Around the age of two, or maybe a little later, parents are typically faced with the task of transitioning their toddler from a crib to a bed.
I'm going to give you a few suggestions to help you to successfully make this adjustment with your own toddler. But before I do, we should start with a brief discussion of why your toddler might resist this change. It isn't complicated. All people tend to fight change. Once you become comfortable with something, changing it is not very desirable. Toddlers tend to behave in this same way. Toddlers are people too!
Toddler Travel Bed
People will accept change when:
1. The old action / behavior is inferior to the new one;
2. The old behavior / action is not available anymore, and the new one is the best alternative;
3. The change is literally forced upon them, and eventually it becomes a new habit.
Clearly number 1 is the preferred option with young kids because it doesn't create a disruption. Imagine what would happen if you offered your toddler a chocolate chip cookie for dessert instead of a piece of celery! That's what I mean by a change that the toddler will make on his or her own. So, to get a toddler to switch to a toddler bed you need to get the toddler to associate a lot of positive attributes to the new bed.
In the specific case of moving from a crib to a bed, options 2 and 3 listed above are really the same thing. You're taking away the old choice by removing the crib, but you're doing it without the toddler's agreement. This can result in your toddler becoming upset, but eventually he or she gets over the issue, and a new pattern is established.
How can parents create a situation where their toddler actually wants to switch to a bed? Here are several things you can try:
1) Take your toddler bed shopping. If you can get your toddler to pick out is or her own bed, then you have a better shot that the toddler will really enjoy his or her new bed. People don't tend to want to buy things they hate, right?
2) Put the new bed in your child's room. Don't take the crib away right away. Just leave the new bed there and treat it like it's just another piece of furniture. Don't even mention that the crib will be taken away yet, because your toddler may actually want to sleep in the new bed without you having to force it. If you get to the point of making the transition and you face huge resistance, then you might have to just remove the crib by surprise. But don't rush it at this stage.
3) Take your toddler onto the bed with you and sit or lie together while playing quiet games. You can use those wood toddler puzzles or shape games, which are great quiet things to do. Read books together on the bed. Cuddle together. Tickle your toddler into a state of laughter. The key is to do things that are fun so that these fun feelings become "anchored" to the bed. Anchoring is something that I teach in my Talking to Toddlers Audio Course, which all parents should consider for dealing with difficult toddlers.
4) Tell your child that he or she has a choice about where to sleep at night or at nap time. Then do something that makes the bed seem far more appealing. For example you can give your toddler a "big boy/girl pillow" if he sleeps in the new bed. It should remain a choice at this stage. Your goal is to get your toddler to chose the bed on his or her own.
If these tips don't work for you then you might have to take the crib away altogether. But you don't need to rush the process.
Finally, if you need to remove the crib without your toddler's agreement, you can always tell them that the crib is broken. This worked very well for my wife and I with our first daughter. We needed to prepare the room for our new baby and we were moving our daughter into a new room. We told her it was broken, and put the old crib mattress beside her new bed in her new room. She slept on it for a while, but eventually moved to the bed on her own.
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KidCo PeaPod Portable Travel Bed - Periwinkle Feature
- Travel bed
- Mattress Included
- Great for outdoors
- UV protection and wind screens
- Zippered panel
KidCo PeaPod Portable Travel Bed - Periwinkle Overview
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