slooooow down, no need for the sex talk yet…
the magoo is not even 2 years old.
say it with me, THE MAGOO IS NOT EVEN 2 YEARS OLD.
this is incredibly easy for one to forget. jackson is a bruiser of a kid. he beats up on his 85 lb dog, scales furniture to the point of reaching windows, and makes forts underneath our dining room table because he likes to “be hiding.”
he is unbelievably verbal, already producing short phrases like “i got it” and “help me mommy.” his favorite word to say right now is “elephant,” a 3 syllable word that is actually recognizable when you hear him say it.
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side note: just now, the three of us were sitting on the couch when paul snagged a booger out of jackson’s nose and went to wipe it on my arm as i typed this post.
i threw my hands in the air and said, “DUDE, YOU CAN PUT THE BOOG ON MY SHIRT BUT NOT ON MY ARM.”
jackson climbed out of paul’s lap, turned around at both of us and exclaimed, “DUDE!”
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i don’t list out these stats to boast that my child is better and more brilliant than anyone else’s. i already know that.
i list out these stats as a reminder to myself that jackson is still so young. he is not even 21 months yet… 4 more days. he will be 2 in april.
the changes in our son occur so fast and furiously, whether it’s a physical change, leaving us begging his grandparents to ship us larger clothes so that we don’t have to buy them ourselves, or the magoo shocking us with his brilliance, saying “DUDE!”
so perhaps it will come as no surprise to you readers to hear that jackson’s big boy bed is now my nemesis. correction: it’s not so much the bed itself that i loathe, it’s the entire sleeping process that is now on day 7 of SUCKING. it’s the up and down and screaming and banging and unwillingness to get back in bed no matter how exhausted this stubborn child is.
dude, it’s not cool.
i am stronger when paul is around, keeping me from going in and rescuing my son from his torture chamber of a bedroom. given the abundance of diverse feedback i received last week, he and i had a lot to discuss and a lot to experiment with over the long weekend. in fact, we’re still experimenting… because we’re still losing this battle.
we listened to jackson scream and bang on his bedroom door for over an hour last night. the door knob contraption had been removed… a baby gate was put in place outside of his bedroom door. he banged and screamed and scratched and yelled for “DADDDDDYYYYYYYYY” for over an hour. i had to ask paul to turn the volume up on the tv in an attempt to distract myself with the golden globes (and a lot of wine) because it was so painful to listen to. and mind you, i’ve been listening to this for a week.
at 10:30 last night, i went in to check on jackson. opening the door super slowly just incase he had fallen asleep on the floor next to it, i entered his dimly lit room. toys and soft book were on the floor, covering his carpet. i walked over to his bed, found his blankets bunched up.. but found no magoo underneath the blankets or in his bed.
jackson had instead climbed up into the glider and was asleep on his back, legs bent like a frog, in the chair that his dad and i rock him to sleep in every day and night.
my heart sank. he was searching for comfort and i hadn’t provided him with that.
and so this morning, i sit on the couch, sip my coffee, listen to the magoo play with his daddy and sip his milk.
he’s still so young.
so… where does this leave us in terms of our magoo bedroom drama???
hell if i know.
currently we are discussing the option of “regressing” and putting his crib rail back up. perhaps our not-even-2-year-old is not yet ready for the independence a big boy bed provides.
perhaps the college applications need to be put back in the drawer for a while.
perhaps he is still my baby.
dude.
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twice...
Oh, I wish I had something wise to say or could stop by tonight and lend you some support (damn this living so far away). Whatever you decide to do will be fine. If you leave the toddler bed the way it is the Magoo will figure it out eventually, if you go back to the crib that will be fine too. You guys are great parents and will make the right choice for you and the Magoo.
Ugh…that is so tough. That’s one of those things that there are no easy answers to.
I would say if he’s climbing out of cribs then putting it back up is probably not the best option.
Just keep at it. And maybe rather than ignoring him (that never works for V either. She just gets louder and madder until she eventually makes herself throw up), go in, give him a hug, and put him back to bed without saying anything. Repeat eleventy billion times a night.
What about giving him a little flashlight to take to bed with him? V loves to play with hers and it quite often keeps her entertained until she falls asleep (while acting as a night light)
Little dude! haha He’s funny…. He’s so verbal, you NEED to remind yourself he’s not 2 yet.
Something that worked with my son instead of the bigboy bed around 2: I shaved off 3 bars from the rail of the crib. That way he has a hole that he can use, but he still has his little “jail wall” he feels secure in. Just a thought!
CHeers for the DUDE!!!
