How to Get Toddler into Toddler Bed.

Put her in it and leave the room. Repeat as often as necessary. Starting with nap time may be helpful.
It may not even be as hard as you fear, my daughter never even climbed out of the bed like I thought she would and after sleeping in it a couple of times it wasn't even an issue for her (she never WANTED to sleep in the big girl bed)
Good luck!

SuperNanny!!! Jo Frost has the greatest technics in her book for situations just like this. According to her;

1. place child in bed and say "its time for bed, or "time to go to sleep" (whatever you say normally in your family)
2. If the kiddo gets up, place them back in bed saying simply "good night".
3. If the child gets up, place them back in bed saying nothing and making no eye contact.
4. Repeat number three til the kiddo stays put.
5. You can also sit near to the door so that the child can see you but there is no conversation. (also dont face the child, sit with your back to them, or at an angle)

Her technics work!!! I have used several for my almost three year old. Although not this particular sleep technic. (I have one of those weird kids, she has NO DESIRE to sleep with us ;)It may take a little effort on your part, but you really should have your problem solved in just a few days.

Good Luck!!
Margaret :)

This is obviously coming way too late for you, but maybe someone else will read this. 10 years ago when my husband first joined the military and the movers came, my mother in law (who had also been a military wife for 26 years) gave me the greatest advice ever. The movers don't want to have to re-assemble anything so they will often "lose the hardware" so they don't have to. She advised me to stand over them while they take it apart have them place everything in a zip-lock bag, and then put the bag in your purse. I realize this doesn't help you but I thought it might get passed along to others.

About the bed, I think you got some great advice already, set a boundary and stick with it. Any way you do it its going to be hard, but the longer she is in bed with you the harder its going to be. Good luck.
K.

P., I pulled a super nanny on my son. I had once watched an episode where a family had the same problem. They explained to the child that it's time to sleep in her own bed (make sure she has her favorite stuffed animal or blanket for security). Read her a story, put her in bed, turn the lights out and kiss her goodnight. She will definitely get out of bed; the first time, explain to her that its bedtime and you love her. After that, no talking, just pick her up and put her in bed. Do it over and over and over until she gives up. The first night we tried this, it lasted over an hour and a half. I must have put my son back in bed 85 times (literally). Before I could even get out of his room, he would be out of bed again. It seemed ridiculous. BUT....it worked, he finally gave up and realized I wasn't going to give. The next night, I only had to put him in bed 25x or so. The next night it was only about 10x. Then by day 4, he stayed. There was lots of crying involved but it was the best thing we ever did. He is a fantastic sleeper and rarely tries to get out of bed at bedtime. He is now 5. It's and exhausting few days but worth it! In the next few months, I will be going down this road again with our second child. I'd take a look at the Super Nanny website to see if you can find the details on this process. Good luck; hope you get some sleep soon!

i agree super nanny it. at two she is old enough to understand. our son gets time out since a little over one yr. he gets it.

Have you tried taking her to the store and letting her pick out her own big girl bed? I know my son always reacted to change better when he was able to make his own choice. You may also want to purchase an air mattress for you! Now my son just turned 4 but I still lay down with him until he falls asleep. It's wonderful and comforting for both of us. Laying next to your daughter may also help her feel more secure.

I don't think the tears and fighting with your child to stay in bed (the super nanny way) is necessary. My son knows that if he calls for me I will be there. He stays in his bed and waits for me. Trust me - now that he's potty trained I want him to call me if he has to go in the middle of the night! We have a split bedroom plan so I don't want him walking across the house. I've never had to lock him in, just come to him when he called for me. Best of luck!

First, take her with you to buy the linens for the bed. One set of sheets at least, and you can get the others, but having some say in what's going on will make her feel better. Toddler beds are little, too, so save yourself some money and buy a throw blanket to put on the bed instead of a comforter set. She can pick out what color she wants. Later, she can keep the throw, and it won't be weird for a teenager to still have a Tinkerbell comfortor stuffed in a drawer....

I would try her in the bed for naptime first, for maybe a week. That way, when it's finally time for nighttime sleeping in the bed, it's not an unfamiliar place.

Also, we found that when we transitioned our daughter, she was suddenly very interested in the freedom. So we turned her doorknob around and locked it. You have made her room a safe place. It's just as safe at night. You probably also still have a monitor in there. She will fall asleep, and probably wherever she happens to be. It might take a night or naptime or two, but she'll soon learn that it's more comfortable to sleep in her bed, and it will be a lesson SHE learned all on her own, instead of one you tried to tell her. You can decide when you're ready to unlock the door. She was stuck in her crib, now she'll be stuck in her room; it's really just a bigger crib, with more access to toys, right?

