Toddler Sleeping - Let's Discuss

{Dear future daughter-in-law, welcome. This should be archived into your files. If you have a mini-version of Jack one day...this information will be important.}

So, as many of you know, we struggled with Jack escaping from his crib during our last few weeks at my parents' house. He had given up naps and everyone was miserable. Everyone.

Fast forward to today and I am happy to say we are back on our regular schedule...and Jack sleeps happily in his "big boy bed" (twin bed). Phew. It was actually fairly painless.

Here are the ingredients needed to get Jack to sleep in his room:
1. The ability to think faster than a two year old. Put yourself into Jack's head and then fix anything that he would use against you. Example: there is a sink in Jack's room (it's part of the Jack & Jill Josie bathroom, but there isn't a door on it) I had my brother Joe turn off the water to that sink. Why? Because Jack and water would be a crazy-huge claim on our Homeowner's Policy.


2. Invest in a video baby monitor. Somehow I managed to live without one of these for more than two years...but now I'm not sure what I was thinking. It's amazing. Jack calls it "robot." And we have made a big deal about how "robot" sleeps when Jack plays, but works while Jack sleeps. Robot's job is to tell mommy & daddy when Jack is up. After a few investigations into "Robot" {and a few close-ups of his nostrils} - Jack pretty much leaves robot alone. And I have been able to rest easy knowing he's asleep...in his bed...

3. Locks. Okay, this may seem harsh but Jack gets locked in his room. If you think about it - it's dangerous for him to be able to wander around at night. He sleeps upstairs and we sleep on the main level. Not a good idea for him to try to come downstairs in the dark. Our dogs also sleep in the family room...and while they love Jack (or at least pretend to love him) - I don't want to worry about one of them thinking he's an intruder in the middle of the night. (Cooper is from the streets. He was taught to bite first, ask questions later.) Every night after we tuck him into bed Jack wanders around his room. He checks the doors, sits on the floor, and eventually decides to climb back in bed to fall asleep. I have also put a lock on his closet because he was sneaking in there and it was out of Robot's view.

4. Quiet Toys. Jack has a small box full of books, a train, his magna-doodle, and a VTech Alphabet Toy. When he isn't quite ready for a nap...but mommy is ready for a break - he can read or play with the things in the box. It's been awesome! The other day I watched him read on the floor, play with the train & the Alphabet Toy...then he sang his ABC's and climbed in bed.

They are ALWAYS this neat. Riiiight.

5. Less is more. When it comes to Jack - less is definitely more. He can't handle having a bunch of "stuff" in his room. And quite frankly, I don't think he needs much in there. It's a place for him to be calm and rest. He has plenty of other places in the house for craziness & chaos.

6. Finally, patience is a huge piece. I've had to find more of mine when dealing with my stubborn little guy. I don't want to get too deep...but I've actually asked God {out loud} for more patience on more than one occasion. I think he heard me.