Well, the day has come. We will no longer have a baby in our bed. Brielana has successfully weaned (27 months strong, woohoo!) and now we are transitioning her into her own bed. Affiliate links used. A small commission may be received if you purchase an item through my links. Thank you for supporting my blog!
This is a bittersweet moment. I love co-sleeping I did it with Kinsey too. There's something special about snuggling all night. Granted, it also means not much quality sleeping is happening either, but it's a trade-off I gladly take.
Now, Brielana has always napped in the girls shared room but has yet to last the whole night through. I'm hoping with the following steps we can ease her into the solo sleeping arrangement. And by "solo" I mean only one in her bed because Kinsey is her room mate ;)
1) Bed time routine- we brush teeth, wash face/hands, change the diaper and then read two books, The Going-To-Bed Book
and Goodnight Moon
. The consistency with this routine waivers slightly on a nightly basis (sometimes a third book is squeezed in) but keeping the same routine should help with the bed transition.
and Goodnight Moon
. The consistency with this routine waivers slightly on a nightly basis (sometimes a third book is squeezed in) but keeping the same routine should help with the bed transition.
2) Bed rails- Brielana is in Kinsey's old crib; due to its "hand-me-down" status, the wooden bed rails made by Graco are no longer available. Enter these handy rails! They inflate with a pump and take less than minute to set up; just place on the mattress and cover with a sheet. That's it. Seriously. I'm hoping these will serve two purposes- as a guard rail so she won't fall out and to mimic a "body presence" during the night.
3) Baby monitor- if all else fails the good ole baby monitor will be on if she does cry during the night. I'm definitely not a cry it out parent and we also don't want to disturb Kinsey as she goes to school now and needs that deep sleep.
So, there it is, my no-fail plan haha. Any tips/tricks/advice would be gladly received!
And bonus! I'm giving away one set of travel bed rails to one lucky reader so check this out! Just enter using the Rafflecopter below. Giveaway runs from Friday, October 14th through Sunday, October 23rd. Winner will be notified via email. Good luck!
This giveaway is in partnership with Nakturnal, with a prize of a 2-pack bed rails.
Linking up here.
You are a cosleeping rockstar. Wow! That's one thing I was too nervous to do, but cheers to you for making it happen and having such success. Those rails are awesome and such a great idea. We used a pool noodle for Cam. I hope you have big success with bedtime now. I'm sure Brielana will do great since big sister is right there too.
ReplyDeleteThe girls will be so excited to share a room! How fun! Cash still has a bed rail, but I don't know the age when to take it off. haha! He's a MOVER. Luke says he's exactly like me & we notice Wyatt is a mover to when he sleeps. We are going on a mini getaway in November, these would work great at the hotel!
ReplyDeleteCash transitioned from his crib {he was almost 3 & fully potty trained} to a twin bed. I figured that uh, if the kid was fully potty trained & at night, he probably doesn't need to be in a crib anymore. Goodness gracious. haha!
DeleteI never purposely co-slept but Connor had and still has plans to do just that until he goes to college. While I love the cuddles, I have to say the bad sleep isn't so much fun. I love a good solid nights sleep and he steals that from me 2-3 times a week.
ReplyDeleteWe were lucky with Henry that he slept in his crib and we didn't have to do much about it until he started to climb out right before age 2. Poor Wes was evicted from his crib before age 2 because of moving and baby # 3 coming along, so he didn't know how to climb out which made keeping him his toddler bed a lot easier. I'm worried about Calvin and the crawling out factor. Our crib didn't come with a toddler rail either, so these would be so handy.
ReplyDeleteThis was a really helpful post! Thanks for sharing!!
ReplyDeleteWe've just weaned at 18 months and are now trying the toddler bed. Love this rail idea!
ReplyDeleteThe rails are great! Good luck :)
DeleteThis is going to be great for my niece!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for entering, Ashley!
DeleteI did at 18 months. Make it a prize and sound like it a huge reward :)
ReplyDeleteGreat idea, Cynthia!