That was a case of curiousity more than anything, and exploring newfound freedom. For crying or other actual protest, though, I would go with the supernanny or Ferber advice. Go in, visit, (we did Ferber, visit after 3 min, then wait 5 min, then wait 7 min, etc) but DON'T CAVE IN. It's still bed/naptime, and you're still the mom.

Good luck, mom!

We recently transitioned our 2 and half yo son to his own room and own bed, after he slept with us for about 1 year! When he was too big for the toddler bed, around 18 months, we simply let him sleep with us...so when we found out we were expecting with our second, I decided that the transition to a big boy bed was particularly important for our little bucking bronco! He loves "Little Einsteins" and planets, stars, etc, so over the past few months, I decorated his room and bed with all his favorite themes...got "Little Einsteins" bed sheets, and really played up the whole process of his sleeping in his own "Rocket bed!" We started with naps during the day first and then nighttime just sort of happened. Last night, in fact, I asked him if he wanted to sleep in Mommy and Papa's room or his "planet room," and he preferred his own room...this age is pretty amazing...they'll develop their own sense of self pretty quickly, I'm learning, and I'm continuously amazed by their resilience. That being said, I still like to sleep next to him, to put him to bed, since that is what he has been so used to for the past year. But I enjoy the time, and I know soon enough, he won't need me to do that any longer. What can I say...he's a mama's boy! :) So long story short - create a room she will want to spend time in, and bed sheets with her favorite theme, and before you know it, your little princess will be sleeping on her own little "throne!!" Good luck!

Hi there! I completely understand where you are coming from! My daughter has slept in our room since she was a newborn, partly because I nursed her up until a year and then after that, we just never took initiative to transition her until recently. Here are some suggestions that I did because I don't belief in the "cry it out" method. 1) I bought her some books about bedtime and began reading them to her. "Teach me about bedtime" and also "It's time to sleep in your own bed". These are great to help her get familiar with being a big girl and sleeping in her own big girl bed. 2) Also decorate her bed with her favorite character and also a night light. Letting her be a part of picking out the sheets, etc. 3) I also created a bedtime chart out of Dora (my daughter loves her) and every morning if she slept thru the night in her own bed, she got a sticker and a few pieces of candy. This worked great with her when potty training so I thought to give it another try with other behaviors.

My husband or I will stay with her in her room until she falls asleep. Once I feel that she is comfortable with that, then we'll begin transitioning for her to fall asleep by herself. It takes time, patience, and consistency! If she gets out of bed, take her right back to her bed. Another thing I know my daughter takes peace in knowing is that we go to her if she needs us too. Partly because sometimes she is scared by herself so her knowing that we go right away to kiss her and show her everything is ok, that reinforces that she is safe. Last, find every opportunity to praise her and point out how proud you are of her sleeping in her bed. Good luck!

What seemed to work best for us was some sort of bedtime routine. You're probably already doing it. With my kids, it was bath, cuddle in the big rocking chair, then to their toddler bed for storytime, then lights out. After working all day (whether at a job or SAHM) I know you're exhausted at this time of day and are ready to wind down yourself. I'm so glad I invested that time because your kids will remember and appreciate it. It really helped strengthen the bonds between my kids and me.

Sometimes I would need to sit with them a few minutes and pat their back until they drifted off. If it becomes more than a few minutes, then start the Super Nanny routine.

And, welcome home!!!

P.,

The best advice that I can give is that you put her to bed in her new bed and then sit outside her door. She will get up. You catch her as soon as she opens the door and put her back to bed. You will have to sit outside the bedroom for a few days.
Another option is to put a door knob cover on the inside of her door (FOR BEDTIME ONLY). She will not be able to open her door. Once she falls asleep, take the cover off. She will learn with you sitting in the hall or with the cover that bedtime is for sleeping in HER bed and she will stay put. Hang in there. I've been in your shoes. Welcome Home!!!

You may try to put on some soft music and lay down with her until she goes to sleep then slip out. Good luck.

My oldest slept in our bed until he was a little over 2 1/2, and there were times I thought we'd never get him out of our bed! When I first started putting him in his toddler bed, I would lie down with him until he went to sleep. I did that for awhile, but eventually I got tired of doing that, too. Then, over the course of several weeks, I transitioned him to going to sleep on his own. For several nights, I would sit next to his bed and hold his hand. Then I would sit next to his bed without touching him. Then I would sit by his door (inside his room), then a few nights outside of his room. I also used a sticker chart--he would get a sticker for each night that he went to sleep by himself. We did 2 sticker charts (the first one had maybe 12 and the second one maybe 20. For completing the first one he got a $20 train, and for the second a $10 train. He asked for a third chart, but I conveniently kept 'forgetting' to make one, and by that time he didn't need it anymore.