Help! He won't stay in his toddler bed!

24 years ago

Okay, last night we took the siderail off my son's crib. He's going to be 3 soon, and we have a little one on the way, so we want to transition him out of the crib and into a twin bed. He was overjoyed with the freedom, but went to bed immediately last night.Then, of course, he wandered into our room 3 or 4 times throughout the night. He doesn't usually wake up at night, so I'm HOPING this is just a novelty.

Then, this afternoon, he refused his nap. Wouldn't stay in bed, was totally exhausted and just drove me insane. HOW WILL I GET THIS KID TO NAP?? How do parents with toddler beds or twin beds get their kids to sleep during the day, and stay in bed at night?

I know this is an age where some kids end the nap, but he definitely still needs it. He passes out within seconds of getting in the car, and he's sooo cranky when he doesn't sleep for 2 hours during the day.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (5)

nadastimer
24 years ago
The only thing you can do is to keep taking him back to his room and laying him down and telling him it's time to go to bed. Try saying it in a stern voice. It will take time to get this to sink into his head. I think he will wake up for a while during the night because it's something new~think of when you go stay at someone else's house or in a hotel or something and you can't sleep right. If you worry about him getting up and you not knowing it~like he doesn't come into your room~we used to take one of the baby gates and just lean it agaist the doorway so he would push it over when he was coming out. The noise would wake me and our room is pretty far away from his. DS was about 18 months when he started sleeping in his bed and he's almost 3 now and no problems anymore.

~Leslie~
cindy_lou_who
24 years ago
My 2 year old is doing the same thing. He learned how to climb out of his crib, so we moved him to his "big boy bed".

I am definately spoiled, as he USED to sleep from about 8pm, until at least 9am, without waking at all.

For the last two mornings (around 4 am), I awoke to him sitting quietly on the bed, between mine and DH's pillows, "gently" lifting my eyelids. As soon as I open my eyes, he says "HI" in a perky voice.

