The story of how my baby became a big girl, and her lovey blanket went into the closet. I swore up and down that we wouldn't let our kids get attached to a specific toy or blanket, because it seemed like so much work and energy when they were older. But my youngest gets anything she wants, for the most part.
When my kids throw a tantrum, I dig my heels in further. And the morning my older kids went back to school after Winter Break, that's when Gwen threw the biggest tantrum I've ever seen. All because we were leaving the house without her blanket. And so we began immediately transitioning to life without lovey blanket.
The Problem
It always bothered me seeing older children at stores with binkies. Especially being old enough where they could literally ask for their pacifier. It wasn't a baby thing anymore.
And I realized, that's what we had done. It was time for Gwen to put away the baby blanket. She wasn't needing it as part of her sleep routine anymore, and we don’t put up with throwing fits in our house. It was time for a change.
Making the Switch Easier
Memory Box
Instead of just snatching the blanket away while she wasn’t looking, we thought it would help to have Gwen participate. We talked about how blankets are for babies and how she was a big girl. Brandon got out her memory box and had her put the blanket in there. We showed her that Faye’s and Aedan’s boxes had their baby blankets in them too. She was glad to be a big girl and took nap time and bedtime on bravely — for the first day.
Replace With Multiple Options
The second day without blanket was much harder than the first. Gwen could see her blanket, because our memory boxes are clear, so it was still on her mind. She even managed to climb into the closet, open the box, and get her blanket out during nap time. No wonder she calmed down so quickly after we put her down. She was motivated to get that thing back.
After nap time, blanket got moved to my closet, where it still resides today. Grandma Scroggins gave the grandkids these beautiful blankets for Christmas with their names printed on them, so we told Gwen that was her new blanket. She went to bed that night with her new blanket instead. Something to comfort her, but something new. It helped greatly that all three of our kids share the same bedroom, so the older two were able to help Gwen feel like a big girl and encourage and distract her.
Day three, we chose Aedan’s Paw Patrol blanket as the nap and bedtime blanket. And we just continued switching the blankets around every day for a few weeks. She could have a blanket, but she couldn’t have any one specific blanket.
Start A New Routine
With her baby blanket, I could literally lay Gwen in bed, give her the blanket, walk out, and she would immediately fall asleep. Now that blanket was gone, we had to change some things up to help her settle enough for sleep or nap time. Playing music, specifically Enya, was helpful. Reading a story to Gwen while she laid in bed. We even upgraded her bedding to match her sister’s comforter, so they could have camaraderie. Some days she would fall asleep without a problem, but others she would need extra help to be calm.
Don't give up, it will be hard.
And here we are, two months in, and things are finally balanced. Naps aren’t super easy still, but we have a better rhythm about them. Just remember to keep moving forward. The frustrations will just last for a little bit. If you need to take a step back, or spend one day with a few more snuggles during nap time, give yourself permission to do so. It’s a journey for you and your kiddo to take on together!
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