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So…Blake made the big switch! You know, from a nursery to a “big girl” room. Obviously it’s adorable, but my heart it basically broken because my little baby girl is growing up WAY too fast. I wanted to wait until she was two before making the switch, but she had other plans and thought that climbing out of her crib 7564738 times at night was more fun, so we went with it and made the entire switch earlier. I’ve had lots of questions about how we did the transition, tips and tricks and everything in between. So today I’m sharing all the tips and tricks I have and what worked for us in making the transition (mostly) smooth. Honestly Blake has done really well with it, we’ve had a couple of rough nights, but she’s stayed in her bed and taken to it pretty well.

TIPS AND TRICKS

1. Routine: This was key for us. We kept with literally, the exact, same routine only this time we laid her down in her bed rather than her crib. If you want to see our bedtime routine, you can check it out, here.
2. Built it the same day. The day we built it, it was in our living room and Blake LOVED it, like she wanted to play on it all day. I let her play for a little bit, but then the mean Mom that I am, I moved her crib out of her room and replaced it with her toddler bed. I think her actually watching me do this, put two and two together for her. I didn’t want her to see it as a living room toy, but rather a place where she sleeps at night!
3. Room set up. The first week, I had her room set up EXACTLY the same as with her crib, her bed just replaced the crib. This kept everything familiar and made things a little smoother. Then after about a week and a half I rearranged it to the way I wanted for her new “big girl” bed and I had her “help” me so she could see it all go down.
4. Easily accessible. It’s totally up to you whether or not you close the door, etc. that choice honestly comes from whatever works for your family. However, for us from day one I have learned that at least acknowledging her for the most part has done us good and kept the “requests” to a minimum. For example, when she’s screaming for me I’ll generally go in there, tell her it’s bed time and then leave again or if it’s a really rough night, I’ll just lay there with her for a few minutes. BUT that’s what works for us, so it’s going to be different for everyone. Obviously when it’s a night filled with a whole lot of “Mamas” I don’t go in every time, but I try my best to acknowledge her so that she knows I’m there if she needs me.
5. Snuggles. When we did the transition to a new bed, I let her pick out what “blankey” she wanted to sleep with, as well as her lovie. I think giving her those little comfort items, that she also had in her crib, has made a world of differences and kept things familiar.
6. Mornings. When she wakes up, she’s really good about just waiting in her room until we come in there. I keep a few toys in the closet and on her shelf and she will usually grab one of those to play with or a book to look at until one of us comes in there.

Now, this is just what works for us, every single babe is different, but I think the biggest advice I have is to just keep things as familiar as possible so that it doesn’t even seem like a big change! Another thing that I’ve heard that works well, is if you switch them right before they start climbing out of their bed because this way they don’t even realize they can get up and explore around ya know?! HA! That way it possibly eliminates the whole, getting in and out of bed thing.

Have tips or tricks? Tell me in the comments!

Favorite toddler bed & accessories…