The Jones Journal: Toddler Bed Transition and "Where's the Alligator?"

Thursday, July 27

I can’t believe it is already mid July! In just a few short months, we will have a new little baby in this house and we’ll be a family of 4! Wowza! So, we are starting to prepare as much as we can for the coming bundle.

We decided that it was time to switch Maddie into a toddler bed at the beginning of this month. I was terrified to do it, but it actually went a lot more smoothly than I expected. Maddie’s eyes lit up when she saw the bed, which is currently in the nursery next to her crib until we finish getting her big girl room ready. She immediately climbed onto the bed and put her head against it as if she were giving it a hug. That was my first indication that this might actually work, although I was still terrified that she would fall out in the middle of the night or use her new freedom to play with her toys at 3am. I was wrong, though! Maddie slept through the night except one brief wake up in which she needed a little comfort from daddy before drifting back to sleep.

When she woke up in the morning, I was so glad that I had the video monitor so I could watch her. She immediately climbed out of bed and, at first, just sat next to it on the ground. She repeatedly would take her pacifier (aka “paci”) out of her mouth and put it on the bed. Then she would pick it back up and put it back into her mouth. I don’t know if she thought she was sharing with the bed or if she just couldn’t decided whether she wanted it or not. Either way, it was cute. But the adorableness really began when I heard a light tap on the door. Maddie, without a cry or scream to leave the room, walked to the door and lightly knocked on it and waited for me to open it up. Then she walked around the rest of the room and started knocking on other pieces of furniture. It was pretty hilarious and adorable.

So, the bed switch has seemed seamless. Maddie has been sleeping better in the bed than in the crib and it has seemed easier to get her back to sleep if she wakes at night. Naps have been fine, too. I thought for a couple of days that they were all screwed up because she was taking shorter naps, but three days later, she was back to her typical 2 hour sleep sessions. Hooray!

So, with the bed set up and the small nursery very overpacked with furniture, we decided to get started preparing the “orange room/office” for Maddie. We picked out a pastel pink color and painted over the bright orange paint, which, as terrible as it sounds in writing, we really liked in that room. But, we like the pink even more! We took out all of the huge furniture (and by “we”, I mean “Phil”), disassembled the bed, patched up holes in the walls and painted. Phil has been such a trooper the past couple of weeks! Painting is a job in and of itself, but moving the big chair, the mattresses and the desk that were in there on his own was no small task.

Once we had the room cleared out, we started looking for furniture to put in it. What a great find: The dresser we ended up buying was at a resale shop and only cost us $90, saving us hundreds, since the cheapest new piece we could find was $500! We changed out the dated hardware and the dresser looked like new. Plus, it is a heavy, all-wood piece, built very well, which is great because we know if will last, but….poor Phil had some more lifting to do. Thanks to his Dad for helping to move it out of the car and into the room.

I love this piece!

So, we just want to get some things anchored to the walls and get some new window treatments, which I should finish sewing together this week, before giving Maddie full reign in her new room. So, pray for us that the transition out of her nursery goes as smoothly as the transition out of her crib. We are really hoping to get her used to sleeping in the new room well before Baby-girl #2 arrives so that Maddie doesn’t feel like she is taking over all of her stuff.

We also found this cute table and chair set and love the bright colors for her big-girl room.

So, other than preparing those things, we have had a nice few weeks. The fourth of July was a blast! We had my sisters, Laura and Danielle, over to our house for a BBQ with their families. We grilled and ate too much meat and just had a fun time hanging out in the backyard and laughing at Laura for her late arrival covered in chicken juice. Oh, Laura…..

Later that night, Phil and I took Maddie to see the fireworks. I didn’t know how she would react, but she ended up loving them! Every time she saw one light up the sky, she would turn to point at it with an open mouth and eyes of excitement and awe. It is so much fun watching this little girl experience new things.

Watching the fireworks with mommy....

...and daddy!

In terms of her development, Maddie is talking talking talking! She has been using 2 words together for months now, but it seems like she is adding more and more every day. She also says things like, “Where’d it go?” Does that count as her first full sentence?

Her favorite game is “Where’s the alligator?” Phil and I hide her stuffed alligator when she is out of the room and when she returns, she says, “Where? Where?” while lifting her hands up in a questioning way and looking around the room. Once she finds the alligator (usually in one of her dresser drawers or under her bed), he comes out from hiding and tickles her or gives her kisses while she runs from the room. Maddie could play this game for hours!

Other updates: Phil ran another 5K! He took on the challenge of the Streamwood Stride a couple of weeks ago on a warm summer morning. It was so much fun watching him run the course and finish with a stomp of achievement. He kept telling me that it was a difficult run and I kept telling him that it was because I thought he had run faster than his usual pace. Sure enough, when the results were posted, Phil had achieved a PR (personal record)! He finished the course with a 9:54/min pace! WOW!!! I’m very proud of him.

Phil stomping down on the mat at the finish line after a great race!

Other than that we have enjoyed getting together with some friends and family over the weeks, playing outside int he beautiful, cool, summer weather we have been having, and finding great new toys for Maddie at some garage sales. Her first chores are mowing the lawn (seen below) and feeding the animals (she helps me put the food in their bowls in the evening and loves every second of it).