It's been 7 days. Last Friday night the babe moved into a "big girl bed" with a twin size mattress and her Aunt's old teak bed frame. Getting the frame here from Canada was a bit of a "to do" as they say, but I now realize how special it is that the babe is sleeping in the bed her Aunt once slept in as a girl.
My daughter was just seeming rather large for her toddler bed. She was slightly crammed in there, and while she might have felt a sense of security, she has shown no sadness in passing along her bed to her little brother. The babe is now perched remarkably high from the ground as I seemed to have bought a massive mattress, but she is confident when she climbs in and hasn't fallen out once (so far). Just in case, I have a few big pillows placed strategically around the bed. Every day my babe continues to become a "big" girl. I am relieved she embraces these changes wholeheartedly. I try to do the same.
The little guy hasn't had such a smooth transition. We thought he was ready to move beyond the crib. He was easily unzipping himself from his sleep sack in the morning so we thought it was just a matter of time before he was climbing over the edge like his sister had once done. It hadn't happened yet, but it was just a matter of time. So we decided that the little guy would get his "new" bed the same day his sister got hers. A natural progression of sorts.
We got both beds set up simultaneously and did a big presentation of the new sleeping arrangements with both kids. I think the little guy was more excited about the babe's bed and kept screaming and crying saying it was his bed. Not the most positive reaction.
Things have gone OK with night time sleeps, with a few bumps and tears along the way. But our nap time has been a bit of a drama. The babe is usually at school when the little guy naps. He has always been a great day time napper and never made an issue of me tucking him in for a nap in his old crib. Apparently tucking him into a toddler bed is a very different thing in his head. I have spent hours this week walking up the stairs and delivering him back to his new bed. He proceeds to get back up and cry at the gate at the top of the stairs. I knew we were losing the control the crib had brought us, but I guess I didn't realize how determined he would be. I am proud that I have generally kept my cool with the situation as I know he is having a tough time with this transition, but I am hoping within a few more days things will go back to the way they used to be. Nap time is a precious time for me as well.
Now on to my feelings (because you want to know, right?). I took pictures as we moved beds, set up new beds and took apart the crib. We have had just one crib in use since the babe was born almost 4.5 years ago. I am extremely attached to the crib and am sad to see it go up to the attic. I am not so sad that I want to have another baby, but I am sad enough that I had to make a note of it here. My babies are growing up and that is what I wanted. It still tugs on my heart strings to say good bye to a piece of furniture that has played such a big role in our lives for the past few years. To watch my children go from looking so itty bitty and helpless in the crib to so big that I think they are going to climb over the edge has been quite a journey. Saying good bye to the co-sleeper was hard. Saying good bye to the crib is harder. Perhaps I am more sentimental than I thought.
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