her and let me tell you...don't start it! We are starting all over with the crying and what not with us NOT laying with her and she is 2 3/4! What lock did you get? I need it! She has a gate in front of her door and I had to mcgyver it so she couldn't undo it! It sounds like a great door guard!
Stephanie --
We actually flipped the doornob around so that the lock is on the outside of the door, and we've been locking him in. I know ... it sounds so cruel ... but he knows now that he can't get out, so he just climbs back in bed and goes to sleep. We're hoping to stop locking him in once he's old enough to understand that he needs to stay in his room. He's still a little young to understand anything that involves staying in one place. :)
BTW ... I learned in my little fire safety lesson that being in a bedroom with the door closed can buy you an extra 20-30 minutes if there is a fire -- so it really is important. And it's also so important to know that your child is in their room so that you can tell firefighters exactly where they need to go to rescue them! Your best bet is to teach your child to stay in their bed in an emergency. All things I was so glad someone told me. I thought I would pass it on ... :)
Thanks Rachel, That's a great idea just to turn the doorknob around! I never would have thought of that. Believe it or not, I always HAD to sleep with the doors closed, and we even had fire drills growing up...the price you pay with a dad who is firefighter:) Great tips for all, thanks!
Oh I've been dreading moving Ri into a big bed--even more than potty training!! She's got potty training down, but I'm still waiting to switch her to a big bed! Good for you, I hope he continues to do well.
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