Advice on Crib vs Toddler Bed and Bedding for It

I have a 3 in 1 crib and used it for my first child (now 6). She went straight to a regular bed at 18 months with no problem and it is much easier to find sheets for this size bed. I saved the crib for my second child (now 2 1/2). When he started to crawl out we took one side off. That worked for a short time. I have now converted it to a full size bed because he was getting too big for the toddler mattress. I would start now with the transition to a big bed. My daughter helped me pick out her bedding so it was fun moving to a big girl bed. There are rails you can get to slip under the mattress if you are afraid of her falling out. Good luck and hope this helps.

If you search the internet (use Google) for "toddler bedding" you will be amazed at the number of bed sets you can order.

Hi B.,

We bought a toddler bed (it takes up much less room than the 3 in 1). My daughter slept in it until she was almost 6. You can find really cute Disney toddler bedding on their web site. They have Mickey Mouse, Cars, Princesses & other characters. If you're on a budget, you can also just buy a solid sheet (toddler bed mattress is the same size as a crib mattress) & pillow case at Walmart or Target & then find a cute blanket.

We had a similar issue as our oldest is just over two and we just had our second at the end of January. We opted to move our oldest directly to a big girl bed. We were moving her into a new room at the same time and I got her very involved in helping to decorate the room. She picked out the colors, the bedding and the furniture. She was so excited to move to her big girl room and big girl bed that it was an easy transition. We bought bunk beds as we plan on putting both girls together eventually and we bought extra rails so we have front and back rails on both the upper and the lower bunk.

Just something else to consider if you don't want the expense of a toddler bed and/or are having trouble finding bedding to last the year.

Okay, the two year old seems happy in this bed. What does he/she think of napping in mommy's big bed? At two you could actually go to a twin bed. Or, you could get an inexpensive toddler instead of investing in a much more expensive 3 in 1. I always looked at stuff online. There isn't much where i live for purchase off the shelf, spiderman, etc.. I would try to work him/her up to trying out a toddler bed, let them pick it out, pick out bedding they like, etc..and then put it in the place it will be (the room they will be in after baby). Then let them choose which bed they will sleep in. Get some sort of special "baby" to actually let her help put in the crib and see if they want to help you tuck baby in, etc..Many times kids will feel big and want to help with "baby" before it gets here. She/he may choose the big bed just because it's like mommy and daddy's. And, a good thing to have is a baby gate for their doorway, so if they become a wanderer you will know they are confined to their room. One warning, though, don't let her come to your bed, that is a mess to get stopped. They must be very tolerant if they havent climbed out of the bed yet, you will probably have one who is a good candidate to stay in the bed. Good luck!

I was in a similar situation myself (my twins were 2 when my 3rd child was born). I definitely recommend keeping the 2 yr old in a crib for a while longer to ensure she continues to nap and sleep smoothly through the night -one less thing to worry about when the baby arrives. Babies R Us has a nice collection of neutral crib sheets. Once she is 3, potty trained and growing taller, she will be more comfortable in a big girl bed... look for a new, special sheets set then.
By the way, my solution was to keep my newborn baby in a portable crib (smaller, less expensive) for about 5 months, until I moved my 2 year old to a regular bed.

We did the same thing as many of the other moms- we did buy a toddler bed and set it up in the livingroom so she could "test it out". We also made a really big deal about how she is the big sister and such a big girl that she gets a special big girl bed- the more excited we got about it the more excited she was! I know KMart and WalMart sell bundles for sheets and pillowcases and such- crib sheets do fit on the toddler bed. I think the convertables are really cool but we figured with two girls they'll probably end up with bunkbeds when the third child comes around so we skipped on them and went for the toddler bed. They're so much lower to the ground and have about the same inside size as the crib so I think it helped. We actually took the crib down once she moved into the big girl bed so it was "out of sight out of mind" and that way when our 2nd came along our first daughter wasn't calling the crib "her" crib. Good luck to you!

Hi...I have had some luck at Baby's R us....Good Luck

We bought a 3in1 crib from Kmart, under 100.00, it converts easily to toddler then a double..they have them in natural wood color and white (we have the white) and it's cute, quality just fine. I had a 3 year old when my DS was born and she'd never tried to climb out and we didn't want to mess with her awesome sleeping habits...when we coverted her crib (also a 3in1) we continued to use her fitted crib sheet and added a comforter (no top sheet) and coordinating pillowcase...easy and worked great (you don't have to have a top sheet). So if you just want to let your 2 year old in a crib you could do this....I guess I really don't think 100 is expensive for a 3in1 crib and they are terrific (neither of mine have needed extra parts purchased, they came with the conversion kit and were simple to convert). I also think that moving a child before they are ready or have shown signs of climbing out isn't always the best idea but you know you little one the best.

