Toddler Toddler Bed - Woodland, CA

I move my girls to a twin size bed (with railing) when they were 24mo old. They couldn't climb out of their cribs, but I thought I'd better move them before they could and fell out. The transition went much much better than I expected! We went together to buy big girl bedding. I think the side rails help with containing them. They didn't realize that they could get out. They loved moving to a big girl bed.
My nephew was moved to a toddler bed when he was 18mo old because he was able to climb out of his crib. I think it just really depends on the child.

Good Luck
B.

My twins were climbing out of their cribs around 21 mos. It's definitely time to move out of a crib if a child can climb out - you don't want her to fall. I know it's hard to let go of the baby stage, but you have to. (In fact, the next stage is better, so don't dismay!)
We already had twin beds ready for my kids, so decided to bring in just the mattresses and put them on the floor. We made them up just like beds and that's where they slept. Sometimes, I put pillows next to the mattress when my son was restless (we have hard wood floors)
It worked fine, and eventually, they graduated to the whole bed with box springs.

My daughter switched to her todler bed at 19 moths and has never had any problems. I would put a baby gate in front of her door so she was not wondering around the house. She would usually play for a while by herself then either fall asleep on the floor or climb back into her bed to fall asleep. If she fell asleep on the floor I would just go in and move her to her bed. Even after her brother was born and her crib was set up for him she never wanted to go back to sleeping in a crib.

Hi S.,
If your daughter is actually starting to climb out of her crib, that would be an indication she's growing or grown out of that space. As with getting out of bed to play, you would have to set the boundaries when it's bed time for your daughter as you do with everything else. And these limitations you set for your daughter and future children is ongoing. It is best to start from the beginning so that your parenting task become easier down the road with just re-inforcements of the rules already laid out. Good Luck!

C.

I think it's a choice you have to make when you feel it's right for you. It's so hard sometimes to give up their baby things as they grow. It all happens so fast! I just wanted to give some tips that have worked for me in case you decide to buy your daughter a bed.

I found a great pine frame at IKEA for around $100 (plus 30 for the foam matress). It can be constructed with the head and footboard up so I have my two year old son sleep in it sideways to keep him in. As he grows we can adjust the foot and/or head down and when laid flat it's twin sized. I imagine he'll be in that bed for a while so I think the value is great. Finding bedding to fit it outside of IKEA was a bit of a challenge. We ended up tucking a flat sheet in around the matress and then bought a throw sized fleece blanket to cover him.

Additionally, when we moved our boys to big boy beds we always made it a big deal. Helping them get excited makes it more of a positive thing. With my youngest I also learned a trick from SuperNanny. The first night I stayed outside his door to see if he got up to play. When he did get up the first time I went in and told him "it's time to sleep darling" and placed him gently back in bed. My little guy cried for just a minute but never got back up. According to Nanny if they get up again your supposed to just say "it's time to sleep" and again put them in bed. Any subsequent times you just silently put them back in bed and immediately leave. Don't speak, don't argue and don't even interact with them in any way that would stimulate them. This is to teach them they will not get the type of attention they may want from you and they're learning what is expected of them. It takes patience but I think this technique is effective without being mean.

If she isn't a good sleeper the transition may be more of a challenge. Things have gone pretty well with my two year old but occasionally I do find him sleeping with a brother in another room in the middle of the night. Also since we obviously haven't put up a gate yet he is waking up his brothers at the crack of dawn on weekends (he's an early bird). I may try the gate so in the mornings he can play in his room because he was always good at playing quietly in his crib until we went in to get him. That was a great suggestion below.

Good luck with everything.

If she can climb out of her crib, the is she ready for a bed. You don't want her falling out and getting hurt.

My son learned to climb out of his crib at 18 months! It seemed crazy because the idea of baby-proofing his room well enough that he could theoretically be in there for hours (during the night playing instead of sleeping) freaked me out. but we survived.

Whether you like it or not, once they can climb out, you've got to do whatever is safest. Falling out of the crib while trying to climb out wouldn't be good.

We went to a toddler bed for him when he was 18 months old. He soon grew out of it unfortunately. He usually slept on the floor next to his toddler bed. Frustrating. And he must have cold and more uncomfortable. I wish we had gone straight to a twin mattress set directly on the floor with side rails.

Now, my daughter is 2 1/2 and hasn't climbed out yet. and I'm so glad for that.

good luck to you. And a critical part of the success is teaching your young child that they are not allowed to play when you put them in there for sleep. That would be a disobedience issue. If your daughter is obedient and well-behaved already, it probably won't be as difficult as you might think. Again, this young is a tough one. good luck.

