XP: help with toddler bed

can_can

I posted this in the toddler board, but I need some help!

We transitioned our son into a toddler bed in July. Ever since, bedtime has slowly become AWFUL. He's 2 and a half (will be 3yrs in Dec).

Our bedtime looks like this:

7:45: bath time, followed by books and bedtime
8:30: I say goodnight, after 5 minutes, he's up, and asking for water, blanket, anything. I put him back in bed, tell him it's "nighttime, time to sleep" and walk back out. This usually erupts in tears, and I have to repeat myself, sometimes getting firm ("DS, it's nighttime. LAY DOWN. Time for sleep.") or have even resorted to bribery ("Mommy has lots of stickers for DS... but you need to go to sleep. If you go to sleep, mommy will give you lots of stickers"). That worked for one night, now it does nothing.

9:30: DS finally falls asleep

12:30am: back awake. Repeat procedure from 8:30, but with more tears because now he's really tired.

2:30/3am: back awake again. More tears, and now I'm exhausted. Either DH or I will go into his room and sit in a chair or lay on the floor until he falls asleep.

This has GOT TO STOP. We are all exhausted and I'm seriously ready to put his rail back on to convert it to a crib again. I know he used to wake up a little when he was in the crib, but it would be for like 2 minutes, and he'd just soothe himself back to sleep. It's like now he just gives up and screams for me instead of doing it himself.

HELP.

CandKmomma

The toddler bed did not work for us either.  DS would walk around the room crying.  We ended up putting a full mattress on the floor and he loves it.  He has a pretty bright night light and we keep books and a sippy of water in his room.  He knows after we say goodnight he can get up to get books to look at or get his water, but we are not coming back in there.  We have the bestview video monitor so I can pan around the room to see what he is doing. 

edit- we ordered a cheapo mattress from walmart.com and he loves it!  LOL! 

victoria1212

not sure if I am going to be much help (but I can feel your pain!) because we had a bad transition to the toddler bed. We bought a tent (it looks like a playhouse) and that worked really well for us. DD loves being in the tent- it is on the floor- but she sleeps in there.

It was a 6-8 week transition for us where we tried everything from telling her she had to stay, repeatedly taking her back to her room, bribing her to stay in her room, sitting in the chair in her room until she fell asleep, etc...and I think the only thing that has worked is her realizing no matter how many times she asks- that the crib is not coming back. Now, our routine is pretty much back to normal. We take her to her room, read a few books and than say goodnight. She will play around in her room for about 30 minutes and then will fall asleep. Sometimes she falls asleep in the bed (rarely), sometimes in the tent and sometimes she makes a nest by the door. 

Lately, she will wake up in the middle of the night and will either come tell me she is going back to bed or she will make a new nest on the floor of our room.