Toddler bed?

kujayhawkgirl · January 2013

Has anyone gone to a toddler bed or thinking about it?

I'm thinking about whether is is plausible to think Abby can be in a toddler bed (with rails) before the new baby comes so we can use Abby's crib for the new baby.

Any thoughts on age-appropriateness or how to transition?

stardust317 · January 2013

I ended up buying another crib off of Craigslist when I first found out I was pregnant. DD is not ready for a toddler bed. I'm not sure when we'll transition her.

aliciaroset · January 2013

E has been on a floor bed since she just turned 13 months. (She's 15 now) The transition was pretty easy, about a week, and we all like it much better.

cantalopes24 · January 2013

We moved E around now. I liked it because we put toys and books on the floor and in the morning and at nap time he could play for a bit instead of crying to get out of the crib. Our stairs are different than the ones we had when E was a baby and I'm not confident Lo can handle them on her own if she did get out of her room. We'll probably transition over the summer.

thetheisens · January 2013

You could give it a try. I don't plan on transitioning at home any time soon, but C takes his naps at daycare on a cot and does fine, he's been taking naps on the cot since he was 11 months. I think you would need to make sure that everything was baby proof on the level her bedroom is on, in case she get out of bed and wanders. That's the main reason I don't want to transition yet. Our main floor is baby proofed and upstairs is blocked off. His room is upstairs.

kagl08 · January 2013

My 2 are 13.5 months apart. We opted for 2 cribs. It's worked out really well.

This is coming from someone who's 2.5 yr old is still in her crib and isn't transitioning any time in the immediate future.

My views are to keep them contained as long as humanly possible.

Elsa1984 · January 2013

We still have Gator in a crib and plan on keeping her in there for awhile. Mostly because she thrashes at night and would fall off a toddler bed or her mattress if it was on the floor. My friend switched her son into a toddler bed at 12mo and he did fine. Most people I know start with the mattress on the floor so if they do fall, they aren't falling from higher up....and then they transition to a toddler bed from there. If you do decide to do it, make sure furniture is secured to the wall and everything is baby proof. If you don't want her leaving her room while you are sleeping...a baby gate at her door or the door baby proofing locks on the INSIDE of her door so she cannot open it from the inside and sneak out.

I thought Gator was ready for a toddler bed and put her crib mattress on the floor to test it out. She didn't like it, so she went right back in her crib.

BeesMomma00 · January 2013

I have considered it, but Brooke's crib is her toddler bed... and her regular bed. So I will either have to buy a toddler bed now, and then a regular bed someday or just buy another 3 in 1. I decided to just go with a new crib and then, I also won't have to worry about pushing Brooke before she might be ready. She is no where near ready now and although I have no idea what she will be like 5 months from now, I have a strong feeling she will still be in a crib.

pearblossom · January 2013

Learn from my mistake!

We transitioned DD at this age because we had LO on the way and wanted to give her ample time to adjust to the big girl bed. It went wonderfully...until DS arrived. Then she started getting out of bed and walking around her room SCREAMING at all hours of the night, fighting and kicking us when we tried to get her back down. I think it was a manifestation of her confusion about the new baby. We ended up putting her back in the crib at 2am out of desperation and she went right to sleep. We bought a second crib the next day and she slept in hers until just a few months ago.

That being said, I have been toying with the idea of taking the side off of DS's bed because he can't play with toys in the morning like his big sister.

Rolamarie · January 2013

I wouldn't do it unless you have a really great reason separate from the desire to save money. IMO, my choice to have 2u2 shouldn't rush my DD's growing up. So I have never made decisions about her transitions respective to DS.

I can't imagine having had her in a toddler bed with a newborn around the house. I needed to keep her contained (now, she was only 14.5m old when he was born, but still) We switched her just before her second birthday, and she did great... But even then, some kids just aren't ready.

I always tell people to keep the crib as long as possible.

LatteLady5 · January 2013

I have no firsthand experience with this but could you buy a bassinet or a pNp to keep the baby in rather than investing in another crib? SIL had 2u2 and did this for my nephews until her DS1 was ready to transition to a toddler bed. I think they did a floor bed with him for a few months before getting a frame and he transitioned really well. It took the youngest a week or so too get adjusted to the crib after sleeping in a pNp but overall I think it was an easy transition.

My little N also slept in a bassinet next to my bed for a couple of months. Then we bed shared for a couple of months then she did the pNp and now she's a crib sleeper.

