How to stop 2 year old coming into mum and dad's room at night?

valk_scot

I never locked the kids in their rooms. However it just so happened that in our first house the handle to their bedroom door was really quite stiff, and in the current house the handles are quite high up. As a result none of my kids could actually get out of their rooms till they were three or so and that suited me just fine. I had a baby monitor in their rooms though and would get up and go to them if they called for me.


I did have a friend whose two year old got out of his room, down the stairs, opened the front door and went off to see his pal two doors down. At 1am. If it hadn't been for pal's dad coming home late from the pub no-one would have known for ages. If it wasn't for the fact I already knew the kids couldn't get out I'd have put hooks and eyes on their doors two seconds after I heard that particular story.

Spendless

DS worked out that is he came into our bedroom when we were asleep and crept up the bed from the foot under the duvet, then he could lie there undiscovered until we woke up in the morning! So no putting back in the room ever worked as usually we were unaware he was there and he did this till around 10 years old, a stair gate wasn't of any help. Fortunately he did (eventually) outgrow it.

zaksmum

RayKay wrote: »

I've heard really good things about the Gro Clock:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gro-Clock-HJ008-Gro-Clock-Trainer/dp/B002APJCNE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363523873&sr=8-1

Thanks for that link Raykay. Just ordered a Gro Clock for the little fella.

Hope it helps his mum and dad to get a bit of rest.

bylromarha

We have a light on a timer switch. Light off, stay in your room. Light on,its wake up time. Find a book, stay in your room until mummy or daddy come.

Started that with them around 20 months ish. Needed reinforcing for about a week, but the pay off has been great. Haven't had a bedroom visitor since, ever unless they're invited in. They're now 8 & 6.

Our parenting motto is short term pain, long term gain. OP, the kids will understand its no longer tolerated as long as mum and dad repeatedly show they will no longer tolerate it. Battle of wills to endure that the parents must win.

zaksmum

bylromarha wrote: »

We have a light on a timer switch. Light off, stay in your room. Light on,its wake up time. Find a book, stay in your room until mummy or daddy come.

Started that with them around 20 months ish. Needed reinforcing for about a week, but the pay off has been great. Haven't had a bedroom visitor since, ever unless they're invited in. They're now 8 & 6.

Our parenting motto is short term pain, long term gain. OP, the kids will understand its no longer tolerated as long as mum and dad repeatedly show they will no longer tolerate it. Battle of wills to endure that the parents must win.

I couldn't agree more bylromarha. I always brought my own kids up like that. If mum and dad won't tolerate it, it's not going to happen.

They are now well adjusted adults with good careers...till babies come along and disrupt it all, that is...!

Wouldn't change my grandsons for the world of course, but it's hard to see my daughter so knackered.

emsywoo123

thorsoak wrote: »

We also used one on baby's door the day that we found 3 year old hauling 7 month old baby sister out of cot "cos she was cwying and wanted to come to me" .....in the time it took for me to wake, up, judge that she wasn't going to drop off back to sleep - big bro was there!

Too much cuteness!

pinkshoes

Groclock!

It's an alarm that shows the moon (blue) at night, then the sun (yellow) in the morning. DS (aged 2)is not to bother mummy (including shouting) until the sun is showing, otherwise Mummy will be VERY cross and too grumpy to play with him.

Works really well!

PurpleJay

We co-slept when M was a baby and from about 18 months he was in a toddler bed in his room. I would bf him to sleep in his bed and then when he woke usually between midnight and 3am he would come into my bed. He never slept through until he was turned 2 and then only occasionally for a long time. When he was 3.5 we bought a bigger bed so we could all have lots of room and sleep better Luckily we do sleep well when he is in with us. At around 4 he began sleeping through until about 6am when he would come and snuggle down with us for another hour or two until it was time to get up.

We had stair gates on the stairs top and bottom until he was almost 3 when we moved and then just the top for a while to stop him falling down in the night while half asleep. I think we got rid before he was 4 probably after we bought the big bed. I was always against having a safety gate on his bedroom door - not wanting him to feel trapped in his room but also once they start using the toilet, they need to be able to get there in the night. I had a couple of friends whose kids managed to throw themselves over the safety gate on their bedroom doorway aged about 3 which prompted them to get rid!

M who is now 6 will always come into us in the mornings and has never ever gone downstairs by himself without coming into us first. I do sleep lightly and even now I usually hear him in the toilet before he appears. If we are in bed when he wakes he climbs in for a cuddle. He rarely does this before 7am now and often I have to wake him for school. He sleeps through 90% of the time in his own bed and those early morning cuddles are lovely

Violetta_2

Just seen an advert for a TV programme coming up on Tuesday night on Channel 4 http://bedtimelive.channel4.com/ that look's as if it might be helpful in this situation.

zaksmum

pinkshoes wrote: »

Groclock!

It's an alarm that shows the moon (blue) at night, then the sun (yellow) in the morning. DS (aged 2)is not to bother mummy (including shouting) until the sun is showing, otherwise Mummy will be VERY cross and too grumpy to play with him.

Works really well!

Thanks pinkshoes. I ordered a Gro Clock yesterday after RayKay posted a link to it.

Hope it helps in some way.