I put him back into his bed, and he goes back to sleep. I'm just wondering how much more my eyelids can take!!
Related Discussions
Craftsman Lawnmower Won't Stay Running Part 2
Q
Comments (69)
Tecumseh with plastic bowl - if it is flooding, at the bottom of the bowl on the side is a screw. Remove that and inside is a plastic piece, this meters the flow of fuel and if missing can explain flooding. Also carb is extruded aluminum and there is a small hole drilled in it for the bowl to breath, that could be the other cause. Lastly dirt is holding the carb needle open- hold the carb bowl in your hand off the carb and let the gas flow in and see if the bowl overflows while outside the carb. If it only runs for a sec, upon removing the screw from the bowl the plastic piece inside - get a drill and drill it just a hair larger - so far this personaly worked for me 3 for 3 of these. Do this after trying cleaning it out the same piece with a paperclip. Sorry all if parts of my post are a repeat. ihwall50- black smoke, too much gas from dirty air filter, try banging the filter on the street curb knocking dirt loose and try again. if it improves, get a new filter.
...See More
I won't get divorced, but I can't stay unhappy forever
Q
Comments (49)
but prof. nice guy didn't ask about staying or leaving... exactly. He said he wanted to meet a woman who was more fun *& that his therapist encouraged him to do so*. which sounds like a lie. In fact, his initial post reads a little like a singles ad ("my sisters-in-law describe me as 'funny & sweet'", "I want to meet a woman who likes to laugh", etc) His request for 'advice' reads a lot like he's fishing for permission/approval/blessing,("it would be nice to keep my marriage but be emtionally close to someone, too") Snort! & his statement that his wife is willing to have sex without emotional involvement but he wants the involvement sounds really really strange, since it's backwards to what usually happens (woman wants emotional closeness, man willing to have sex without it). like he made it up & he's seeing what response it'll get. One of the worst experiences of my life was many years ago, when I was young & inexperienced & a married man caused me a lot of aggravation, but, as a result, my "married man on the prowl" detector still works pretty well:. I had been dating this guy for several weeks when I learned that he was married. only, as he said, since it didn't have anything to do with what went on between us, he didn't think he needed to mention it. He saw nothing wrong with lying to me, lying to his wife, complicating my life, his wife's life, his children's lives, heck, he wasn't worried about complicating *anybody's* life, as long as he could have dinner/clean house/charming children...& dates. It was degrading to be manipulated & lied to like that, it was mortifying to discover that I was the "other woman", & it was humiliating to extricate myself from the situation & answer the questions my friends asked about the "new guy" I had been so happy about. but the guy sort-of mentally shrugged & decided that I was just as crazy/needy/irrational as his wife, *since I was having a good time*... until I found out about this little bit of (irrelevant & superfluous) information. This is a married man on the prowl, looking for approval/justification, & he posted this to see what kind of objections he'd get, so he can refine his approach to the next "woman who likes to laugh" that he runs into in the real world. betcha.
...See More
3 year old won't stay in bed at bedtime
Q
Comments (15)
Okay. I'm in the same boat. My daughter is almost 3 and has been in a twin bed for 3 months. There are nights that she does pretty well with staying in bed. I assume it's from being so tired. And there are nights when I have to go back in about 2 or 3 times within the hour. But, last night was the worst. I don't think she slept at all. We did the usual routine - bath, stories, prayer, lights out (except for night light). I won't leave the door open at all cuz I know she will come out for sure. Usually she will get up and just sit against the wall next to her door and cry. Then, I or my husband will go in and put her back in bed. We usually ask if something scared or or ask what is wrong. She never answers. But, last night was a lot different. Last night my husband went in and put her back in bed. He left her room and she was quiet. That was around 8:15. Then around 9:30 I went in to check on her and couldn't get her door open. She had gotten back out of bed and sat against the wall next to her door and fell asleep sitting up. Her legs were blocking the door. I had to use the door to nudge her awake so that I could get her back in bed. After that she was up all night and so was I. She would not stay in bed at all. I tried making her a pallet on the floor in my room and she just lied there for over an hour eyes wide open. So, I put her back in her bed. She asked for the door to be left open. I agreed but told her she has to stay in bed or the door will be closed. This time I left the door open just a crack. I don't know what time she got up next I just know she did. I don't even know exactly how many times she got out of bed. I stopped counting and stopped looking at the clock. Until about 4:30 this morning. I had enough. I grabbed her and put her back in bed without a word from my mouth. I was livid. Then around 6:15 I went in to wake her to get her ready for the sitter. She was so exhausted and wouldn't let me put her down. I don't know what else to do to get her to stay in bed. I've tried the treats. That worked for about 2 weeks. I don't want her losing sleep like that anymore. And I can't afford to lose it either. I'm an insulin dependent diabetic and loss of sleep makes my sugars spike very high the next day. What else can I do?
...See More
Gas water heater won't stay lit after running out of propane
Q
Comments (4)
It is likely air in the line leading from main to heater. I suggest haveing the propane company send someone back out because their service call is much cheaper than a plumber's. Relighting it yourself based on instructions gleaned on the net is not a good idea. . Time for a story about tinkering with propane gas. Man jumped out of a plane for his first parachute jump. Unfortunatly he wasn't paying attention when given instructions earlier about operating his chute. Just as he was giving up hope,he sees another man flying up toward him from the ground. As they passed he shouts "hey do you know how to open a parachute? "No,comes the reply,do you know how to light the pilot on a propane water heater?"
...See More
aileen
24 years ago
We used to say, "well, by the time he goes to college, maybe he will......whatever" This too, will change. Be patient.

Do you read him a bedtime story? Bedtime is a wonderful time to strengthen the bond between you. A story also allows them to relax more before sleep. They sleep better.

Some children are worse about this than others. But eventually he will get himself straightened out. There is not much you can do except take him back to bed and make sure that he knows you love him.
wrrock
14 years ago
My kid is afraid of the dark. 3 years old and won't sleep in the bed without a fight. What we did that kind of helped was teach her how to read a clock. We drew big pictures of 8:30. Put a digital clock in her room. We brought her in the room at 8:30 to see. Then we read a story at bedtime (Little Bear Who Goes to the Moon). She seems to enjoy that and the bear goes to bed. Basically we just established a routine and struck with it.

It's starting to work... but it just takes a while of not giving in and letter them cry it out for an hour. It's hard at first, but it establishes consistency.
BeeCountry
14 years ago
A couple months ago we put our toddler in his his "big Boy Bed" I was worried about the same thing. Surprisingly he wont get out of bed until i come in there and say ok you can get up. Not sure why he does this. I did read a lot before hand about kids in toddler beds, and everything i read said to make sure when you walk them back to bed you dont say any words. So once your toddler comes into your room, just grab his hand and walk him back to his room without saying anything. He'll eventually get the idea. Unfortunately you'll have broken sleep for awhile. good luck

Help! He won't stay in his toddler bed!

Comments (5)

nadastimer

cindy_lou_who

Related Discussions

aileen

wrrock

BeeCountry

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US