Transfer to "Big Boy" Room

We went thru the same thing here a couple years ago when our 2nd child was coming. The only thing I would suggest is before he starts sleeping in there full time, make sure he is able to spend lots of time in there. Let him play in there, with and without you and let him get use to it, maybe even take naps in there for a week or so first before you put him in there for sleeping at night. But once he transitions to sleeping in there at night, he might not like it at first, but just stick with it, it might be like having a newborn all over again, just reassure him his new room is a safe place just like his old room. Congrats on the new baby on the way too!!

everything sounds good to me so far.. how has he been about helping?? Is he loving it or not?? maybe a sleepover in his new room would help if he's ambivelant?? A night light for sure too. But if he's excited, it should go smoothly for you. Let him play in there for a while until the doors are in too so he gets to know the "lay of the land".

I would start the transition as soon as possible and maybe start out by suggesting he sleep in the Big Boy room now. Does he nap maybe even try during naps.

I will be best if he is fully transitioned before the baby is born. Children often feel slighted by a new brother or sister and having to give the security of their room can add to this challenge

Congratulations! When our second child was born we were just finishing building our new house. It was a busy time and full of transition for everyone. Since the baby was going to be sleeping in our room for a while, we set up just the crib in my older daughter's room with her new furniture. She would still sleep in the crib for a bit but after a little while of talking up her new "big girl bed", she transitioned over without a lot of fuss. She loved hearing what a big girl she was for sleeping in her bed. Good luck!

Learning EFT (emotional freedom technique) is perfect for these kinds of issues. It's simple and incredibly effective. You can download a free manual at emofree.com as well as read a wealth of cases. As a practitioner I've never come across a better tool. I do train parents and kids in this technique and know that it saves alot of tension and anxiety around changes that can seem overwhelming to a child. You can read more about it at the site above, or at my own (www.eft-ayurveda)
All the best,
Stephanie

I kept my daughter in her crib until she was almost 3. We didn't need her crib for another baby, so we kept her in the crib. I made a big deal (as you said) out of her new big girl room. She "helped" her dad paint it pink, picked out her own bedding and even got a "big girl" nightgown. I read her a book for a few weeks beforehand about a girl going into a bed. Her binky stayed in her crib and she was very excited to go into her new room. No issues with the transfer. Again, she was 1 year older than your son. I have a 23 month old son now and I'm keeping him in his crib until next year as I have a new baby due in April. Keeping him contained (I'm borrowing another crib from a friend) will work best for me at this point. He's quite a "mama's boy" and I don't want too many changes for him before the new baby arrives. Good luck with the transition! I'm sure he'll do well.

He'll be fine :) Don't worry kids adjust quicker than you think :)

M.