Transitioning Toddler to Bed

I tried putting the toddler bed in my bedroom. I would lay down beside him until he fell asleep. I would rub his back or sing lullabyes to him. I put the bed against the wall and the bed rail on the opposite side so he couldn't roll out. I also put blankets and a sleeping bag on the floor around the bed in case he tried to get out or rolled out and fell.

I then moved the toddler or twin bed to another bedroom. Sometimes he needed me to sleep beside him until he fell asleep. Then I transitioned to sitting beside the bed until he fell asleep. Then I transitioned to putting him in bed and telling him I would be right down the hall if he needed me. I would wait outside the bedroom door. He would walk out and look for me quite a bit at the beginning, but eventually he would just stay put because he knew I wasn't gone.

I have to laugh...I also have a 21 month old son that I'm going to transition to a bed and a baby girl due in September!! Congrats to you!
I'm using a toddler bed (only b/c we are being given one) but I did let my son pick out his bedding and we have been discussing how his sister is going to use his crib when she comes b/c he is a big boy now. My son is used to taking naps on a cot at day care so I am having him start by taking naps on his bed as someone else suggested. I think with little ones everything revolves around their expectations. They are so good with routine, making a gradual transition seems to make all the difference in the world.

All we did was set my daughters room up and told her that will be her new room soon. Just so that she would get used to it that way first. Than we let her sleep in it for a few times for naps. Than we finally said that it was time to go into her new room for good all the time. The first night it was a little hard as witht he first nap but after the second night she was fine. Not sure if that usually works for every child but that is how she was. Good Luck.

i have 16 mo twin girls and they are both in toddler beds. they love their disney princess beds. when it's time for bed i say go get cinderella and they go right to their own beds. maybe you could try putting decals if none already, something he'll think is fun. also i wasn't really strict on staying in bed for the first few days, but after that i would put them both in bed and sit in the room with them if they got down i would put them back in and tell them night night and sit back down, no talking to them no looking at them, now they know when it's time for bed they're supposed to stay there, that took less than a week (the first couple times it took at least 1/2 hr and i waited until they fell asleep). overall it may take a while but you'll just need to pick a routine and follow it to a T.

I had to make the transition when she was 16 months old. At 15 months, she started climbing out of her crib and I thought she might fall and get hurt. We needed a new mattress and box springs at the time due to bad back of my husband. We put our other one on the floor in her room and that is where she started getting use to a big bed. We bought the frame for it later. She's never fallen out of bed. I have known people who find something the child likes and gets a bed to match. One boy loved the movie "CARS" and they got him a bed built like a car and they never had any trouble with him. Others have gotten a regular youth bed and made a big deal out of it being a big boy or girl's bed. Only a baby sleeps in a crib. They have had very little trouble with their kids.

Ishe ready for a big boy bed? If so, make a HUGE deal out of it. Take him shopping to pick out paint, sheets, furniture everything. Talk it up and let him help you wash the sheets and make the bed, if he can. You might want to consider a crib tent if you're not ready to move him yet.

I am in the same boat as you. My third is due the same day my second turns two. My pediatrition recommended that we just borrow or get another crib until our toddler shows signs of wanting to leave her crib, and we're taking that advice.

As far as transitioning goes, though (for our first and second girl): we let our two-and a half-year old pick out her new sheets and blankets for her new big girl bed so she'd be excited about it, and it worked.

Good luck with whatever you do!

I put my daughter in her big girl toddler bed when she was 2. Would have done it sooner BUT we were moving and just waited till we got in the new house, Anyway it went good for awhile BUT I put her in her toddler bed which was her crib that made into it. She was ALL OVER the bed and I put a bed rail on the side of it. She would get up and come to our room and I did what Supper Nanny would do get them and put them back in the bed. I did that for 2 days and she got the idea to stay in there. THEN she would fight me and I would take things away from her which she HATED BUT it did the job. She stayed in there plus I played music she liked to relax her as well. When we moved I put her in a full size bed and she LOVES IT. OH BUT little did I know when we were building our house I was pregnant SO she would have had to get out of it as well so Quentin could have it. I will put him in a big boy bed early as well b/c he is ALL over the bed like she was. Good luck. Just do not give into them and them them sleep with you unless it is a bad storm and they do not like them. If you make it a habit you will not EVER get time with your hubby. It is funny b/c my hubby and I were JUST getting to relax at night and spend some time together PLUS get more sleep and I guess that is how I got with the 2nd miracle baby lol. NOW we are starting all over. He is a better sleeper at night then she was as a baby so that is good. just HATES to take naps other then the power naps 20 min.

Well, before you actually put him in the bed, talk to him about it. Really play it up. Have him go with you to pick out the bed, sheets etc. Tell him what a big boy he's becoming and he gets a bed just like you.

I started with the mattress and box springs on the floor. They were inside the bed but not on the frame. This drastically lowers the level of the bed.

If he is a wild sleeper(he rolls all over) then put the bed up against one wall with the crib mattress on the other side of his bed. Or use pillows for a while.

If you're really nerous about him falling out(which they do once in a while) there are bed rails specifically for this. We bought one for my daughter from One Step Ahead. We never used it for my son. Just put him in the bed.

Hope this helps.

P.

I never gave the option to my kids to "resent" the new baby. Whether he needed the bed or clothes or my time. I put my new baby in a bassinet at first & when he needed the crib we simply put up a twin bed & told our older children that they were big boys now & didn't need the crib anymore. Then we put the baby in the crib. I know some people put their young kids in a big bed but I didn't do it until I had to. My closest were 21 months apart.

