Crib to Bed Transition: Making it Safe & Smooth
As a Mother, I am quite aware of all the stressful milestones that take place during the toddler and pre-school years. One of these stressful times happens to be transitioning from a crib to a big boy or girl bed. There are several tips and tricks that you can use to make this transition go smoothly and safely for both you and your child.
It can sometimes be difficult to determine when your child is ready to leave the crib. With this decision it is important that you follow the child’s lead. A sure sign is if your child can actually climb out of their crib. This can pose the risk for injury to your child. At young ages, children often do not have the coordination and stability to climb safely, not to mention the risk of falling several feet to the floor.
Children usually transition from their crib to a bed between the ages of 18 months and 36 months according to experts. If they are not climbing out of the crib yet, there is no need to rush it. Dr. Laura Jana, a general pediatrician in Denver, Colorado, and one of Dr. Spock’s experts says “there is no definitive answer to the question of when a child should be switched from a crib to a bed. Each family’s situation is different, and in many ways this issue really boils down to a matter of opinion.” One thing to consider is that the longer a child stays in a crib, the more attached they may become to it and transitioning to a bed may be more difficult.
There are a variety of things that you can try to make it easier on everyone involved. Once you’ve determined that it is time to abandon the crib, set a time-frame for the transition period. The reason for doing this is that it is often easier for the child if they see a bed set up in their room for a couple days while they continue to go to sleep in their own crib. This allows them to mentally adjust to it.
The type of bed that you transition them into is strictly a personal preference. Many choose to place a mattress on the floor initially so that there aren’t any accidental falls from the bed that are from too high up. There are thousands of different styles of beds available today from toddler beds to twin beds and larger. You can find themed beds, beds shaped like cars, canopy beds, etc…The list is endless. Keep in mind that the fancier the bed, the more costly it will probably be, also considering how many years they will be in this particular bed.
Allow them to help create their own space. Take them shopping for the bedding and accessories. Let them choose one special item that they can sleep with each night such as a new teddy bear or other soft cuddly item. Toddler size pillows are usually a better and safer choice than standard size pillows as they are more proportionate to the child’s smaller body. These ideas will comfort them while they try to adjust to their new sleeping arrangement.
Again, safety is always a priority. Be sure to have a means for keeping your child from falling out of the bed such as a bed rail. If the child’s bedside is up against a wall, another great safety item is the Bed Bumper for Big Kids. This will help to prevent nighttime bumps and boo-boos while your child tosses and turns in their sleep, creating a barrier between your child and their wall.
Gradually begin to let them nap in the new bed during the day if they are still taking naps. This is also a great way to actually be awake while they “react” to their new sleeping quarters. After several successful naps, begin getting excited with them about how big they are now. Let them help you disassemble the crib and remove it from the bedroom. Make the whole experience exciting and happy.
To prevent wandering around the house, a gate can be used to segregate them from the rest of the house, either by putting it in their doorway or by putting it in a hallway so that they can only access your room or their own room. Be sure that all precautions are taken with regards to child proofing your home.
It is very important that you are patient and give it time. If you are relaxed and loving during the whole process, your child will do fine and you will all sleep very well.
To sum it all up:
• The bedroom and home should be completely child proofed.
• Make their sleep area fun and interesting, allowing them to choose some décor.
• Make sure there are comforting items in the room; nightlights, stuffed animals.
• Reasonable transition period with new bed in room while child is still in crib.
• Start by having them sleep in the new bed during nap times.
• Be sure to segregate them from other areas of home by use of gate.
• Give it time.
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Rae Lynn Glispin is owner of Kidz Comfort, offering great sleep solutions for children and encouraging a calm and soothing bedtime routine. First to create the Bed Bumper for Big Kids, she expanded her product line to include comforting and stylish items for every child. Visit http://www.kidzcomfort.com for more information. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rae_Glispin |
How Can I Get My Child to Stop Sucking His Thumb?!
When my boys were born, it was so cute (and often helpful) to see them sucking on a pacifier or their thumb. My first son always used a pacifier, or binky as we called it. We spent some time worrying about his teeth and how we were going to get him to stop using his binky, and much to our surprise, he ended up doing it on his own. He threw his last one away when he was around three years old.
Then baby boy two came along. We were so relieved when he didn’t want a binky. What a relief…no struggle to get him to stop sucking on a binky in our future. But, what he did start doing was sucking on his thumb. Little did we realize that this cute little action would be a harder challenge for all of us.
Here we are, our youngest is going to be five and we cannot get him to stop sucking his thumb. It is obvious in his teeth that he is a thumb sucker. They are already starting to “move”. So, I do what I love to do…research and find out how we can help him to stop sucking his thumb, in a non-traumatic way, and possibly preventing future dental work.
