My Son Refuses to Sleep in His Bed and It's Ok

When we became parents we definitely anticipated having some sleepless nights here and there.  With our first born, CJ, he was about four months old when we transitioned him to the crib from a cradle, we said goodnight and that was that.  Since then, we have had a few minor issues here and there with him, mainly relating to staying in his room and falling asleep in under an hour. 

When our second arrived, we thought she would sleep the same way her brother did.  Perfectly. Because every child is exactly the same, right?! (Can you hear my sarcasm?) Were we naïve?  Yes. She turned out to be exactly the opposite, but we somehow survived (so far), thanks to our in-house sleep expert and my fellow blogger, Sarah.  Its been quite the ride, but I am happy to report that everyone is sleeping through the night...well, most nights.

But, for the last week CJ (who is 3) has been having one specific problem in the sleep department we never anticipated.  He is refusing to sleep in his bed, actually, make that any bed.  Which just to say that doesn't sound so bad, right? 

Well, check out where he is setting up camp:


Why yes, that is a table above his head...

So, obviously there is no harm in sleeping under a table.  What I cannot understand is how is that comfortable.  But, every night for the last week or so we have found him under there after we put him to bed. And in the morning he was happy, well-rested, and insisted it was comfortable for sleeping.  He also insisted he would NOT be sleeping in his bed, but has not been able to provide a reason for this change. 

One week of this and we decided to try to get him back in bed.  We set up a little kiddie play tent on top of his bed thinking it would help him feel enclosed, safe, secure.  Nope!  He does love the tent, however, he has moved it to the floor and set up a nest of sorts inside the tent. 

At this point, we have decided to just go with it.  I am sure eventually he will want back in his bed, right? It's pretty comfy in my opinion but to a three year-old maybe they don't have the same comfort preferences like us adults.

The most ironic part of all of this?  For the last several months, we have battled with him over going to sleep in a more timely (and quiet) manner.  His average is about 45-60 minutes AFTER we leave his room when he finally goes to sleep. And that's after emptying his room of all distractions. 

Since he has relocated his bed, he is falling asleep in about 10 minutes.  Which obviously there is something to say for this small miracle. 

This is a kid who is fiercely independent, who insists on making his own decisions, and does not want to be considered a little kid.  And for some reason, sleeping under a table is helping him to relax and sleep better and longer.  I'll take it! I just hope that eventually he will decide to relocate back to his bed, but in the meantime we are enjoying this easiest of sleep problems.

If it isn't broken, why fix it. Am I right?!