Big Boy Bed

As I mentioned in my last post about fears, Simon's fears and imagination have been interrupting his sleep routine. It started with him wanting us to leave his door open when he went to bed, then escalated to wanting us to sit with him, then wanting to sleep in our bed with us. There were long lists of excuses and delaying tactics,"I'm hungry" "I'm hot" or just plain "I'm not sleepy." It was a tough few weeks while we tried to find a way to get him settled. We were all pretty sleep deprived.

One of our efforts to make him feel more like sleeping was to remove the side of his crib, converting it into a toddler bed. He has never tried to climb out of the crib, but we thought he might feel more secure if he could get up if he felt scared.

He LOVES the "big boy bed." The first night he fell out once, onto a giant stuffed dog I put next to the bed in case he fell. I was sleeping nearby and he whispered "Mommy, help! I fell down!" I put him back in bed and he went right back to sleep.

There was a lot of getting up and wandering back to our room the first couple of nights, but now he is settled into the new routine and is so proud of himself. "I'm not gonna be scared!" he tells us, and last night he said "I'm going to sleep by myself!" This morning he came into our room at 7:15 saying "I'm all done sleeping now, Mommy."