Big Boy Bed

As most of you know we still have a 20 month old sleeping in our bed. It is something I vowed I would never do. For those of you who know "our little secret," also know the story behind it. After we brought him home from the NICU, he slept in a bassinet in our room for a few days, which he hated. We then moved him into his own room in his crib (Probably the only good reason that he was on oxygen and an apnea monitor was that it made us feel more comfortable about leaving him alone). Here's proof that he actually did use his crib:


He slept great in his crib until August last year. He got pneumonia, ended up with a PICC line, and we had to give him 6 weeks worth of IV antibiotics. One was every four hours and the other was every 6 hours, around the clock. (Each one took 45 minutes to go in, and then we'd have to hook up a flush, which took another 30 minutes) The pump always seemed to malfunction at night, so he'd always wake up while I tried to figure out the problem. This got very old, very fast and Joel suggested that we just put him in our bed to make it easier on me during the night. I knew I'd regret it, but at the time we were just trying to survive the antibiotic nightmare. For some reason, the pump never gave us trouble while he was in our bed and I could hook him up without waking him. The problem is, after the 6 weeks were up, we never got him back into his crib.

So this summer, my goal was to get him back into his crib. We decided to start with naps first (yes, he even got in the habit of taking naps in our bed). I tried the cry it out method for the first few days. The kid would cry for 3 hours straight, even with me checking in every 5-10 minutes. I had to close doors and listen to music because it broke my heart to hear him cry. He'd never end up falling asleep. Then I tried sitting by his crib until he fell asleep. He'd cry about an hour and then finally fall asleep while I was patting his little bottom. However, he'd always wake up after 15 minutes and wouldn't go back to sleep. He was tired and miserable, but would not give in to the crib. So we, being the loving parents that we are, let him continue sleeping in our bed. Could you resist a face like this?!

Then we found out that we're expecting a new baby and decided that the "family bed" just isn't going to work anymore. Since he clearly hates his crib, we decided to get him a "big boy bed." Joel went and bought him a fire truck bed and Caleb LOVES it. Well, loves playing in it. It has a light on top that he likes to turn on and off and since he's discovered jumping, it's good for that too. We thought it would be an easier transition for him by putting it into our room first. That was a nightmare because all he wanted to do was go back and forth between the beds. So now it's in his own room, which is better anyway. I'm happy to report that when I tell him it's time to take a nap in his fire truck bed, he practically runs down the hallway and climbs in. It's a bit of a struggle getting him to sleep, but not the hours it took before. Plus, he'll sleep at least an hour which is great. Now, I need to get up the courage to try nights in the fire truck. That will be another story, I'm sure.....