Occasionally, Phil would get Katie to fall asleep in our bed and then move her into her own bed once she was asleep. However, this never lasted all night. At some point, Katie would always get out of her bed and come get in bed with us.
Obviously, the blame for this problem of ours was totally on us. Even though there were many nights that we were very uncomfortable due to little feet, knees or elbows poking into our backs, sides, and even faces, we really didn't mind sharing our bed with Katie very much. She is such a sweet and loving child that we just loved curling up with her.
Of course, we realized that we really did need to get her out of our bed at some point. She's only getting bigger every day, and we definitely didn't want to share our bed with her forever. We tried to make her sleep in her own bed a few weeks ago, but that attempt failed miserably because Phil couldn't stand to hear Katie crying.
However, we decided to try again yesterday. We told Katie all day long that she was going to be sleeping in her own bed that night, just to get her used to the idea. She was not very happy about the idea; in fact, she told us flat out that she was NOT going to be sleeping in her bed.
But we knew we had to stick to the plan. If we let her have her way, she would only be more convinced that she was the one in charge around here, which is NOT what we want. So, when the time came, we put her down in her own bed.
That's when it started. The screaming and crying and getting out of bed went on for at least an hour. Eventually, she must have realized that we were serious about making her sleep in her own bed, because she promised me she would stay in bed and go to sleep. Then she rolled over and closed her eyes.
She did end up crying one more time after I got into bed, and Phil had to go calm her down. Then around 3:30 this morning, she got up and came into our room, but when Phil took her back to her bed, she went right back to sleep and stayed there for the rest of the night.
This morning, Phil and I made such a big deal about what a big girl Katie was to sleep in her own bed last night. We want her to be proud of herself so she wants to sleep there every night. When she asked for a piece of chocolate this morning, I made sure to tell her that I was giving her the chocolate because she had been a big girl and slept in her own bed last night.
When I told Katie that she was going to be taking her nap in her own bed today, she was a bit resistant to the idea. She told me that she didn't want to take a nap. So, I told her she could stay up a little later, but that when the time came, she would be napping in her own bed.
When I laid her down in her bed for her nap, she told me that she wanted me to lay down with her. I told her that I couldn't fit in her little bed (it's a toddler bed) with her, and she just said okay, then rolled over and went to sleep.
And that's where she is right now. Napping like a big girl in her own bed. I'm so proud of her and so happy for Phil and me.
4 comments:
Awh...she is so cute, that little body with all that pink!!! Good for you guys and you probably already know this but she will probably still give you a few hard times, stick to your guns. Consistency is HUGE at her age. What am I saying....it is huge in any age :) Go Katie...
Good job on getting her to sleep in her bed! To get A to sleep in her bed we've used a sticker chart and for every night that she stays in her bed, she gets a sticker and when she fills the chart (like every week and a half) than she get's a special reward like a movie night or this week is seeing Santa at the mall.
Katie looks adorable sleeping, how do you not just want to climb in bed with her and cuddle!? haha.
Congrats! But just to let you know, Jillian is 4 yrs old and she is starting to climb in bed with us again. She's a "side" sleeper and a kicker that I usually go to the couch! LOL!
Yay Katie! (and Melodie and Phil... LOL)
Post a Comment