Well...today is Matilda's first nap starting in the big girl bed (atm a mattress on the ground next to her cot...) She's been climbing out of the cot and we don't have a bed yet, so I decided today I would put cot sheets on half the mattress & see how we go...

Ok for those who don't know Matilda's sleep history...she co-slept for the first 3 months and then she decided that she couldn't sleep if we were in the room with her. I was devestated & she fought sleep and screamed & I spent a lot of time crying and not able to settle her. Around 14 months she slept through the night for the first time & started getting easier to settle. We'd have one bad night & day sleep a week. Life was great!

Then around 16 months she started getting out of the cot at her family day care, and now she is completely able at 17 months to climb out of her cot & back in and back & forth very quickly. SOOO.... we have put a mattress down next to her cot while we wait for her 'big girl bed" to arrive.

Today I decided to do the mattress for the first sleep & I laid next to her patting her bottom while she drank her milk (we used to have a cuddle before sleep on the rocking chair, but with her climbing out we've had to remove all "fun" distractions LOL). And it took us 20 minutes of up & down and then she climbed into her cot & went to sleep.

I'm okay with that, she obviously feel comfortable in her cot, its just that for the first time in over a year, she's fallen asleep with me in the room next to her.

So, my question for you all is: What could a gentle transition be to the big girl bed?