My daughters were both excited to have a new bed. It's a little tricky at first, because they like to explore their new freedom being able to get out of bed. So the first few nights you have to be patient and consistent about putting them back to bed. When we did the transition with each of our girls, we found at least one time where they fell asleep on the floor because they were climbing in and out of bed! :) What worked for us was building up how fun and cool it was to have a new bed. Good luck!

What type of bed are you transitioning to?
We made it a reward and a game. I didn't get a toddler bed, we went straight to a twin bed that was fairly low to the ground. I could put those storage containers under it but not anything as tall as an Avon box. Started out with it against a wall with a bed rail on the open side for a few months after children went to sleep. Both of my children where all over the crib when they slept so I knew they would be falling out of bed if I didn't have the rail at first.
Talk to your son about sleeping in a bed since he is getting so big, let him help pick out a set of sheets and a comforter he likes to decorate his bed with.
We always read to our children at bedtime so we stretched out with them, read a story, then put on some soft music, turned off the light, slid the bed rail in place and only had one or two nights of having to put them back into bed.
Good luck!!

When we switched our son to the toddler bed we made a really big deal about what a big boy he was. We first let him take naps in the bed but I would say after only a few days he wanted to sleep in his new bed at night too. Just make sure to pick up the toys that will keep him from sleeping. Hope this helps!
Good luck with the new little one!

We transitioned my older daughter at 18 months into her toddler bed, about a month before #2 came. She got her bed for Christmas, and we made a big buge deal out of it. It was all done up with Dora (her favorite), and all the grandparents oohed and aahed over her "big girl bed." We started with naptime, and she thought it was so special. Bedtime came pretty easily a few days later. She and her brother shared a room for a while, so we just kept the crib up right next to it, and it wasn't a problem. Now we're getting ready to transition her to a twin bed, #2 to the toddler bed, and #3 is due in Nov. I'm hoping it all goes as smoothly. This time the twin bed will be a birthday present, and then we'll make a big deal out of the toddler bed for #2...he'll be about 20 months, and he already loves his new "Cars" sheets. A friend of ours went straight to a twin mattress at about 20 months, and they just set it on the floor, but once again with making a big deal out of it and getting special Thomas sheets. He crawled into his bed happy as a clam to have Thomas surrounding him, and hasn't looked back. Get cool sheets...I think they're the key to everything! :-) Good luck!

I have a son that was afraid of transiting from a crib to a bed. What I did was I took away his crib and had him sleep in his bed. I would lay down right beside him on his bed until he fell asleep. I would also read to him on his bed and sit right there with him. He seen that I was not afraid so it made him not afraid. It did take a little time but I did that every night until he got used to sleeping in his own bed. Now he sleeps in his bed. God bless you.

If you have the space, put both the crib and the mattress on the floor in his room and let him choose when to move to the bed. This worked for our son.

Also, we have a bed from IKEA that doesn't have regular box springs but instead wooden slats so it's really low to the ground (like 8 inches maybe). It's a full size/ double bed and we bought a long bed rail at a consignment sale. With the bed in the corner and the rail on there's only about 10 inches of space for him to get out so it was a lot like a giant crib for a while. Once he started sleeping more like a bigger person (able to stay under blankets, use a pillow, etc) we took off the rail and he still stays in bed when he wakes up and he's almost 3. There's not a lot for him to do in his room though so when we finally decorate it and make it more appealing, maybe he will get out when he's awake.

Also, if you use a bassinet or some other baby sleeping arrangement in the beginning, that will buy you a few weeks or months so there isn't as much pressure to have it done before the baby comes or in September. Our second was born early in Ocotber, DS turned two late in August and he was in his bed for all sleeping by Halloween if not before. We actually bought his sheets (that he picked out, like others recommended) the night I went into labor!

HTH-
J.

Hi F.!

I put my son in a twin bed on the floor at 15 months. He throws himself around when he sleeps and was always slamming his head into the slats or getting a foot stuck.

I started putting him in the bed just for naps for about 2 weeks. Then put him in it at night. He had no problem transitioning. We've always had a very strict bedtime routine, and I think that helped.

We never had a problem with him getting up and playing. Even when he wakes up in the morning, he just lays in front of the door. He won't play (even when I want him to so I can get an extra 15 minutes of dosing!).

We also double checked to make sure everything in his room is absolutely toddler proof (anchored furniture, the door protector thing that keeps him from opening the door, etc.).

I would see if he will transition on his own, and if he has a problem, then try the picking out of his own linens and being overly excited. He could surprise you and have no problem. If it were my son, I would start talking to him about getting a new bed and see how he responds.

Good luck! I'm sure everything will be fine!

I remember my husband and I were a little freaked out about transitioning our daughter to a big girl bed. We did so a little later than you, but I've heard of even younger children transitioning with little trouble. With our daughter, we were traveling before we transitioned and we stayed at a friend's house. We ended up putting a twin mattress on the floor next to the bed that we slept on...we took pictures of her on the bed and she was so excited. I was nervous, but she slept quite well on the bed. We had talked about a "big girl" bed for awhile and so when we returned from vacation, my husband set up the new bed while I played with her in the living room. Then, we said, "Remember the big girl bed we've talked about?" She ran into her room and was so thrilled by the bed. We took pictures of her on the new bed.

The first couple of nights weren't perfect (she woke up a couple of nights crying and I would go comfort her; one night she actually rolled out of bed, but we had the bed near the floor so she was fine), but it took less than a week and she was transitioned quite easily. She did play around with opening her bedroom door at first as well, but we were just consistent about making her go back to bed and the novelty has worn off. When she wakes up in the a.m., she makes a beeline for our room and wakes me up. Thankfully it isn't usually TOO early! :)

Good luck F.---I hope all goes well for you. Congrats on the new baby!