B.

We put my son in a full sized bed at first but had to get him a toddler bed because we needed the full sized bed for downstairs. (very long story) I bought him a toddler bed and he loved it even more. I could not find bedding at any store as some others have said, only wal-mart in the baby section. Maybe I looked in the wrong places. We bought our toddler bed for 40 bucks at Once Upon a Child and we all love it.

Hi there. We had the same issue last year. I was pregnant with our second son when our older son was 18 months. We decided to transition him into a big boy bed 3 months before his brother was born so that we could reuse the crib, too. It took some time but he was fine with it. And similar to you, my older son never attempted to climb out of his crib. We decided to buy him a real (full size) bed so it would grow with him through his childhood. It's been the best thing we have ever done. He has lots of room to move around and is plenty big for mom/dad(for those nights he wants someone to lay with him). I think you're older one will respond better than you think. My older son was in his big boy bed at 19 months without any issues while the crib was all set up in his little brother's room.

I hope that helps. Good luck.
N.

Hi B.,

We have a 3-in-1 crib and really like it. We found a Blue's Clues sheet and comforter set at a rummage sale and they work nicely for the toddler bed. By the time our son out grows Blue's Clues, he'll probably be too big for a toddler bed, too. We also have some plain blue and white fitted crib sheets that work well.

I don't usually see toddler bedding at the department store, but you can probably find some nice toddler bedding at eBay. I think the most difficult thing is finding flat sheets for a toddler bed. It seems like you have to buy a whole set of bedding to get a flat sheet. For that reason, we only have one flat sheet. Also, I've never seen toddler bedding that isn't branded (Wiggles, Elmo, etc). Good luck!

We were in the same boat. Our son turned 2 in Oct. and I was due with our 2nd in November. He wasn't attempting to get out of his crib either, but we slowly started making his new room and put a "big boy bed" in there. He played on it for a while, then began taking naps on it. The transition was very smooth, as we didn't force it on him and he was excited for the new change, on his own. This way, too - the nursery was then for the baby - and he was a "big boy." We skipped the toddler bed b/c we saw it as a waste of money. We put him in a full size bed with a gate, pushed up against the wall on a low frame. A great decision with a small investment...for us, anyway.

My husband and I decided to go the convertable crib route. We bought one for each of our daughters and looking into one for the son on the way. The crib sheets I bought for their crib are still good even though we have now converted both girls cribs to the daybed style. The daybed uses the same mattress. Now we are thinking of converting the five year olds daybed to a full size bed now. We have a mattress on a sparebed that we can use for it and then we will take her mattress to use for our son's crib when he arrives.

I love these beds. I do believe we have purchased good quality furniture that will last at least until they are in highschool...if not on through then too. They are still solid as rocks and the oldest set is five years old now. No problems with either one.

Only issue we have had is my second daughter must have been a beaver in a previous life (that's just a joke) and she chewed the rails of her crib when she was teething. The tooth marks aren't very attractive but when we convert it to a full bed we won't use the side rails anymore.

I love them.

We bought our daughter an inexpensive toddler bed at Walmart for under $100. She started out in it at around 2, and she is 4 and still in it. We'll be buying her a big bed pretty soon, but the toddler bed lasted 2 years. Not bad for under $100. You can buy cute sheet sets for toddler beds at any store that come with a flat sheet, a pillow case, a fitted top sheet and comforter.

I know lots of people tend to go straight from a crib to a big size bed, but for my daughter, she felt more secure in a small bed that was just her size. They also come with a little railing along the side so they don't fall out.

I wouldn't buy a 3 in 1 crib though. Too expensive.

Our oldest was never one to climb out of his crib either but like you we were getting ready to baby #2, I never liked the idea of a toddler bed when I knew in a couple yrs I would need to get a regular bed as our son grew so we just got our son all psyched up and got him a regular twin bed and moved crib over to baby #2. Good Luck!!