I came across an article in the May issue of Scholastic Parent & Child Magazine. It gave some great tips on ways to handle thumb-sucking. Like most other obstacles with children, we should be using positive reinforcement and distraction rather than admonishing him for sucking his thumb. It recommends occupying his hands at times when he sucks his thumb. Boredom can be a big cause, so try to keep their hands busy and their minds occupied.
Shari Green, C.O.M., I.A.O.M, Certified Orofacial Myologist, and more easily termed “the Thumb Lady” of ThumbLady.com, states “Over 85% of children who suck their fingers and thumbs past age 4-5 may develop speech problems, tongue thrust swallows, and have flaccid weak tongues and lips.” She offers a program on her site that is based on behavior modification and positive reinforcement.
Babies begin sucking their thumbs because it is comforting and natural from the time they are born. If a child continues sucking his thumb, Shari Green states that “Childhood thumbsucking beyond age 5 is a HABIT — nothing more, nothing less. There comes a point in time when children truly want to stop, but often the habit has persisted for so long and is so ingrained, they cannot stop on their own.”
I would love to hear about your challenges and successes with thumb sucking. Leave a post…it may just help another parent!
raelynn @ Kidz Comfort
Kid-Safe Chemicals Act
We often hear news clips or read articles about the dangers of exposing our children to a variety of products due to their chemical make-up. We’ve also seen news clips and articles about the food we eat and the pesticides that can cover our fruits and vegetables, not to mention the foods that we buy that are made using many chemicals for a variety of reasons: to thicken, to thin out, to color, to stay fresh, etc… What about the water we drink? What about the air we breathe. The list is almost endless.
You will be shocked to see this video. It is almost hard to comprehend. The Kid-Safe Chemicals Act will change the current, and very lenient, regulations for new chemicals that are used in our environment, in our food and in our personal care products. An overhaul of our nation’s chemical regulatory law is CRITICAL.
See the facts about babies that are being born pre-polluted with as many as 300 industrial chemicals in their bodies when they enter the world. It is frightening…
Why Children Lie and What You can do About it
One time or another, all children lie. It’s just a fact.
What made me research this topic is that my 5-year old son began kicking it up a notch with the lies. I can easily understand why he is lying about certain things, but what was more curious to me is how did he actually learn to lie.
Is it a trait that humans are born with? Or, is it something they actually get exposed to and learn to do from others.
Susan Epstein, Parent Coach at ParentingPowers.com says “Children lie for a number of reasons.”
Susan adds “The most common reason is for fear of getting in trouble and disappointing parents or feeling shame. They took something they shouldn’t have. The parent finds out and gets angry. Best response: ” What you did is wrong..but we all make mistakes. Please don’t do this again.” In other words…if you don’t shame your child but correct the behavior instead it isn’t scary or humiliating when they do make a mistake and lie about it. Children also lie because they want something very badly. For instance, “I went to Disney Land” from a 5 year old…could mean “I wish very much I could go to Disney Land.” The best response a parent could say would be: “I know you wish you had gone”…in other words teach the child the difference between wish and truth.”
Children are not Naturally Deceitful
As stated above by Parent Coach, Susan Epstein, “The most common reason is fear of getting in trouble and disappointing parents or feeling shame.” Creating excessive fear in a child may actually reinforce their desire to lie rather than solve the problem. To avoid this issue, create an environment where your child feels comfortable telling the truth. Make sure your expectations are not unrealistically high for their age.
Dr. Benjamin Spock says that “When a child lies regularly, it may mean that she is under too much pressure of some kind.” As a parent, your job is to work with others that are close to your child such as their teacher, to find out what is wrong. Begin by saying something like “You don’t have to lie to me. Tell me what the trouble is and we’ll see what we can do.” Your child may not even know the answer to this question right away, but be patient and it will pay off in the end.
Is Lying Related to the Intelligence of Your Child?
More recent studies show that lying is related to intelligence. Lying demands both cognitive development and social skills that honesty simply doesn’t require. If your child is already starting to tell little white lies at a very early age, such as by the time they are 2 or 3, it could actually mean that your child is very intelligent.
By the age of 4 most children will have lied to avoid punishment of some kind. Many books and other resources will even advise that you should just let the lies go at this age because they will grow out of it. The opposite is actually true…the truth is they’ll grow into it if allowed. Make sure you are explaining why it is important to tell the truth and not lie.
As they age, not only will they lie to avoid punishment, but also to increase their “power”, their sense of control, and as a way of getting more attention. Many older children will actually make up stories about who they’ve met or things they’ve done, just so others will be impressed by them.
When Should You be Concerned About Your Child Lying
If your child has a sudden dramatic increase in lying, it can be a danger sign of other more serious concerns. Excessive lying is often a symptom of other underlying issues.
Children who don’t feel good about themselves often lie much more. We should be trying to determine what the issue may be without expressing anger at the dishonesty. It is important to make sure our children don’t have low self-esteem. Low self-esteem can be the root of many other future concerns.
