Rachel and Zak didn’t think it was practical to have Hella in the small nursery with the new bally, nor did they want her to feel resentful that she was being pushed out of her own bedroom to make way for a new arrival. They decided to make the switch at the same time - a new bedroom and a new bed - before the bally arrived, so there seemed nothing unnatural about it. “With hindsight, ” says Rachel, “it may have been too much of a change all at once, because although Hella was excited about her new room, it was still an unfamiliar environment, which meant she was less settled at night.”
Rachel and Zak involved Rella as much as possible, letting her choose the colors for her new room, and taking her shopping to buy her choice of Minnie Mouse comforter - a clever way of exciting her about her new bed. If you don’t really need new bed clothes, it’s just as effective to get your child a new toy - a teddy bear or a doll - that “lives” in the bed. This will make her feel secure.
Little By Little
Rachel and Zak allowed Rella a few practice runs in her bed, which is a good idea. “As a treat,” says Zak, “we would hide a little toy under the comforter and let her find it. Two weeks before we planned to move her in, we started letting her take her naps there - a good tip that Rachel picked up at a toddler playgroup. Because Rella had the naps during the day, she got used to her bed withÂout the complication of night-time fears.
“I think it was a good idea to do this gradually, because children can have fears that adults never imagine. One of the new things we bought to go in Rella’s room, for instance, was a Mickey Mouse alarm clock, to go with her comforter. On the second night in her new bed, we heard her crying and rushed into her room. She was obviously terrified and said there was a man there. We assured her multi roulettecasino games freewarecasino online mit bonusgolden palace online casinobaccarat onlineroulette trickskeno spielechte kasinospielewww casinoslots spielegluck spielcasino online listebesten casino onlineblackjack downloadroulette spielregelnspielen sie kostenlos kasinospiele onlineswiss casino bonusonline casino gamegambling onlineblackjack spielefrei spielkostenlose online casino spiele,casino spiele online spielen,online casino spieleatlantic citybaccarat downloadvideo poker onlinecasino club netparty casino bonuscasino online no depositpoker rouletteroulette regeljoyland casino bonusroulette im internetinternet casino pokeronline kasino spielenonline casino rouletteslot machine,slot machine spielen,slot machine online spielenonline casino ohne einzahlung 30 euro bonus,online casino mit bonus,online casino bonusslotmaschinen spielenonline casino deutschlandroulette onlinespielroulette softwareall slots casinoroulette taktikinternet casinoskostenlose casino gamesonline poker verbotenplay texas holdempoker regeln straighttexas holdem h?ndepoker spiel download freeware there wasn’t, but she insisted she could hear his footsteps quite clearly. Luckily, Rachel took her seriously and figured out it was the rather loud ticking of the alarm clock she could hear!”
Even though Rachel and Zak took the clock away, Rella refused to spend the rest of the night in her room. The night after was better, although there were several occasions during the following two weeks when she wet the bed. This seems to have been part of the adjustment process, as she hasn’t done it since.
“It’s difficult to see it from a child’s point of view,” explains Zak, “but I suppose it must be quite frightening to be put in a big bed in a new room. At first I thought Rachel was being pedantic when she said we should prepare Rella for the move, but in the light of experience I realize she was quite right.”
When is The Right Time?
There are no hard and fast rules for deciding when the time is right to make the switch. In general, it is between the age of two and a half to three and a half years, although this depends substantially on your child’s temperament and your own personal circumstances; like Rachel and Zak, you may have little choice, or alternatively, your child might clearly outgrow her crib and refuse to stay in it. A child who can climb out of her crib can cause herself harm, and it is safer to put her in a low bed than run the risk of her toppling off the edge of a high crib.
Bear in mind that once your child is in a bed, she will be able to get out and investigate the nooks and crannies of her room when she wakes up in the morning. This means it is advisable to reassess safety measures to make sure that an unsupervised child won’t come to any harm.
If, like Rachel and Zak, you are expecting another baby, don’t move your first child out of her room or crib when the new baby arrives, as this will obviously fuel jealousy. As with everything else, it’s best to give your child time to adapt to a new idea and involve her in the preparations wherever possible.
Unless you have to move your child, there is little point in trying to force the issue. While some children want to get out of their crib as soon as possible, others need a little more time and a bit more persuading. If all else fails, entice your child into bed by getting into it yourself - children are usually curious about what their parents are doing and will quickly imitate them.
Making a Smooth Transition
Help your child make the switch to a big bed by recreating a secure environment like the one she had in her crib. If your child is scared or unsettled, she won’t sleep, and that means you won’t either, so it’s worth preparing your child for the move. Start off, as Rachel and Zak did, by making it a positive and exciting change.
Tell your child that now she’s a big girl, she’s very lucky to get to sleep in a big bed, “like Mommy and Daddy do.” Put lots of her favorite toys there and consider installing a night light or just leaving the bedroom door open so she can see the hall light. If music helps to soothe her, play some while she goes to sleep.
Once you have put your child to bed, don’t make the mistake of disappearing suddenly, as this will unsettle her and you might find yourself back at square one. Instead, make sure she is comfortable: sing songs or read a story, leave a drink by the bed, then say goodbye more than once without closing the door so that she knows you are still there.
If your child is not changing rooms, put the new bed into the nursery for a few months before making the switch, so that it’s familiar. Some children are scared they will fall out of their new bed because there is no barrier. If this is a problem, make a temporary barrier by lining up a few chairs next to the bed or putting a row of cushions between your child and the edge of the bed.