Where does toddler sleep at night in your room?

[Crazy4Disney43611]

My question is where does a toddler sleep when he is tired and the parents obviously aren't ready for bed yet? My son has never slept in anyplace but his own room, either at my home, gandmas house etc. He is easily excited and will choose to stay up if he is not by himself around bedtime, thus causing him to go to bed late and being a barrel of fun the next day !
Usually when we stay on property we get a 2 bedroom villa at a DVC resort but we have always went with my in-laws. This trip it will just be myself, my wife and my son, unfortunately obtaining a 1 br villa is a possibility but it would really stretch the budget for our "cheap" trip back to the World. I know the moderates have a sheet that closes off the room from the vanity area, but I really don't want to have to be silent for hours as he is sleeping there. The deluxes have balconies, but I don't want to be confined to that small area while he is sleeping either. What to do? We found a condo 3 br 2 bath really close to the World that is less than a moderate, but part of me feels like I would miss part of the magic staying off of property. Any suggestions on how to fix my problem? Thanks in advance, Sean

 

[badblackpug]

After a day in the parks my crew is usually so exhauseted they would sleep through a war, but they are heavy sleepers anyway. Have you thought of connecting rooms at a value or ASMu family suite?

 

[Miss Mary Poppins]

Last summer my then just 3 year old who only EVER slept in her bed would come in the room and lay down on the bed and would be out like a light. We would watch TV, eat, shower and she would never move. Now my 18 month old didn't settle down until we turned off the lights each night so we let her stay up until we were ready for bed.

 

[Nezgrrl]

Whenever we've taken our DD to hotels, from age 10 mos to 4, we just dim the lights, keep the TV on low, and just talk in hushed tones. Sometimes she'll talk to us a little bit, but she never has stayed up excessively. She also sleeps *real* hard when we've taken her to amusement parks (or Wiggles concerts) earlier in the day. So, I would not be concerned.

 

[designermv]

I have been wondering this too. We booked a Caribe Royale suite, and I upgraded us to the Polynesian because I wanted to be on-property. The thought of being trapped in a room with a sleep-refusing, manic, delirious tasmanian devil toddler has me feeling a little frightened. I actually caught myself Googling "toddler portable sleep enclosures" (found nothing).

Hopefully the park will wear your son out and he'll fall asleep with no problem. I've found that my daughter sleeps through noise very well if we have a fan running, maybe you could run one near where he sleeps? Maybe you could stay on the balcony until he's asleep, and then the fan would drown out noise from the TV and talking. Amazing how such small creatures can be such fearsome beasts when it comes to sleep issues.

Good luck!

 

[RACHELSMOM1]

I have been wondering this too. We booked a Caribe Royale suite, and I upgraded us to the Polynesian because I wanted to be on-property. The thought of being trapped in a room with a sleep-refusing, manic, delirious tasmanian devil toddler has me feeling a little frightened. I actually caught myself Googling "toddler portable sleep enclosures" (found nothing).

Hopefully the park will wear your son out and he'll fall asleep with no problem. I've found that my daughter sleeps through noise very well if we have a fan running, maybe you could run one near where he sleeps? Maybe you could stay on the balcony until he's asleep, and then the fan would drown out noise from the TV and talking. Amazing how such small creatures can be such fearsome beasts when it comes to sleep issues.

Good luck!

I really don't see a problem, as my crew who doesn't like to go to sleep at home, goes right off.(3 little girls - )... They actually welcome the rest after a day at the parks,as do my hubby and myself. Not only that, but we always go for the midday nap and we all crash as soon as we get to the hotel room.
I loved the part about the sleep-refusing,manic, delirious tasmanian devil toddler. I hope he/she sleeps when you are on this trip.

