THE TODDLER BED.

For two hours last weekend, I converted my son’s crib, Transformer-style, into a toddler bed.  My son was ecstatic. I was relieved. “A big boy bed!” 

I dutifully padded the floor around it, just in case of an accidental roll-out. I tucked him in for a nap and he did great.  No major injuries, no crying fits. Then came the real test … sleeping through the night.   I put him to bed, woke up the next morning and my first thought was “Wow! That worked! How easy is this!” 

Not so fast.

There they were.  Two little feet nestled next to my head.  My son sound asleep next to me.  A middle-of-the-night escape.

OK, I thought … so maybe it would take a night or two for him to get used to his bed.  Maybe he got scared.  Maybe there’s dinosaurs in his closet.  But now it’s Friday.  And I’m still waking up every morning to a visitor in my bed. 

Now, I’ve seen all the nanny shows on TV.  I’ve seen parents repeatedly put their kids back into their own beds, where they belong.  But what do you do when they sneak out of their bed every night and you don’t know until you have a knee in your rib or an arm draped over your head the next morning?

If you have any ideas, short of deadbolting his door shut, please let me know! 

-Erica Smith, Copy Editor
esmith@opubco.com