I wish I had some awesome words of wisdom here, but I do not. Kellen hasn’t mastered the art of climbing upon his crib so it, luckily, has stayed. It’s for the safety of your son that you transitioned him because we don’t need him falling out of his crib, but I know that you are feeling that you may not be ready for this big step. Are one of those mesh tents an option if you move back to the crib??
I am going through the same anxiety feelings. Kellen started going potty yesterday on his own. I’m not even trying to potty train and now I’m in a state of frenzy trying to read up on everything I should know. Lord help us both!
Well I can’t really say for sure on the bed thing because Mason was all about his. Did you try new sheets and bed rails on the side…so it feels new and fun but also some security? IDK. We put Mas in a twin bed with a long tall rail on the side, and a bottom rail, so there was only a little hole for him to get in and out. LOL We went “Cars” crazy for Mas and he was just in love with the bed. I know exactly what you mean by not letting his physical strengths overshadow his age. That happens with Mason A LOT!!! I have heard of crib tents working well also. Jenn is right about walking him back a million and a half times…I have heard that working too. Because he IS a smart little dude and he will get it.
Whatever you decide, just know it’s best for you guys and he IS just a baby. Whatever works, go with it. It will make everyone happier. I just hope you figure out what that is…SOON. Good luck mama! xo
Have you looked into buying one of those tent contraptions that go on top of a crib to keep the babe in? Ezra is 2.5 and still in his crib, although he doesn’t try to climb out…good luck!
aw, little man!!
i know it’s easier said than done, but don’t beat yourself up. you’re obviously a wonderful mother. little magoo will eventually get used to his big boy bed and you’ll both go back to restful nights.
also, beth’s idea seems like a good one!
good luck, mama!
xo
My son is almost 3 and still doesn’t say as much as your Magoo says. Oh well. . .He’ll catch up, right???
On the other hand, when Isabella was 11 months old…MONTHS old, not even a year old, I would say to her, “Go get your Row Row book”. She’d go to her room, wade through piles of books, find the nursery rhyme book that was so big she could barely carry and bring it to me. She would then flip through the book, page by page, until she found the page that had the illustration of the two animals rowing a boat in water and she would point to that illustration and then sing the nursery rhyme “Row Row Your Boat”.
It’s so hard not to expect the same thing from Joey. So. Hard. He’ll be there one day. One day.
Your little Magoo sounds like a real ham saying Dude! Cute!!
We are going through the same thing you are. My son is 20 months old and will be 2 in May. For over a year he has slept fabulously both at night and nap time. However, for the past couple of weeks he has fought tooth and nail when it’s time to sleep. When it first started happening I thought he was just getting used to being back in his own bed (as we’d been at my mom’s for the holiday). But our nights continued to end with screams and finally silence. We tried everything from keeping him up longer, having us alternate putting him to bed, giving him longer baths, letting him watch a cartoon before bed, etc. It’s gotten better, but he still starts screaming immediately when we put him in his crib. At first we tried picking him up and comforting him, but that would just pro-long the inevitable since he would scream every time we tried to transfer him to the bed. Finally, we just succumbed to the fact that we would have to deal with a little screaming.
However, my little one is still in the crib as he has not mastered (thank goodness) climbing out of his crib. I don’t think it would be bad at all for you to ‘regress’ back to the crib. Especially if it makes your little one feel safer. See what happens perhaps. Maybe he’ll feel so much better about having his old bed back that he will fall to sleep easily. We started putting a night-light on and let ours play with his “my pal scout” (totally the cutest toy EVER), after he stops screaming obviously, until he falls asleep.
It is definitley hard. Apparently around 18-22 months they go through a natural sleep regression anyway, and with the change in bed, may just be too much.
I hope things get better. You’re not alone in all this.
He is just a babe, my friend. Apparently a smart and sassy one, but still a babe. Roll with it. Roll with him. Do what you have to and don’t beat yourself up. He will sleep. He will love you.
(Dude.)
just testing to see if your comments still hate me
@Becky YAY!!! thanks for doing the wonky check for me.
It’s not regressing it is listening to the needs of your child. Baby steps for your “baby” FYI. Most boys are not even ready for potty training until 3 or 3/12. I waited until 3 1/2 for both boys and it was pretty easy.
There are no steadfast rules on how to do X for each child other than have expectations but listen to their needs.
And this too shall pass.
Ohhh sweetie, I can only imagine how difficult it is to have to navigate situations like these. I hope you find something that works for Jackson and that doesnt make you nuts! *BIG HUGS*
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