Well my daughter switched to a toddler bed about 21 months. She is now almost 24 months next month. She sleeps in her bed for the most part. Sometimes she wakes up in the middle of the night but other than that I would recommend it. Of course I put her in her bed after she has fallen asleep in my bed, but that is my way. It is totally up to you. Your daughter might get up and play with her toys and then again she might just go to your room to see you. That is what my daughter does when she wakes up in the middle of the night.

I think each child is different and you need to do what is the best and safest for your family. My son was tossing and turning in his crib at 21 months. He'd get his arms or a leg stuck between the slats of the crib and it would wake him up. He was just really uncomfortable. We turned his crib to a toddler bed at 21 months and he immediately slept better. I did put a railing on the bed for about six months, so he didn't fall out. However, my son is pretty mellow and has always liked his beauty sleep, so I didn't have the issue of him getting out of bed and playing - at least until he was 3 and tried to get out of napping, but that's an entirely different topic.

For my firstborn, my daughter, we went directly from the crib to a "big girl bed" at 23 months because we moved and we had a new one on the way, so we made a big deal of getting the new girl bed since we were moving. I put up railings for about 6 months - she never fell out and in fact for the first few months didn't understand that she could get out of the bed. She thought she had to stay in it and wait for us to come get her like she did in the crib. Too funny. I say go with your instincts, but be ready to deal with some unpredictable days and/or nights.

My sister transitioned her daughter at 2 1/2 years and she had a brilliant plan that worked like a charm...

1. She wrapped a "fun noodle" (for the pool) in a big blanket and stuffed it under the sheet along the edge of the bed so that her daughter would not roll off at night.

2. Her husband bought an indoor/outdoor security camera from "Harbor Frieght" (they have one in Newark). It costs $29.95. It has "infrared night vision." they postioned the camera to point down at the child's bed. The camera transmits sound as well as a black and white picture to a closed circut tv channel on their tv. You could also use a regular video monitor but they are much more expensive.

3. They put their daughter in her new bed for the first night and then they went to the tv and watched. Everytime she started to get out of the bed, they went in her room and put her back in. They said they were able to "catch" her before her feet even hit the floor (because of the "fun noodle" being in the way).

They say that the first night they had to go in her room about 25 times, but the 2nd night it was only 3 times and now after almost 6 months, she has not tried to get out again, even when they are standing there telling her it is ok to get out, she won't.

Hope this helps!

It sounds like he may be ready to move up to a big boy bed. When my daughter was 18 months, I started transitioning her to a twin bed. We put the mattress on the floor (no box springs or frame). During naps, I snuggled with her to make the transition. When she was asleep, I snuck out of the room. I did not co sleep with my daughter before hand, but I wanted her to feel comfortable in the twin bed. Eventually she slept in the twin bed at night, too! Yay! Now at 3 years old, she sleeps on a mattress with a box spring, no frame, but I'm sure she would be fine with a frame, too.

Good luck!

I would avoid the toddler bed and go straight to a twin bed. The reason why I say this, is just in case you have to lay down with them at the beginning its more comfortable for you.
Plus they are less likely to get out of bed, because it is so much bigger than the toddler bed. Just get the guards so they don't roll off.

All of my kids were about 18 mos, when I took them out of their cribs. My daughters who are the oldest one did well. Only having to lay down with them for a little while.

AND you don't have to buy a toddler bed and then a twin bed. Too much furniture. Nothing like a REAL big kid bed!!

Have fun.. Your sleep maybe interupted again, but it'll be fine.

C.

Hi S.,

My son is now 12, but when he was about your daughters age, he starting climbing out of his crib. He already had a toddler bed in the room which he used for naps. It did take a bit of getting used to when he would walk into the room I was in after naps or in the morning. It took putting him back in bed quite a few times as he got used to the toddler bed, but it was safer than worrying about him falling out of his crib and injuring himself. Good luck with your decision.

It is better to have your daughter climbing safely out of her toddler bed to play than for her to fall from the crib trying to climb out. We moved our daughter to a toddler bed at about this age.

Put the toddler bed in her room, but keep the crib up for a couple of weeks. Let her know that she can have the "big girl" bed if whe will stay in it to sleep. Try naps in the "big girl" bed first and then transition to night sleeping if she is good about it.

There will be times that she will get up and you will have to lay her back down or she may try to climb in your bed. You will have to decide how to handle that...personally, I prefer getting more sleep...my daughter now sneaks into our bed without waking us. If she wakes us, she is moved back to her toddler bed.

Your other option is one of those nets that attaches to the top of the crib to keep her from climbing out. Good luck!

