2 Year Old Sleep on Vacation

We live in Houston, and our families live in Michigan and Greece...so we spent alot of time visiting family when my daughter was young. Since the environment was so different than our home, we would do whatever necessary to make our little one comfortable...including laying and sleeping with her. Depending on the sleeping arrangements, we would put her in between my husband and I, then move her later, if need be (into her 'pack n play'). Or, for naps, I would lay down with her (in a bigger bed) till she fell asleep, then stack pillows so she wouldn't roll off when she woke up. As far as "normal"....don't worry, each famiy's "normal" is different, and I promise your little one will get back to his routine when he is back in his familiar space.Good luck.

On vacation do what is best for your son. Yes you will do things you don't do at home but naps are important. I will lay with my son while he naps. It keeps family out of the room and usually my son gets a better nap.

My 2nd daughter did the same thing. We had an overnight before &knew it would be a problem so for the week long vacation we took several of her special blankets & pillow with us & we told her we were making her special nest. Just like baby birds & rabbits & no one else could use it. We made sure it was very cozy and off in between the bed & wall that we were sleeping in. When we got back from vacation (also with relatives) she ran to her room and jumped on her bed & hugged it and told her bed she missed it so much. We started the 1st day of vacation though.
Good Luck

I wouldn't let him cry. It's new and strange surroundings, so he's going to want to feel you close. Go to your heart and do what you know will make him feel the most secure. Vacations kind of throw all routine out the window so it will take some adjusting when you get back too. Best of luck.

I know what you mean..about the worry that is.
I know when I take my son to my parents, I lay with him on a mattress on the floor next to our bed, until he is asleep. This comforts him and lets him fall asleep peacefully, while also letting him be safe, a mattress on the floor is about the safest if the crib doesn't work..I know those pack and plays are hard as a rock. This works great for me on vaca, and gives you some much needed one on one time with him while on vacation. Good Luck.

Hi A.,,
at nap time andnight time read him a book show him the pictures just speed sometime alone so he can relaxed,,you even said it you where busy he was is too i think these will help
Great luck L.

You may want to see how he would do sleeping on the floor in your room- that way he is still with you but not confined in the pack-n-play, which may be a little claustrophobic (sp?) at his age/size. When we last went on vacation my daughter was about 2 and I had her sleep on a "special bed" on the floor made of blankets. I would also have her go to bed a regular time and keep our routine as much as possible as well as sit with her for a little longer at night. Also, if there is TV maybe he could watch a kids movie- while this is not a habit you want to start if it's not something you do at home- this will be easier to break than getting him out of your bed.

Good luck!

give him his blankie or a stuffie and let him know you are close, he will get used to it. My boys grew up traveling and sleeping in weird places. make sure to have a monitor to be there in a second when he needs you.

HI A.,
I experienced a simular situation wirh our 15 monthe old. He was 13 months old at the time. He is the type of child that never cries unless he he hungry sleepy or needs a diaper change. We were staying with friends in Pasadena, while looking for a home to buy. We were relocating from Louisiana to Texas. He cried everytime i laid him down, which was very unusual for him. I finally started laying on an air mattress beside his playpen so he could see me until he fell asleep & I slept right beside him on the air mattress each night. He was only accustomed to being at home during nap time & especially at night. Even though this did not solve then entire crying episode it helped ALOT!. Also I finally took him to the doctor because it just wasnt like him to be so miserable & cry alot (even though He didnt show signs of being ill, & I contributed it to him being away from home) But we found out he had an upper respitory infection, which made him feel badly & that combined with the fact of him being out of his security zone (home) made it a miserable trip for both of us.

