Big Boy Bed Sticker Chart and Surprise

We decided to make a sticker chart for Cooper about staying in bed. If he stayed in bed for three nights in a row and three naps in a row, he would get a surprise! Each time he woke up from either a nap or overnight, and he had stayed in bed ALL night, he got to pick out a sticker and put it on his chart. This was the first time we made a sticker chart, and Cooper was really excited about it! I had thought about doing sticker charts for other things before, but I just wasn't sure if he would totally grasp the concept. I think he understood it as well as he could at this stage--he knew the consequences of getting out of bed (no sticker) and he knew the reward of getting all six stickers (a big surprise). He wanted that surprise, so he followed the rules to get those stickers. After three days of successfully staying in bed, he earned all six stickers!
When it came to surprise time, Coop climbed up on his bed, closed his eyes and waited for his surprise!Coop loves Toy Story, and I don't typically like buying "themed" things, but Toy Story is different to me for some reason. Coop just loves those characters and he already has Buzz, why not add Woody, right? :) Coop was SO excited!!

Completely on his own, he grabbed Woody's hand and said, "Nice meet you. I Cooper!"

Yee-haw!!

It's been one full week of Cooper sleeping in his big boy bed, and, knock on wood, things really couldn't be going any better. He is staying in bed without constant reminders, he is falling asleep on his own, and his sleeping pattern is right back to normal. He waits for me to come get him after nap time and in the morning. Each morning I wake up to him talking and singing in bed, just like he always did in his crib. It makes me so happy that he loves his room and his new bed so much. And still every morning when he wakes up, he is so proud of himself for sleeping in his big room! Tonight when I was putting him down, I asked him what was his favorite thing about his new room. His answer? "My big boy bed because I big!!"