 

[Elmo888]

My DD2 was in a pack n play in the sink area (we were at WL). She would not go to sleep unless the lights were off. Some kids will, and some won't. Even my DD6 wouldn't go to sleep. I even brought DD2's sound machine with us, and DD2 still wouldn't go to sleep. She was tired, but not nutty. She would just stand up and watch the tv or chat. I brought a curtain and those removable hooks, but I couldn't figure out a good place to hang it without blocking the front door. If you try this, bring a fabric curtain or sheet, not plastic. I bought a plastic shower curtain from the dollar store (already has holes and it was only $1 - I thought that I was so smart), but then I was worried that DD2 would pull the plastic curtain down and over her head - bad scene. There just wasn't a place to put it that was far enough from her PNP.

Next time (already booked!), we are staying at the All Star Music Family Suites. I can't stay in the same room with them (DD2 and DD6) again! Maybe you could try those? In value season, they are under $200 a night. All I need is 2 rooms - one for me and DH and one for them.

If you can't get that (there aren't a lot of them and they book quickly), you could try 2 rooms at the values. The problem is that they don't guarantee connecting (adjoining, but not connecting), so you could end with with 2 rooms and no door between them. Plus, with two kids that can open doors (next time, they will be 7 and 3), I didn't like the idea of 2 entrances.

Another option might be one of the mods that have a curtain in the dressing area. This would only work if your DS will sleep in a PNP, but you could put the PNP behind the curtain. After he falls asleep, you could probably quietly use the bathroom (we were able to use the bathroom at night after DD2 fell asleep, but we just waited until morning to flush). If your DS is used to sound machine (start now!), that would drown out the noise that you made.

A lot of people like the balcony theory, and that might work if you have something to drink and if you sit out there with your spouse. You would probably only have to sit there until your DS fell asleep, and then you could turn the tv on low and quietly move about the room. This just didn't work for us.

For us (this isn't the case for every toddler), I wouldn't go anywhere without 2 rooms at this point. It was just tiring. We originally wanted to go to WDW in October (before DD2 turns 3), but the ASMu Family Suites were booked. The DVC rooms are expensive and aren't an option for us. Rather than stay in one room, we delayed the trip until January 2008 to stay in the ASMu Family Suites.

 

[abolanwoski]

We always just turn out the lights and wait until we hear the heavy breathing. Once she's out, we could do pretty much anything and she'll stay out. But , until then, even the slightest noise or light will keep her up. Ideally, if you have a room with a separate dressing area where you can put the PNP as previously suggested, that works best. Another idea, how about a wilderness home at FW? Cheaper than a DVC. Or DVC on rental points rather than through Disney?

 

[Crazy4Disney43611]

Well I appreciate all the information from everyone! We ended up coming to a conclusion just minutes ago and we decided to book the condo. It ended up costing us just over the price of a value after tax and it is in Windsor Hills development. From what I understand it is like 5-10 minutes from AK and you can see fireworks from the balcony. After our stay I'll report with how the condo is and hopefully others in the same boat as I am can utilize the info. Thanks again for all the wonderful responses...they were so quick too!

Sean

 

[Gillian]

I think you'll love Windsor Hills! The only problem we have with staying offsite (we've done both) is that having a car can spoil you. You'd think it would be the other way around, but it's so nice to have a car that we take ours onsite too!

We have been lucky enough to be able to stay in deluxe resorts a few times. The balcony has been a lifesaver for afternoon naps and to help the kids fall asleep at night. We always have big plans to hang out on the balcony with adult drinks, but to be totally honest, we last about 15 minutes before we crash, too!

 

[gower525]

I see that you have already solved your problem, but i have to add my 2 cents. We have taken those little pop up tents. My ds loved to have his own little space, and is more likely to fall asleep in it. Most of those type of tents can go right on top of the bed.

 

[Gillian]

I see that you have already solved your problem, but i have to add my 2 cents. We have taken those little pop up tents. My ds loved to have his own little space, and is more likely to fall asleep in it. Most of those type of tents can go right on top of the bed.

That's a great idea! We might have to try that for our next trip, which I dread as it's to POP, with no escape for mom & dad.

I guess the worst thing would be that we all go to sleep early and wake up refreshed and happy.