DeleteI am such a bad share-er, I don't think I could ever co-sleep! Props to you! And those bed rails look awesome!
ReplyDeleteWe transitioned at 1.5 years old. It was hard for a few weeks but he adjusted :) I agree keeping a routine helped and so did staying positive and encouraging.
ReplyDeleteIts so true, the right attitude is always helpful!
DeleteWe transitioned at 1.5 years old. It was hard for a few weeks but he adjusted :) I agree keeping a routine helped and so did staying positive and encouraging.
ReplyDeleteMy son transition from crib to a Hotwheels toddler bed which he loved. I love it because the sides are raised so he won't fall out. When we travel I get nervous that he will roll out of the bed so we always push the bed against the wall. Traveling side rails, genius!
ReplyDeleteWe just traveled a couple of weeks ago and I wish these rails had arrived in time to come with us! They are so handy!
DeleteAaaaaahhh that photo of her sitting in bed. She looks so stinking sweet.
ReplyDeleteSuch a big girl now! She looks so excited and adorable in her new bed.
ReplyDeleteWe haven't transitioned yet but I am loving everyone's advice and will definitely use some of the tips when we do :)
ReplyDeleteWe are still co sleeping over here. And I guess I'm so used to it now that my sleep is just fine and honestly think I'd sleep worse if I was constantly wondering if he was waking up in another room lol. I really like that idea of the bumper though, since him falling out is one of my concerns.
ReplyDeleteMaking a big deal having them pick out their own bed, bedding, etc. helped us.
ReplyDeleteWe haven't had ours yet, but god is still making him!
ReplyDeleteLove this post! First off, yay for 27 months!!! I would for you to share a post about weaning. Liam nursed for 27 months too, and Finn is going strong at 17 months. Liam starts the night in his bed, but at age 4, still joins us whenever he wakes. It's rare he sleeps through the night. I'm so interested to see how things go with Finn.
ReplyDeleteYay for getting the bed back and your sleep back. Our bed is way too small to have a third little human in it. I hope it goes well for you! Good tips though. We were lucky with our transition...so far!
ReplyDeleteSo, these are genius!
ReplyDeleteWe transitioned Marcus to his big bed at about 3 years. He never once tried to climb out of his crib, so we kept him caged for as long as possible. We only gave the crib the boot once we discovered Julia was coming! Marcus might actually still be in that crib if his sister hadn't kicked him out. I do have a sneaky suspicion Julia will be the one that transitions faster, and these rails look like they'll likely be needed for her!
I love co-sleeping too! I get so excited if Mason crawls into our bed in the middle of the night. He is a big time cuddler which I love. Nathan is not. He gets too hot and sweaty! But Mason and I? We are cuddlers! What a big girl Brielana is. She looks so precious in her big girl bed.
ReplyDeleteI can't even remember now when we transitioned Mason... maybe 2? He never tried to climb out but I knew it was coming. I was terrified that none of us would ever sleep again, but he slept great in it and loved his new found freedom. We definitely had our struggles and I found him sleeping on the floor one day during his nap time, but overall, it went well! Hope the transition for Brielana was easy too!
ReplyDeleteWe loved cosleeping but when it was time for his own room we would lay with him until he fell asleep and he also got to pick out a nightlight that helped him in case he woke up in the middle of the night.
ReplyDeleteI have no idea how anybody co-sleeps. I love the idea of snuggles, but I hate snuggles lol. I get way too hot at night for that nonsense. I'm guessing if you just do it from the start everybody is used to it. Aria was in the room for the hurricane and I was ready to toss her out after an hour. I'm always impressed when people pull it off and like it =)
ReplyDeleteThat green light clock thing was great with Aria when she went to the bed with no crib sides!
Such a cool idea! We transitioned Hudson when he was 2 and a half....and with Sadie I will wait as long as possible!
ReplyDeleteMy daughter transitioned at 13 months as she kicked the end of her crib off so had to be moved to a twin bed.
ReplyDelete