Caroline's Big Girl Bed

When we made our unplanned visit to Dallas to visit the ahead of schedule Baby George, we realized that there was only one pack 'n' play at Grandma's forcing one of our kids to sleep in a real bed for the first time ever. It was a no brainer on who would get the bed...it had to be our champ sleeper, Caroline. Without the barriers, I can't imagine us keeping Caden in bed for more than two minutes.

Caroline was extremely proud her bed. This bed was my old bunk bed and will someday be Caden's. I put the guard rail up and stacked a few pillows to help keep Caroline from falling out. Caroline lined up the animals next to the railing.
When it was time to go to sleep, I told Caroline she couldn't get out of bed until mommy or I told her she could, and sure enough, she obeyed. Caroline stayed in bed all night and slept like her usual awesome sleeping self. In the morning, she played in her bed until I told her she could get out.

When we returned home, Amy convinced me to turn Caroline's crib into a toddler bed. I had been resisting this idea since I didn't want to mess up any of Caroline's good sleeping patterns. But after seeing how well Caroline did in Dallas, I finally conceded.

Caroline was super excited when she saw I "built her a new bed." She was very proud, thanked me, and said she loved it.
Caden was very excited for Caroline and wanted to try out her new bed.
Both kids played in the bed for awhile.
Since converting Caroline's crib to a toddler bed, Caroline has continued to sleep very well.

After going to bed, she has gotten up only two or three times within 45 minutes of going to bed and that was only to go potty. Immediately after finishing, she walks back to her room, closes her door, and tucks herself back in. (Funny thing, in each of these occasions, Caden was still awake hanging out with us. Thankfully, this did not seem to phase Caroline. We always wondered if she knew Caden's bedtime was later than her's.)

Once asleep, Caroline has never gotten out of the bed. She is so good, that in the morning, she lays in bed and waits for Amy or I to come tell her she can get up.

Now, we just need to get Caden into a big boy bed. Would it be frowned upon if I handcuffed him to the rail?