Big Girl Bed

Lucy has started sleeping in a big girl bed. How is this even possible?

Morning hair...

Little monkey jumping on the bed...

As with every transition, we took cues from Lucy to make sure that she was ready before we moved her from her crib and into a big girl bed. The very first night we tried it, she kept getting out and playing with her toys, so we just plopped her back in her crib. The second night we tried it, we only had to put her back in bed once or twice before she fell fast asleep. The third night, she went right to bed without getting up once. And it's been pretty much the same for nap times, too.

Before making the switch, I talked with other moms and was given this very helpful advice...

- Keep the crib in the room, just in case. We gave Lucy the choice to sleep in her crib or her big girl bed. Guess which one she chose! Rather than forcing the transition, it was nice to allow her to make the decision herself. 

- Transition slowly by starting with just naps or just bed times in the big kid bed. We decided to do bed time first, since that's usually when Lucy is more tired and less likely to get up and play. When she did so well at bed time, we tried putting her down in her big girl bed for nap time, too. Since she was already used to it, she did pretty well! 

- If possible, wait until child expresses an interest. Lucy has been obsessed with big kid beds for months. Every time we go to friends' houses, she climbs into her friends' big kid beds and pretends to go to sleep. When we went to Ikea, she spent at least an hour in the children's section, trying out all the different toddler beds. 

- Make it fun. We let Lucy help pick out her big girl bed, as well as some new bedding. We let her decide which stuffed animals / toys she wanted to have in her bed with her. This helped her feel involved in the process and made it fun for her, too. 

As easy as it was for Lucy to make the transition, it was actually much more difficult for me. I thought it would take months for her to adjust to a big girl bed. I did not expect the transition to happen so immediately, for her to sleep through the night and wake up at her usual time with no tears or fuss. It made me realize how grown-up she is, that she is not a baby any more. Obviously, I am so proud of her, and I am thankful for her independent spirit, but at the same time, the sight of that empty crib just brings tears to my eyes. Kleenex, please.