My daughter was doing the same thing right before she turned two. I waited until her 2 yr birthday and got her one. Yes she did get up out of bed alot for the first few days, but after persistence and us putting her back each time she got up she finally just started staying in bed and went to sleep. She is still in it to this day and she just turned three about a month ago, she loves her independence now and it makes her feel like a big girl, she also loves to get up in the morning herself and come get me. I think maybe if you could put her off for at least a few more months you will probably get better results once she turns two. Good luck! Hope this helps.

My son was climbing out of his crib around 13 months so I got a crib tent and he used that until he was almost 3 years old. It worked great. I think right before I switched him to a big boy bead he was figuring out a way to unzip it but my memory is failing me right now. He was 2 months shy of his 3rd birthday when we moved him out of the crib. You could always try the crib tent and see if she likes it and if she will stay in it. I was so glad I got mine.

Hi S..

I'm all for saving money. The crib my daughter was in was a hand-me-down. I didn't want to purchase a toddler bed either because I knew she would grow out of it fast. I bought her a twin bed that she started sleeping in at 18 mos. It was up against the wall and the other side had a bed rail(also hand-me-down) probably until she was 3 1/2. If your dtr is climbing out of her crib, she will climb out of bed too, but a bed will be easier (and probably safer) for her to climb out of.

We moved our son to a twin bed (not a toddler bed) at 18 mths because he HATED sleeping in a pack & play, which made traveling a nightmare. We left his crib up, thinking it would take a few days or a week even for him to be comfortable with the new bed.

He cried for about 5 seconds, went through his bedtime routine with his dad & then proceeded to sleep through the night - wonderful!! I bought the longest bedrail I could find online, put a small pillow at the head of the bed so he could "roll out" easily, turned the rocking chair in his room around so the back of it was up agains the foot of the bed & voila - a large "crib". He's tried to get out twice since then (it's been 3 mths now) & best of all - he sleeps GREAT when we travel because I take the bedrail with us.

My ped said earlier is better when it comes to switching beds & I couldn't agree more! It truly was one of the easiest transitions we've ever done with him. Good luck! I say now is the perfect time!!

My daughter starting climbing out of her bed right around her 2nd birthday. Because I didn't want her to get hurt trying to climb out in the middle of the night, I took down the crib and put her in a toddler bed. HUGE mistake. She was not ready to have that much freedom and we all suffered. After the fact I was on parents.com forums and they have a Dr. monitor the sleeping issues forum. Her take is that no child is ready to leave the crib before 3. If they begin to climb out before then, use a crib tent. My daughter was almost 3 when I learned this, but had I known it earlier, I would never have removed the crib that early.

You don't want her climbing out of her crib, it's too dangerous. I've known children who broke wrists and other bones climbing out. Time to go buy a toddler bed...things might be difficult for you at first but such is life as parents.

Good luck!

It is time to switch to the toddler bed when your child can climb out of the crib because you do not want them to get hurt obviously. There are crib tents that I considered for my first child but the reviews were so-so and I did not know if it was worth the investment. My son is 21 months now and we just last weekend started him in his big boy bed. It is perfect for him. He does not get out and play. Good luck!

S.,
My son started climbing out of his crib at 2 and I let him stay in it a little longer then i should have. Few horrible falls. I got him a boy looking daybed and decided to skip a toddler bed all together. My son is very tall for his age and i figured it would be a waste to do a toddler bed since he would grow out of it soon. I got a daybed with a trundle under it. He has only fallen out once. The first month I would pull the trundle out so if he fell out he would fall on the other bed. I also put a baby gate at the foot of his door. However, my son is really good at climbing over it or reaching over and pulling it open on his own. So I had to double gate it. This way he knew he had to go to bed or have quiet time when the gates were up in his room. The gates are mostly up during his nap. He knows he can play in his room and if he gets tired he can climb in his bed on his own. Night time is a little more work. I have to lay with him for 15 mins to get him to calm down. He is still very excited about his big boy bed and likes to jump around on it. He also likes to help me make it and arrange all his toys and pillows where he wnats them. Let them contribute to the process. We took our son to the store when we picked out the bed and bedding. We put his crib out of site so when the next baby is here he won't care about his old crib anymore. Make sure you get a really good waterproof mattress pad if he is still wetting a lot at night and a pad for the top sheet. Its a lot more work changing wet sheets on a twim bed at 3am then on a crib. Good luck.

SAHM, 2.5yo super busy son and baby #2 due in July

We moved both of our boys to a "big boy bed" at around 22 months. We started with naps at around 20 months old and then moved them at night shortly after, it worked for us. I know that some people wait until 2-2 1/2 years old. We would keep a baby gate up in their door so that they couldn't "escape" out of their room, but they did really well staying in bed until we got them. One drawback is they would sometimes get up and start playing in their room earlier than we wanted to get up, so you have to be firm on the no getting out of bed until we get you rule.