I'm normally a big fan of keeping things consistant. He is 2- old enough to understand that there are different rules in different places. Do what you have to do in order to survive. If that means laying with him, then lay with him. If that means letting him CYO, let him CYO. Forget what MIL has to say or the looks that she gives and just make sure that he (AND YOU) are getting the sleep that you need, however you can. (My daughter sleeps with Oma when we visit her. She knows this is a special Oma time and my mother loves the closeness. If you are comfortable with this, you could suggest it to your MIL and see if she is interested. If nothing else, she will better understand your situation.)Pillows will keep him from rolling off and if he does, it is going to hurt, but won't be devistating as long as you move tables away from the bed. When you get home deal with whatever you have to deal with then. It should never take more than a night or two to correct most sleeping problems at this age. Survive girl, survive! Good luck.
-Also many times daytime naps get messed up on vacation. This will cause problems at night also. Make sure that you (and MIL) are respecting daytime naptimes also.

When my 4-year-old was that age I had to stay in the room with her until she was asleep when we were on vacation. She was fine in her pack n play as long as she could see me lying on the bed. I would reassure her: "Mommy is going to lie right here on the bed next to you for her nap." I also took some of her favorite books along and tried to keep the bedtime routine as close to normal as possible. The good news is that they are usually so tired when on vacation that they fall asleep fairly quickly! I would just sneak out once she was asleep. My husband would sometimes lay down with her in the bed at naptime (he likes to take naps too!). It was usually a king size bed and she never fell out. Good luck!

Ah the dreaded "vacation". It is a lot of work and is hard on these little ones being in a strange place. First of all, you are going to have to get over what other people think about your parenting style (in other words, who cares if your MIL is wondering why you're letting your son cry). This is much easier said than done. My grandmother couldn't stand when I let my little one cry to get to sleep, but honestly, nothing else worked with him.

Now, you may have to give a little in order for him to get some sleep. See if you can sit with him or rock him a little bit or something before you put him down. Maybe stay in the room with him and sing him a song or something that will help him get adjusted to his surroundings. If none of that works, then you may just have to leave and let him fuss until he goes down. Is he staying in the same room with you, only in the pack and play? If so, then maybe you could lay down on the bed and just stay in the room until he goes to sleep and then get up and leave.

If he is 2, then he can certainly understand what you say to him, so explain everything in very simple terms. Tell him it is just like sleeping in that bed at home since you said you had him sleeping in it there. He may not have the vocabulary yet to say much back to you, but he does understand. Unfortunately, by the time you get it all figured out, the vacation is usually over. :-(

Best of luck. I know it's hard, but try to give a little, but be firm when necessary (i.e. not letting him climb out of the bed) and you'll get through it.

Don't sleep with him... You'll just be setting yourself up for him to demand/expect that once the vacation is over. Don't let him know that there exists a possibility that he can sleep with you unless you're prepared to make your marriage bed into a family bed...

You ease him into getting him used to the pak-n-play. No need to make him get used to it cold turkey. First night, stay near him for a while (although I always found that, if I stayed in my daughter's room, it just encouraged her to stay awake and watch me to make sure I stayed...), slowly position yourself farther away... or leave and come back, with longer periods of time in between. Slowly decrease the amount of time you stay. Hopefully he will transition quickly. However, be prepared that he may start to cry for you, not because he is scared of new surroundings but simply because he wants you to stay there with him.

He is a new place and sleeping in a new bed, try making a pallet on the floor for both of you close the door play some soft music when he is asleep you can go about your day. In the evening do the same thing> if you are like me I am a light sleeper with the kids you will hear him if he gets up.
Good luck. Been there.

Hello there,
There are a couple things I tried. If he has something that comforts him, like my son (18 months) has a bear, then I add that. I have also put something that smells like me (a favorite shirt) in with him. That seems to reassure them.
Second, if you are practicing, I know it is hard but be as consistent about putting him back in the space as possible. I know I had to do it for 45 minutes one time and then the next time it was 15 and now he goes down. It doesn't work everytime and I sit on pins and needles waiting for him to not cry. I think you worry just like the rest of us. Trust yourself. You know if he has gotten to the mad cry or the I really need a hug cry. Sometimes I have gone in and hugged my little guy without picking him up just to reassure him but then firmly shut the door. He knows the firmly shut door means I am not coming back for the night.
I don't know if that helps. Good luck - you can do it!
T.

