Shooting myself in the foot

As some people may remember, we moved Michael into his Big Boy Bed a couple months ago. To be exact, it happened on June 1st. A couple weeks after that, I blogged about how he was not getting out of his bed in the morning until someone went and retrieved him, as if there was still a crib railing preventing him from escaping. It cracked me up.

By the end of June, though, it was still happening. By the end of July when he STILL had never left his bed it didn't seem so funny anymore.

So earlier this month I decided I needed to do something about it. I felt badly that he believed he had to stay there. Course, it wasn't like he was crying and begging to get out - quite the contrary he laughed and read books. Sort of a "making lemonade out of lemons" stance. But still...it seemed unhealthy to have him so conditioned to staying there.

So I designed my own very first ABA program (well...a rough, informal ABA program). First rule: no more opening the door for him in the morning. Instead for the first week or so I stood in the hall and specifically ask Michael to come open it for me, as if he were doing me a favor. At first it took a looooong time for him to do this - I'd have to ask him over and over in a playful (yet reassuring) manner. It was like I was asking him to break a rule and he had to debate whether or not it was OK.

Within a week or so he was readily emerging on demand, so I upped the difficulty. I started standing at the door and exclaiming, "Good morning Michael!" This way he got my pleasant, approving voice, but not the specific command to open the door. This hurdle took 5-6 days to work through.

The last step was to simply stand in the hall and make lots of happy noise. No direct communication with Michael, just light conversation aloud to myself. He actually responded to that one within a couple days.

Success! Every morning for the past week or so he's gotten out of his room on his own terms. I haven't done anything to encourage it - he's just finally figured out it's OK to do so. And he ALWAYS emerges from his room going 50mph and yelling, "HI!!" at the top of his lungs. He races to me, to the playroom, to find his water bottle, to get his teddy...Ken and I are jealous of his energy, but then I'm sure we'd be like that too if we got 11-12 hours of sleep every night.

Fortunately for us, there's coffee.

Unfortunately for us, I've belatedly realized there may be a downside to Michael noisily emerging from his room as soon as he wakes up. Like the other morning when he woke up BEFORE me and came running to my bedside.

"HI MAMA!!! HI MAMA!!! HI MAMA!!! HI MAMA!!! HI MAMA!!!"