Ms.Jade · January 2013

I was just reading about this and I decided E wasn't ready either. And I know I'm not ready for her to be roaming around the house if she wakes up at night. We still have another level to go down on her crib so we're waiting. The article did mention that in most cases it's better to get a second crib instead of putting a child who's not ready into a toddler bed because a new sibling is coming along. But I know I would be thinking the same thing if I was pregnant now...

kujayhawkgirl · January 2013

Rolamarie:

I wouldn't do it unless you have a really great reason separate from the desire to save money. IMO, my choice to have 2u2 shouldn't rush my DD's growing up. So I have never made decisions about her transitions respective to DS.

I can't imagine having had her in a toddler bed with a newborn around the house. I needed to keep her contained (now, she was only 14.5m old when he was born, but still) We switched her just before her second birthday, and she did great... But even then, some kids just aren't ready.

I always tell people to keep the crib as long as possible.

One, I don't know who you are, but if you frequented this board enough, you would know that me, of all people on this board, would NOT rush my DD's development just for the sake of it.

Two, she sleeps on a cot at daycare and does great. Third, LO #2 isn't due until the beginning of May and I am not talking about transitiong my DD to a toddler bed tonight. I'm talking in a couple of months. I'm just now starting to think about this and wanted others thoughts, which everybody else has given me in a non-condescending way.

kujayhawkgirl · January 2013

lisajay09:
My advice is to keep Abby in her crib and get another crib. It's a lot easier to wrangle up 2 babies when you can put one in a safe place to go chase or bathe or feed or change or whatever the other baby. It won't be too long before LO 2 will be mobile.

I like the way way you think! I'm thinking if Abby does go to a toddler bed, I could also use a PnP for her while I am with the newborn. Abby is so tiny there's not way she can get out of the PnP and she still has plenty of room to play with toys in there.

kujayhawkgirl · January 2013

pearblossom:

Learn from my mistake!

We transitioned DD at this age because we had LO on the way and wanted to give her ample time to adjust to the big girl bed. It went wonderfully...until DS arrived. Then she started getting out of bed and walking around her room SCREAMING at all hours of the night, fighting and kicking us when we tried to get her back down. I think it was a manifestation of her confusion about the new baby. We ended up putting her back in the crib at 2am out of desperation and she went right to sleep. We bought a second crib the next day and she slept in hers until just a few months ago.

That being said, I have been toying with the idea of taking the side off of DS's bed because he can't play with toys in the morning like his big sister.

Oh my goodness, that would be horrible. Just curious are your DD and DS in the same room? If so, do you think it would be different if Abby and LO #2 were in separate rooms? Our LOs will be in separate rooms.

pearblossom · January 2013

kujayhawkgirl:
pearblossom:

Learn from my mistake!

We transitioned DD at this age because we had LO on the way and wanted to give her ample time to adjust to the big girl bed. It went wonderfully...until DS arrived. Then she started getting out of bed and walking around her room SCREAMING at all hours of the night, fighting and kicking us when we tried to get her back down. I think it was a manifestation of her confusion about the new baby. We ended up putting her back in the crib at 2am out of desperation and she went right to sleep. We bought a second crib the next day and she slept in hers until just a few months ago.

That being said, I have been toying with the idea of taking the side off of DS's bed because he can't play with toys in the morning like his big sister.

Oh my goodness, that would be horrible. Just curious are your DD and DS in the same room? If so, do you think it would be different if Abby and LO #2 were in separate rooms? Our LOs will be in separate rooms.

They do share a room now, but at the time DS slept with us and DD had her big bed and the empty crib in her room.

Nita2603 · January 2013

Our cribs are convertible to toddler bed and real bed. So before lil A was born, we toyed with the idea of having the big boy room ready with the big boy bed. My MiL made a good point though: as long as he still rolls around in his crib as if he is getting paid to do so, he is not ready and would probably find a way to fall out. So that was the point to buy another crib. I also love having them both contained for a little longer.

btsrc5 · January 2013

We kept LA in our room until she was 6 months old... so my plan is to hold off buying another crib until baby is at least a couple months old, and then reassess the situation. Right now, I feel like there is no way LA is ready for a toddler bed, but maybe that will be different by the end of the summer.

babes12 · January 2013

i transitioned DS to a toddler bed (car bed that was low to ground, no rails) when he was 21months b/c DS # 2 was on the way. He did great. we started w/ his afternoon nap and then watched him on the monitor, if he got out of bed we went right in immediately and put him back in bed.

Ariana2O11 · January 2013

I was thinking about this just the other day. I'm going to skip the toddler bed and get a twin with bed rails when he's about 18 months or so.

mrs.lizzieb · January 2013

We transitioned DS to a toddler bed around 20 months, because he climbed out of his crib and fell on his head. I wasn't really ready to transition him, but he clearly was. It worked out well, and he transitioned smoothly with no issues. Good luck with whatever you decide!

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