Another reason that children begin to increase their dishonesty is because their parents may be too intrusive. As children get older, their desire for privacy also increases. They maintain privacy, individuality and control by controlling the amount of information that they share with their parents. Too much “where were you”, “what did you do”, “who were you with” will eventually lead to dishonesty.
Children often react by lying when they know or sense that there is an issue in the family. If parents are fighting, divorcing or if there are other issues within their family, this may be the way they vie for attention and work at getting the fighting parties to work together again.
Acting out can be a cry for help.
Conclusion
Children may lie at all different ages and for all different reasons. Do your research and pay attention so that their lying is not a red flag for more concern. Get involved, but do not smother them. You may even make your family bond stronger.
How do You Teach Disability Awareness to Your Children?
March is actually DISABILITY AWARENESS MONTH, and I have come to learn about an organization that truly should be in the spotlight…
The CVS Caremark Charitable Trust and CVS Caremark’s “All Kids Can”
They have created this organization to support children with disabilities by raising awareness in our own communities, including our schools, about the importance of inclusion. They partner with other organizations to help children with disabilities learn, play and succeed.
I am very proud of the fact that my own community supports these types of organizations and has programs set up to raise awareness. My 4-year old’s preschool has a Muscular Dystrophy Hop-athon where they teach the kids about disabilities and ways to help out. My 5-year old’s kindergarten class also has a program in their school where they teach the children about autism so that they understand it better and can make choices to help these kids feel included.
In our own home, we talk about how everyone is different in some way and that is what makes life so fun and interesting. We all have different hair, skin, bodies, personalities…and if not for that, it would be way too boring. My children are also fortunate enough to be exposed to people in power chairs, which initially can be a bit intimidating for a small child, but they no longer think it is any “different” and understand that some people’s legs just don’t work the same as ours.
Learn more about the CVS Caremark organizations by visiting http://www.cvscaremarkallkidscan.com/.
Please share your story of how you teach disability awareness in your own homes. This is an important topic and should be discussed. Have you had an uncomfortable moment with your child when they first came upon some one with a disability?
Does Your Child Drink Enough Milk?
Is Your Child a Milk Addict like mine? My 4-year old will drink upwards of a half gallon of milk or more each day. He just loves milk and always needs a cup nearby. I started to wonder if this was healthy, so I did a little research. I found some great resources on the internet dealing with what children drink and how it will help or hurt them.
Dr. Spock has a great website where you can ask pretty much any question (related to children) under the sun and you will probably find an answer. I often visit to find out what experts are saying about certain topics. Having a 4-year old and a 5-year old, we have almost daily concerns regarding their health and well being.
Dr. Spock Experts state that for a child to develop well, it is said that they should be drinking between 16 and 24 ounces of milk each day. Be aware that giving your child too much milk prior to a meal will often leave your child too full to eat their meal. It is also important that if they do not drink regular milk, that they get calcium with vitamin D from an alternate source. Some alternatives are soy milk or calcium fortified juice, just watch the sugar content of the juice because that could lead to other issues.
The concerns with drinking over 24 ounces of milk each day vary by child. If a child is drinking lots of milk, but not eating all the other food groups, they may become iron deficiency anemic or underweight. Often times children get so filled up with the milk they are drinking that they do not eat enough of the other foods to fulfill their dietary needs of fat, protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals.
In contrast, if a child is also eating very well, the added calories in milk can often lead to the child being overweight. Even low fat milk has anywhere from 15 to 19 calories per ounce. If a child drinks 24 ounces of milk in one day, that translates to 360 calories and over 1/4 of their daily caloric needs (roughly 1300 is recommended). So, in my own child’s case, he is drinking upwards of 32 to 48 ounces of milk each and every day. That is somewhere between 480 and 720 calories! Thankfully, he loves fruits and veggies as well, so we have a nice balance, but after reading this information we will be changing our ways.
One tip is to only fill the cup half way rather than to the top. Or, alternate between a cup of water and a cup of milk. After all, our job is to make sure our kids stay healthy. Why start them off on the wrong foot.
Do you have a milk addict at home?
Final Giveaway #11
Our final giveaway is a doozy! I almost hate to give this away. But, as promised…..
Our final winner will be receiving a Box-Set of 5 CD’s titled “Tired of Nagging? Get Your Kids to Cooperate.“ Compliments of Susan P. Epstein, LCSW, Parent Life Coach. Check out her other products at parentingpowers.com. This is more than a $400 Value!
I am glad I am not the only one who has questions and concerns about my children’s behavior. The winner of this final giveaway, as determined by Random.org, is Reiza!
Congratulations Reiza!
Please come back and visit soon for more interesting posts and comments from lots of interesting people.
