Bye, Bye, Baba!
Okay, as many of you know, Ethan has been very attached to his baba ever since he stopped nursing as a baby. It was okay for a while but now that he's almost 2 1/2, it was beginning to seem unnecessary. It was totally a comfort item to help him fall asleep or make him feel better when he got hurt. But recently it seemed like he really could give it up. So, on Monday I started explaining to him that in a couple of days, we were going to throw the baba's in the trash and let the garbage man take them away and we'd get him some new big boy sippies. Each time we talked about it, I was praying inside that I'd be tough enough to follow through with it.
He seemed almost anxious about it and on Wednesday, we did it. We gathered all the baba's, threw them in a trash bag and took them out to the curb for the garbage man to get. Then we went to Walmart and picked out some new big boy sippies (he went for Spider Man - he's starting to get into this super hero thing lately). The first day or two he cried for a few minutes in bed and then fell asleep. However, by yesterday's nap (Thursday), he just laid down and went to sleep and he's been doing it ever since. He's so proud that he is a big boy and has been telling everyone about his accomplishment. Yay!!!
On the other hand, we are trying to transition him to a toddler bed since he's been attempting to climb out of his crib. This isn't going so well. We tried it for a couple of nights last week but the second I left the room he was up crying for me. I'm really trying to avoid having to lay down with him until he falls asleep so if anyone has any advice, I'd LOVE to hear it!!
Ethan's big boy bed!
6 comments:
My advice is BE STRONG. I remember the transition to a toddler bed with Sammie. It wasn't fun, but she got the hang of it pretty quickly. Ethan will too. Just don't give in to laying with him. He will totally expect it if you do.
Sammie used to try to leave her room, so we put up a gate. It worked until she learned she could bust it down (it was a tension one). You could also try a reward chart for stickers. We love the Chuck E. Cheese ones that you can print from their website. You can cash them in for free tokens. If you do that, take him there first so he knows how much fun it will be if he is a good sleeper. Good luck. You can do it. Congrats on the baba! I'm so proud of you... and your little guy.
I saw this on one of those Nanny shows and it's worked for me... If they won't stay in bed try sitting by the bed and making sure they stay in bed and laying down. Each day move farther from the bed and out into the hall if still necessary by that point. Just make sure they know you are serious about them staying there and don't EVER give in and let them up. Haydn actually just transitioned to a toddler bed too and this worked for me. One night my husband put him to bed and just closed the door. I could hear Haydn up at the door but didn't go to him. He put himself back to bed a few minutes later. It helps me a little to have a good example for him to follow because Connor already understands the rules and is great. Good luck. He'll learn quickly, don't worry!
Hurray for Ethan!! What a big boy! I had no idea what a struggle it would be to transition into a big boy bed...I am a little nervous myself now!
I can't believe Ethan can pedal a tricycle! That's awesome.
Okay, with the bed thing. Charlie and Ethan are so different, so who knows if this will work. With Charlie we lay down with him for a minute, but not until he falls asleep. Usually Charles lays with him and they talk and tell stories. When we are finished, we tell Charlie we are leaving and we are NOT coming back. And we say it about three times. Usually he'll say "Not coming back?" and we say no. And he usually goes to sleep. If he cries for a long time, I just call through the door and tell him we aren't coming back.
what a big boy...i'm still fighting my 2 1/2 year old with the pacifiers!!!!! He loves them!
He is such a darling big boy! I am so glad getting rid of the binkies wasn't too bad. Half of the time I think we build it up in our mommy minds that it'll be harder than it is. Good luck with the bed thing. That comment from the nanny show about sitting by the bed, I saw that show too, and it worked well for them. I may have to give it a try with the babies are older.
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