Hi... take some time, excuse yorself from familly and friends and stay in the room, lay down w/your son until he is sound asleep, stay by the room so once he awakens you can enter inmediatley that way he will know he is protected all the time by you.
Have fun on your vacation !!!

I really feel you on this one! A couple months ago I took my 16 month old on a trip to Vegas for a family funeral for a week and I was worried about the same things. As far as the naps went I just let him sleep in the car when we would go out to the store etc. I didn't try to put him down for a nap like at home because he would eventually just fall asleep, wherever we were. So his nap schedule was off but he did get some sleep everyday. Now at night, I would sit on the edge of the bed and be his human rocker. I would rock him until he was fully asleep and then just put him down. I would not try to put him down until quite a bit later than normal however. At home he was in bed by 8, on the trip I put him down around 9:30 even 10. That way he was tired when I started to rock him, and he would accept being rocked. On our trip he would sleep from about 10 to 7. At home it is from 8 to 8 or 8:30. So on the trip he didn't get as much sleep as his norm, but he slept enough to not be super cranky. The great thing is babies don't know what time it is. So if he goes down 2 hours later than normal, he doesn't know it. It was hard physically for me but we got through it. Now the great thihg is that I had no problem with the his schedule when we got home, because he didn't know he was off schedule on vacation. He just knows that when we start getting ready for bed, sleep is coming. So returning to normal at home probably won't be a problem. The main thing I had to do, was relax and realize that no matter what happened, he would sleep eventually and everything would be just fine. Best wishes to you:)

my little guy just turned one, but i do the same thing when we are out of town. He always cries himself to sleep in the pack and play in a strange room (can't say that i blame him). for me there is no other option. at home he is perfect when it comes to sleeping, no crying and falling asleep on his own. on vacation, he only cries for about ten minutes. the first couple of times, i do go in and reassure him i am still here and then walk right back out. he cries worse for a minute and then falls asleep. i think it stinks too, to let him cry in front of family, but that is the only way we all have a fun vacation. good luck

Hi,
What worked for me on 2 vacations was making the room darker by throwing a blanket over the curtain and making sure light didn't escape the sides of the curtain. I also brought a white noise sound machine with me. By the second night we were all sleeping like babies:)
good luck
p.s. I also kept his usual routines in the evening like dinner, bath, books then bed.

You might think I'm crazy, but make noise. I have found that when we travel, our 2 1/2 year old's biggest worry is not that this is a strange place, but that this is a strange place and SHE DOESN'T KNOW WHERE MOMMMY AND DADDY ARE! So, darken the hotel room, put him down using his usual routine, and call a girlfriend on the phone you can chat quietly with. Or, if you are staying with family, put him down in his own space and break out something noisy but not necessarily loud in the next room, like a game of dominoes or at least conversation that he can hear. It might help him just to be able to pinpoint where you are.

Also, don't let grandmother or anyone else who isn't part of his usual routine put him down. If you usually do it, then you need to keep doing it. If daddy does it, same thing. And remember, naps are just as sacred while on vacation as they are at home. If you have to excuse yourself from planned activities for a couple of hours in the afternoon, so be it. Personally, when we travel to visit family, I enjoy the break from obligation that naptime provides!

And don't let anyone second-guess you. Remember who the mommy is. YOU. You do perfectly well with him at home. You can handle this on vacation, too.

When we evacuated for the storm we were in a hotel with our 2 year old. We tried the pack n play, and had the same problem. I put him in the bed with us, and used the couch pillows to line the opposite side of the bed so that he wouldn't fall off. When we returned home he went right back into his bed. He wasn't wanting to sleep in the bed with us, which is what we were worried about. For naps we darkened the room and did the same thing, put him in the bed with us. Good luck!