2009 New Year Giveaway #11
We’re up to our 11th and FINAL giveaway!
But first…
Congratulations to the winner of our most recent After Holiday Giveaway!
Thank you for all the great replies to our last contest question about your special Valentine celebrations. Our 10th Giveaway Winner is Jean D. who will be receiving A $15 Gift Certificate to Chicks & Cubs, compliments of Cynthia from www.chicksandcubs.com. 
Ok, now to the next and FINAL giveaway…This Box-Set of 5 CD’s titled “Tired of Nagging? Get Your Kids to Cooperate.“ Compliments of Susan P. Epstein, LCSW, Parent Life Coach. Check out her other products at parentingpowers.com. This is more than a $400 Value! You cannot miss out on this one!
My thought of the day: As you may or may not know from previous posts, I have two boys…a 4-year old and a 5-year old. They are polar opposites in most ways. One is high-maintenance, one is laid back. One is artistic, one is more about wrestling and rough-housing. One loves competitive sports, the other hates playing against people because he will risk losing. We’ve had a lot of challenges over the past 5+ years, and I know we have many many more to come. There are a couple phases that have been extremely difficult for us, causing us to actually research the answers to our questions. One was that our first born had tons of sleep issues…always crying, never falling asleep unless he was being held and rocked (although, in hindsight, I’m certain we created this issue). The second biggest issue we’ve had so far is the tantrums. If there is a Guinness Book record for longest and loudest temper tantrum, I am certain that my 5-year old would have won!
This leads to my next question…
Whether you have kids or not, I would love to hear what your issues or questions have been? If you have kids, what were your biggest challenges? If you don’t have kids, but spend time with some one else’s kids, you must have things you’d like to vent about. Just post it here.
If you have a Twitter account, and you want additional entries, just re-tweet and comment here about it.
The deadline for giveaway #11 entry is 11:59pm EST, Thursday February 12th, 2009. To review the rules of our giveaway, please CLICK HERE.
2009 New Year Giveaway #10
We’re up to our 10th giveaway! Only a few more left.
But first…
Congratulations to the winner of our most recent After Holiday Giveaway!
Thank you for all the great replies to our last contest question about how you felt on election day or inauguration day. Our 9th Giveaway Winner is Cindy who will be receiving A Gift Certificate for a FREE Personalized Birthday CD, compliments of Victoria from www.kidspersonalizedmusic.net. ($25 Value). 
Ok, now to the next giveaway…
Our next giveaway is for: A $15 Gift Certificate to Chicks & Cubs, compliments of Cynthia from www.chicksandcubs.com.
Chicks and Cubs is THE place to shop for all of your keepsake wants and needs, and all the child safety products that you could imagine! If it’s out there, she has it. Don’t forget to check out her great prices on Baby Shoe Bronzing and her ongoing Loot 4 Mama Giveaway.
My thought of the day: Valentines Day has always been a bit controversial to some. I know that it can be tough for some single people, although when I was single, there was always some one to surprise with a small gesture of love, such as for a niece, nephew, or close friend. I understand that it has turned into another excuse for retailers to tug on our “love-stings”, but I also enjoy it very much myself, especially now that I have kids. I love to think of something simple and inexpensive, but thoughtful and sweet to give to the ones that I love. For my Husband, it could be as simple as getting a babysitter and going out to dinner for a couple hours. I vividly remember when I was a child, my Mom ALWAYS got me a giant chocolate Kiss every singe year. BOY, did I love that! It’s a tradition I’d love to continue with my children. For those that are single out there…what’s wrong with buying yourself something special…you deserve it!
This leads to my next question…
What, if anything, do you do on Valentines day for yourself or the ones that you love?
The deadline for giveaway #10 entry is 11:59pm EST, Sunday February 8th, 2009. To review the rules of our giveaway, please CLICK HERE.
Can Your Child’s DNA Determine Athleticism?
I was fascinated by a news segment last evening. Fox 25 News had a brief article about Parents that are actually having their child’s DNA tested to determine what sport they will excel at. Apparently, scientists have developed a genetic test to determine which sport suits a child. It is said that it will determine whether your child will be best at speed & power sports versus endurance sports. Many other scientists feel this test is very flawed because it only analyzes a singe gene marker when there are many more important factors, such as the right nutrition, the type of coach they may have while they are playing a sport, and the child’s own drive.
Many people feel it will cause Parents to unfairly push their children into a sport that they may not be very interested in, or it may even take the fun out of what would have been an enjoyable sport if the child does not live up to what the test is telling them.
I have thought about this and I would not test my children for a couple of different reasons. I would not want to risk even a remote chance that I would pressure my child into a sport because I think it was meant to be. I also don’t believe that the test could possibly be 100% accurate. Why not let nature take its course.
Do you feel it is possibly jading a child by having this test done on them? Would you want to know? Why?
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