i haven't read any of the responses but had the same problem when we moved our dd into a big bed... i asked the girls at my playgroup what they did, and they ALL categorically told me the only quick and successful way to get them to stay in their room/bed was to give them a few warnings and then close the door so they can't get out.... (either by locking it, or by putting a chair under the handle, or even tying string to the door handle to another opposite door handle)... anyways i thought this sounded pretty extreme, but after putting dd back into bed a million times over 2 hours i finally cracked it and said, 'if you get up again mummy is going to shut the door'... anyways i did it when she got up, she cried for 10 minutes then went to sleep.... it was the only time i ever had to do it, now i only have to threaten to shut the door.... she still occassionally gets up, but i think this has more to do with her having her day nap too late in the day, so she is not tired enough at bedtime...
anyways i guess it depends which road you want to go down... for me, at the age of 2 they are well and truely old enough to understand bedtime means bedtime, so i wasn't interested in doing any of the gentle things like rubbing backs or laying next to her etc, if she was younger and incapable of understanding then i would.... occassionaly if she is having a bad night i will just cos i actually love the snuggles.
i cannot rate highly enough a well positioned chair under the door handle!
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