OK, this has nothing to do with Mormonism, except that I don't want advice on FB from Mormon "friends".

My child just learned to climb out of his crib and now I can't get him to sleep-for the past two days. He is turning two soon, so it's not like I can really reason with him. I DON'T want to get into the rut of driving him around every night or letting him sleep with us every night,if possible.

Any suggestions?!

Bedtime routines, they really work (for most kids).

Put him in his bed, read him a book, sing a song, tuck him in, turn out the light, kiss him, say good night, and close the door. Or whatever you choose, just do it the same way at the same time every night and soon he will be sleeping in his bed again.

We used childproof covers for doorknobs on the -inside- of our kids bedroom doors for the very same reason...to keep them inside their rooms. If they got out of their beds and slept on the floor, so be it. We read to them, loved them up and said "goodnight" and refused to re-enter their rooms afterwards, even if they cried murder. Eventually they chose to stay in their beds, and were fabulous sleepers. (We had moved them out of their cribs before two.)

Good luck!

^ this. Do a routine and stick to it. We put a baby monitor hidden under bed just to make sure things were ok. BUT we did NOT go back in there no matter what. Eventually they figure out no amount of crying and fit throwing is going to work, they soothe and quiet themselves and put themselves to sleep.

Pray with him, read the book of Mormon to him, and teach him a healthy respect for god. Then everything else will work itself out, and if it doesn't, you aren't trying hard enough and need to develop more faith.

On a serious note. It will probably be a lot of work. Maybe try and make his bed seem more interesting and exciting and yours boring and lame? That might just make him stay up... I can't offer much insight, but I wish you the best. After watching my siblings go through it with about a dozen kids, I have a healthy respect for any parent simply trying their best.

It's been a lot of years - trying to remember what worked.

1) Put them right back in the crib.

2) If I remember right I would hang out in their room with them in the crib and if they started trying to climb out I would gently pick them up and lay them back down. Usually they would pick up on me laying down - out of the crib so they should lay down in the crib.

Oh yeah - here's what we did that worked quite well.

We got them a new "big boy" bed. Then we would put them to bed in the "big boy" bed. If they got out of the bed we demoted them to the crib - even though they could climb out of it. We left both beds in the room for a couple of months until the kiddo got really good at staying in bed.

As others have suggested a routine does wonders - and the patience and willingness to do the routine several times a night - but the end of the routine is always them ending back in their bed.

There's a safety issue here--the child can now climb out of his crib. It's time for a toddler bed--small and low to the ground.

The advice you've gotten on this thread about bedtime is great though!

Plus one on this, take whatever other advice you want but get them out of that crib.

He needs a big kid bed, low to the ground with side rails to keep him from rolling out. A routine helps, but my kids would wake up regardless. These are the "terrible twos". Enjoy.

Assuming you are in the northern hemisphere, it is winter and a two year old doesn't keep blankets on. The kid might be cold. Just a thought.

Yeah, and ditch the crib.

The childproof door handle was a good idea.

It's probably just a short phase that's started just because he CAN get up. But he needs to learn that it's not okay, and like you said, you can't be stuck driving or rocking him to sleep. And I would never get started with letting kids sleep with me. I had relatives that did that, and when I would watch their kids, they would come in and disturb my sleep every night. I swore I'd never do that when I had kids of my own. I know there are people who are fine with a "family bed", but I need my own space and I think kids need to be able to self soothe.

Get the little toddler bed that uses the crib mattress. Kid proof the room. Start a routine. Every time the child gets out of bed you put them back. If they cry you lay by their bed. Each night you lay a littler further away. Pretty soon you're in the hall. Then you're back on the couch watching late night.

If they wake up in the night. Same routine. It's a lot of work, but the alternative is years of sleeping with children.

Good luck!

They make a crib tent so toddlers cant climb out.

We couldnt let our son "cry it out", it seemed too cruel. We made sure he wasnt hungry, and had a bedtime routine of supper, playing with us *calmly*, no exciting, loud play, followed by bath, story and bed. I stayed with him until he fell asleep, and would not take him out of his crib. The side was low since he could climb out, but wasnt ready for a big boy bed yet, so when he got out, I'd calmly put him back, with no kisses, hugs or talking. That's key, dont reward them but don't punish either. I sat in his room with just the nightlight on until he went to sleep. It went on like this for two weeks, but then that was it. You just have to be patient and stick it out, but above all, be consistent.

We had no trouble getting him to sleep until he stopped being nursed. I'd nurse him at bedtime and he'd invariably fall asleep while nursing, and I'd just carry him in and put him in his crib. That had to end eventually!

for a few days, if necessary, put netting (like playpen netting) secured over the crib. Then read the book etc. and turn out the light and close the door as usual.

I switched my babies to a toddler bed once they learned to climb out. What worked well for me was every time my child got out of bed I would just take them back. This can be exhausting at first for the parent but babies learn quickly and they get tired and go to sleep. I also liked this method because I found it be effective and loving. No cages or crying it out involved.

If a child is getting out of the crib, it's not safe for them to sleep in it any more. My DH and I took turns to sit with my kids in the rocking chair or lay down with them in bed until they fell asleep. If you do it right, it shouldn't take longer than 15-20 min. They might wake up in the middle of the night. We would just take them back to their bed. If they didn't stay there, we would stay with them. After a short while they just sleep on their own. It also depends on a child. My son was sleeping through the night on his own since he was two, but it took my daughter a bit longer. By the way, my parenting style is attachment parenting.

I used to watch Supernanny all the time and this is how she would do it. Like everyone else said, develop a routine. Read a book, kiss them good night, then leave the room. When they get out of bed, you pick them up and put them straight back into bed. Do not talk to them or otherwise engage them. Just quietly put them back in the bed and leave the room again. Keep doing this until they get the point. It may take a few tries and some patience on your part, but eventually they realize it's time to sleep.

Thanks everyone for the great advice and insight! I will be trying tonight!! Wish me luck :)

Aw, I've got three little boys and one will be where yours is soon. My first thought is that your little one is definitely going through a lot of major developmental changes these days and he's hitting the less baby-ish, more active toddler phase of life.

When mine hit this stage, here's what I do,
Increase their exercise during the day, especially after their last nap of the day. A tired kid is a sleepy kid. Make sure there are no artificial food colorings in the diet as they are known to cause hyperactivity, especially among boys. Make sure nearly every light in the house is out about 30 minutes before bedtime, that includes computers and phone screens as blue light tricks the brain into staying active longer. Stick with your bedtime routine and give him lots of physical closeness. Read an extra story book.

Plus, he's nearly two and he's going to keep climbing out of that crib for as long as the opportunity presents itself, possibly hurting himself :/ Why not celebrate his physical accomplishment by converting the crib to a toddler bed with a little stool so he can climb in and out of bed as needed? This is the time when they start asserting themselves and wanting to make decisions for themselves. Maybe he'd like to a little more control over when and how he goes to bed (and I mean within reason of course). Two, or nearly so, is a great age to let them make some decisions for themselves. Montessori schools have some helpful thoughts on this. (http://www.montessori.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=71:designing-a-montessori-home&catid=39:birth-6&Itemid=71)

Sometimes as they grow independent of us, they realize they miss us more and seek us out after bedtime. It doesn't last forever :> Run him ragged during the day and give him some extra cuddles at night <3