Every baby is different! The last thing you want to happen though is for her to attempt to crawl out and fall. My first fell out of her crib at 14 mo old, so there she was in a toddler bed at 15 mo. Because our second is such a good sleeper we decided to move her to a toddler bed at 16 mo before she started not napping well and it has been great! She stays in her bed and loves to get in it at night all by herself. She gets up all by herself in the morning and comes into out room...for cuddle time...<grin>!

Only the parents can make the decision of when their baby is ready for a toddler bed...the advice comes that comes in handy is how to do it so it is a smooth and happy transition.

Best of luck!

Our son got his "big boy bed" right about that time, we got it for him for an early birthday present about a month before his second birthday. We've never had a problem with him rolling off or anything... and he loves it because it was the bed [Lightning McQueen from the "Cars" movie] we let him pick out himself, along with matching sheets etc. He has since always excited to get to sleep in his "Lightning Queen" bed, ever since we got it for him.

If you just make sure all the lights are out or very dim, and let her know that it is time to stay in bed, it will work itself out eventually for her to be in bed sleeping. We had a few nights where Ian tried to get up and play a bit, but Mom came in and "camped" out with him in a make shift tent, so he did learn pretty quickly. Or perhaps if your little girl is still sleeping in your room (in her own bed) right now, just try replacing it there with her new big girl bed for a couple of weeks (so you can still keep an eye on her and she can adjust) before moving her to her own room.

Good luck - only mom knows what's best for her own kids, and I hope you find your solution quickly!

If you think it's best for her to stay in the crib a bit longer, you can try out a "crib tent" which is a mesh tent thing that attaches to the crib rail that you can zip open and shut - many parents in my twins club have found these to be helpful and some even say their kids think it's fun to have a tent on top of the crib. http://www.amazon.com/Tots-Mind-Cozy-Crib-White/dp/B00014...

Go with your instincts. Every kid is different - my twin girls were perfectly happy being in cribs until they were about 3.5YO and probably wouldn't even have minded being in them a little longer, but we gave one of their cribs to hubby's cousin for their baby and then moved our girls directly to twin beds with a bed rail on one side and the wall on the other.

Hi S.,
That's the age mine went into a toddler bed. She was climbing out and we could just tell she was going to get her foot stuck in between the slats and twist her ankle or worse. We figured that wouldn't be so great. She surprised us - she loved her bed and had no issues staying in it to sleep. I think the first nap was missed, because she kept getting up. The second day I wouldn't put up with it and just wordlessly put her back into bed. It's been good ever since. All kids are different, but that was my experience. If only they'd stay in cribs until they were 3. Sigh. Good luck!

We put our twin girls in toddler beds around 19 or 20 months. They kept climbing out and would fall asleep on the floor. We did this so that they could climb back in bed. For the first few weeks they would play with toys, but then eventually the novelty wore off. Though at nap time, I have to keep the door open until they fall asleep or they will take out all of the toys. They have done great in toddler beds.

Hi S.,
My oldest went into a toddler bed at around 18 months. Like your daughter, she expressed interest in it and once we made the switch, she never really had issues with getting out of her bed. She was so thrilled to be a Big Girl. My younger daughter went into the toddler bed at about 20 months - she had learned to climb out of her crib a few months before and I became concerned for her safety. Once we put her in the toddler bed, she did play with toys, especially during naptime. What I did was to designate another area of the house as the playroom and moved all her toys there. So her bedroom is only for sleeping and getting dressed now. That has worked well for us.

I know people sometimes say that toddler beds are a waste of money, but we have used ours more than we used our crib! 2 years for our older daughter and 2 years so far for our younger daughter. So to me it was a useful purchase.

Good luck!

My twins were climbing out of their crib at 20 months. We didn't have toddler beds and they were still too small for twin size beds.....however we used the twin mattresses and put them on the floor so if they did flip out of bed it would only be a couple of inches to the floor. It has worked out great. They both stay in bed when it is bedtime and nap time w/out any difficulty. It was a very easy transition. We just made sure not to have playtime or anything on their bed, so when we say bedtime is the time they get their beds....even in the mornings they both supposed times get up early and they just still lay in bed and talk away no even thinking about their toys yet. They are 25 months now....so hopefully this helps a little. Your little one is growing up!!!!

I would agree that you need to get her out of her crib BEFORE she climbs out and falls and hurts herself. I took my boy out at 2, before he started to climb out. She may get out of bed, as I had this trouble, but this is what it means to have a growing child! More challenges along the way. good luck!

It sounds like its time for her to be moved to a toddler bed. Anytime they are starting to climb out iys time.