Bedtime Fun: Compare and Contrast

Our first boy changed from a crib to a toddler bed precisley 3 years ago. He was 2 3/4 at the time. It was a complete disaster. Our second boy changed from a crib to a toddler bed TODAY, and so far....knock on wood....it has been smooth sailing.

We went up north to stay at Boyne for the holiday week and came home and reluctantly decided to switch him at that time. I don't remember exactly why the time seemed right; it could have been that he was trying to climb out or b/c he was sleeping in a real bed on vaca and we decided he could handle it after that. Regarless, it was a complete nightmare. We would take him to bed and he would jump out of bed and come out of his room once or twice per minute for an hour each night. One of us would have to sit at the top of the steps (about 10 yards from his room) and constantly tell him to go back to bed and hurl all kinds of threats his way. It made the bedtime ritual a nightmare. It was horrible; I don't know what else to say.

Over the past week or so, our youngest has been talking about going to a "big boy bed." He is now about 3 2/3 and has never asked or tried to climb out, but we decdied it was time for him to graduate nonetheless (we've been delaying this day in fear of what was to come) . Up until now when he woke up, he would stand up in his crib and yell for us. Considering what we went through with the eldest, wifey told him when he wakes up in his big boy bed he should call for us just the same. We definitely do not want him coming out of his room like his brother did. So we put him down for his nap today, and he stayed in his room, but he did call for us for about 20 minutes before he fell asleep. And for bedtime, he went right to sleep (granted, we did go to a pool party all day and he was tired). It will be interesting to see what happens overnight and in the morning.

Perhaps this blog post is premature, but I am very optimistic that #2 will be much better for us (victory?) .It is based on us learning from experience and the fact that #2 is a MUCH easier child.