A little over seven years ago we installed a crib in a little bedroom in our home. In seven years that crib hasn’t moved. It’s been warmed by three tiny people and has rarely seen it’s sheets stand cold. Sloan stayed in the crib until he was a little over two years old. I was pregnant with Tia and we decided to move him out of the crib a little early, anticipating a long adjustment period to his new, big boy bed.
He never climbed out of bed once. And wouldn’t for many months to come. And I regretted transitioning him so early.
Tia wasn’t two yet when Landon was born and the plan was for her and Landon to share a room with him sleeping in a pack and play and her in the crib. Little did I know that he would be the noisiest sleeper on planet earth and Tia would start climbing out of her crib the second we brought Landon home therefore throwing all of my well laid plan out the window.
We put Tia in a big bed in the hopes of keeping her from breaking her neck as she spilled over the side of her crib each day and, for the most part, she transitioned easily. She never came out of her room, but we would often go in to find her laying between every shoe and toy she owned.
And then there’s Landon… My free spirited child tasted freedom for three weeks this summer when he slept on an air mattress in Florida. I won’t mince words – he was a nightmare. Putting him to bed made having a root canal sound fun. And when we returned home, I gladly plopped his little behind back in his crib and did the happy dance out of his room.
It’s never occurred to him to crawl out. And I’ve threatened the other two with their lives if they show him how.
“I’ll tell Santa and the Easter Bunny if you show him how to climb out and it will be a slow holiday season for you guys…”
But the thing is…*sigh* Here’s the thing. The poor child appears to be ready to transition to a big kid bed. Sleeping has been a bit of an issue in the couple of weeks since we’ve been back from vacation. He is scared in his room (we’re going to buy a night light today) and is waking up through the night and, in general, seems to be restless.
And suddenly the idea of taking the crib down has caused panic of massive proportions in my heart. So much so that I’ve wondered if we should go ahead and have another baby just so I don’t have to take down the crib.
That’s just crazy talk…
So we are slowly, but surely, plodding toward the task of disassembling the crib. I’ve already warned Lee that I’ll probably blubber inconsolably, then I’ll need a stiff drink (or five) to get through the process. We likely won’t pull the trigger on this until the end of next month because with Lee and I going out of town for ten days, I would feel terrible leaving our parents with the task of getting that child to stay in bed at night. It would be cruel and unusual punishment for them, and I won’t do it. No I won’t. I’m not gonna do it. I’m not taking that crib apart!
Plus, I’m (clearly) just not ready. I’m not ready to say good bye to babydom and I’m not ready to deal with the mischevious little fox that is my third child.
I will survive this milestone, right?
Yes, you will survive! It is sad and yes you are closing a door, but you still have so many more doors to open and experiences to experience with all the kids this is just a tiny milestone. Stay strong! 🙂
fyi, my little sleep dr. says don’t try to change sleeping arrangements while they are having sleep issues, can make it worse. Waiting a bit is probably a good idea so he can grow out of these little night wakings. I know how ya feel though. My boys never learned how to get out, but of course my 3rd born crazy girl learned at 21 mo. So sad!
I’m not an overly emotional person. But dismantling my children’s things reduces me to a puddle of sentimentality.
I guess, looking back, that’s one good thing about moving a lot. My memories are more fragmented. I can’t attach as much meaning to one object if I disassemble the crib every couple of years.
Good luck!
I’ve decided that Ellie will sleep in her crib until she’s ready for college. With a little chicken wire it will double nicely as a cage to keep her safe from all the horrible things in the world as well.
Maybe I should cut back on watching “To Catch A Predator”.
i’m planning on keeping my boys in their cribs until they are each 3 years old…seriously! i’ll invest in a crib tent if I have to. we are STILL having issues with our 3yrs old girls…and sometimes I wish I still had cribs to put them in. i enjoy reading your blog, it’s always so funny and I can relate to a lot of your stories. I vote for another baby AND keep it up…ha!
Hannah, I think you’re on to something. Perhaps barbed wire instead, though?
And Shelly, thanks so much for the encouragement that it’s okay to wait until he’s three. I’m not so sure about the baby vote though…
🙂
You can do it. Of course you could just have another baby too. Decisions. Decisions
I like the idea of not taking the bb down until after Sept., and I love the idea of you having another baby. I do love those grandkids. So, if you are taking a vote, then I say yes.
Love Ya!
Barb
my little guy is also 2-1/2 and both my boys (18 months apart) have almost always shared a room. We didn’t move Matthew out of his crib for a while, and instead had 2 cribs in a teeny-tiny so city home – yikes! So, we decided when Matthew was maybe 2-1/2 to convert his bed into a toddler bed (up against a wall with a side rail to protect him a little from injury).
He took to it like a champ, however, it came to the point that poor little Michael was a caged animal! It was to the point of inhumane, and my hubby and I felt terrible!
We would find on most nights that Matthew (free to roam his room) would climb into Michael’s crib and begin practicing his wrestling moves.
Just when we were about to reach our breaking point, one of our family friends asked if we would be interested in a twin bed and trundle…it was almost like divine intervention 😉
So, for the past 6 months, we have had the boys sleeping on twin mattresses and now I can stow Michael’s bed away during the day and opens up the room. Plus since it’s so low to the ground, there’s little fear of his falling out and getting hurt.
BUT, I hear you on the difficulty of letting them grow up. Michael’s our last little guy, so inevitably my perpetual baby.
Good luck and can’t wait to hear what you decide and how it all goes!