I’ve slept with my goose (nickname for my lovely daughter) ever since she was a teeny weeny 6 pound baby. She wanted nothing more than to be close to me and I wanted nothing than to hear her heart beat. It worked for us especially since I breastfed her.
But now she’s 4 and still wants to be right up under me. This was fine before we moved into a bigger place last month and she got her own big girl room! It’s decked out with a big girl bed, pretty bedding, big bookshelf loaded with books and 9000 Dora dolls. Honestly, I have no idea where she gets all these dolls from!! I swear it’s those big brown eyes my goose has! Look into them and you’re hooked!! She makes me buy her stuff! (lol) Everyone laughs when I tell them that. But it’s not just me; it’s her Dad, my friends and family. Ugh. And if I hide just one she knows its missing and will ask me 568 times where it is.
Anyways, back to co-sleeping. So, I’ve been trying to get her interested in her room and her bed. She has no problems hanging out in her room and playing with her dolls or reading her books. Or making it a complete disaster. But I swear, once the sun sets, she wants nothing to do with sleeping in her room. She’ll sneak her way into my bed and won’t budge. Ugh. It’s gotten really hard to sleep with her because she’s forever flinging her arm or leg on me. She is a wild sleeper and moves every 6 minutes, interrupting my already crazy sleep pattern.
I’ve tried having her fall asleep in my bed then moving her into her room. That sorta works. She either wakes up and starts crying when I move her into her bed or clings to me for dear life or she sneaks back into my bed a few hours later and lays on top of me.
I’ve also tried staying with her in her room until she falls asleep. I’ll sit on the edge of the bed and rub her back. She should love it, but instead she clings to me and just stares at me because she knows I’m going to leave, ahhhh!
She’s so good at my Mom and Sister’s houses; she sleeps alone and has no problem with it…usually.
I try bribing her, telling her she gets to go to the store and pick out something new. I was also thinking of buying her some books on sleeping in your own bed. I just wish she would sleep in her own bed!! Of course I miss her snuggling up with me, but she’ll be 5 in September, it’s now or never!!
So help! What have you done to help your little one transition to their own bed? What should/shouldn’t I be doing?
**Stay tuned for Mommy Glow’s 1st Giveaway from Mary Kay!
I'm kinda in that same situation. My little mama starts off sleeping in the bed, then I move her to her crib. A few hours later she's crying to come back with mommy. We've tried the "crying it out thing" but it hasn't worked yet. I wish she was old enough for a toddler bed but even then she probably wouldnt stay asleep in it very long.
ReplyDeleteWe are in the same boat. I have desperately been trying to get my 8 month old to sleep in his crib. We moved in with my parents right before his birth to save money and 2 weeks ago we got our own place so little man has his own room now. I've tried putting the crib next to our bed to see if that helps but the most that did was keep him sleep for 2 hrs until he wakes up crying bloody murder again.
ReplyDeleteWhat do we do ladies?! The biggest thing I think is consistency, if we slip up our kids are gonna expect us to slip up all the time. We gotta stick to our words when we put them in their rooms. But goodness, hearing my daughter cry..makes me cry, its awful, all I want to do is run to her and have her fall asleep next to me. Booo
ReplyDeleteI'm a little ashamed to admit this but I slept in my mum's bed till I was 10 and went off to boarding school.Like your daughter I had my pretty room but I guess my mum didn't try too hard to get me to stay in my room! So I guess being consistent is the key!
ReplyDeleteI think that buying books that talk about sleeping her own bed would be great. Also, a good way to get her used to sleeping in her bed is to develop a night time routine. Set a wind down time and then a time you want her to be in bed by. While she's trying to doze off in her own bed you could read her the books.
ReplyDeleteI think the key is to start her off in her own bed every night. Eventually, it will click that she has to stay there and her body will get used to the new bed and she won't wake up in the middle of night. Also, if she doesn't already have a night light, getting her one might help. I wish you the best of luck.
I know what I have to look forward to with Moo since we still co-sleep as well, but I'm up for the challenge. I've watched my mom ween my younger three siblings from co-sleeping with her. So, I know that it could take weeks before I will see progress, but I know that the secret is to not give in. Stay firm, but understanding.
Let me know when you figure it out because I am in the same boat. Our son is 2 and I feel guilty when I put him in his room. I tried sitting w/ him till he falls asleep and he does the same stare at me. Its a tough battle.
ReplyDelete