B., Your kind of stuck here with the wanting bedding that will work for both the toddler bed stage and then moving into older. My suggestion would be to go with something such as a character or color scheme she likes and then just move into twin size set when she is ready. We purchased disney stuff for the toddler bed and then the same characters for the twin bed. made moving simple. A seperate note. What we did also (my boys are 15 months apart) is put the toddler bed together in the room and at nap time start using that. After a week or so we took the crib down and put it out of site. (we did have to purchase a babygate for the doorway of the room as they can then get out of the room lol) by the time the next baby comes the little one is pretty much into the toddler bed and giving up the crib is a non issue. the new baby usually stays in a bassinet for the first 2 - 3 months anyway so that gives you a little more time. Good luck. This is a fun time enjoy it.
S.

I would NOT bother with a toddler bed. Just get a regular twin bed and either put the mattress on the floor or put a rail on it for your older child. She'll be into a "big girl" bed soon enough anyway - not worth spending the $ on something like this, IMHO.

Have you thought of moving your two-year-old right into a regular bed? We just moved our 2 1/2 year old to a twin bed and she's doing great! She would have been in the toddler bed for such a short time that we didn't think it was worth it. We made a big deal of the fact that she has to stay in the bed until mommy or daddy come to get her and she's done great, so far! Finding bedding is much easier for the twin bed and she'll be in this bed for awhile, too. We thought that was a better use of the money!

We did the same thing for my older son and it worked out great for him, too!

Good luck, J.

I strongly recommend IKEA for bedding.

It's all cotton, they have big variety of styles, and best of all, the prices are great.

They also have very inexpensive children's beds you may look into.

Hi B.,

Congratulations on #2!
I'm a mom of 3. I wouldn't waste time/money on a toddler bed. With each of my kids we moved them out of the crib when they were two. None of my kids climbed out of the crib (which I guess is unusual) But I too needed the crib for the next one. So we just went to the twin size and got bed rails so they wouldn't fall out. They each made the transition relatively smoothly. We made the switch about 3 months before the baby was due and took the crib apart and put it away. We didn't want the first child to feel like they were being replaced or that the new baby was sleeping in "their" crib. I think two is a good age because they don't really remember the crib. If I ask my older girls now (8) and (6) about their cribs they don't even remember. And even though we didn't NEED the crib when my youngest turned 2 we took him out of it because it worked so well with the girls. I really never understood toddler beds. Why try and make a transition for your child more often than you have too. From the crib to the toddler bed, then from the toddler bed to a big bed. You only need one crib. (unless your having twins - and I have no advice for that :-)

We are expecting our 2nd child in a few days, so we just had a similar situation (our other daughter is 2). My daughter loved her crib never tried to climb out and slept very well in it. But we need the crib for the new baby. So we bought a regular twin bed for her. It is on the box spring but not the frame so she can climb into it. We made a big production of it with new bedspread and sheets. We even called her grandparents so she could tell them about it. That made her feel super cool. She refers to it as her big girl bed and she loves it. I was so surprised that the transition was so easy for her. Now if only we could conquer potty training...

It was right around 2 when we took our daughter (3 next month) out of her crib and converted it to a toddler bed. We set it up and pretty much played in her room and let her check it out. She transitioned very well and she was like your daughter, never tried to climb out of her crib etc. If you use a toddler bed you can usually still use crib sheets and the crib matteress which we are still using. We bought some really pretty sheets and a full size comforter in a very girly flower print and she loves it. If I were you, I'd scrap the whole 3 in 1 idea. As the other poster said, at this point, you can just transition her right to a twin or full size probably without much effort since she seems pretty easy going. Also for now, why not just take out the crib and put her crib mattress on the floor and let her start that way? She won't roll off and hurt herself and could be a good way to transition her from the crib to the new bed when you buy it. If your going to use her crib for the baby, the sooner you begin the better. Good luck!

Instead of buying a 3-1 convertible Crib, why don't you look on a site like Craig's List and see if anyone has a crib for sale cheap, or even free? Then you could just use two cribs until your two year old is ready. You can even post there that you're looking for a crib and how much you're willing to pay.

Good Luck! :)

I just moved my 2 year old daughter (she turned 2 in Dec) from a crib to a twin bed on Sunday. I didn't think it was worth the money to buy her a toddler bed. I left the crib set up in her room till Monday evening. She took her nap on Sunday afternoon in her new big girl bed. She got out of bed on her own and came downstairs when she woke up. Monday morning I could hear her chattering in her bed, but she didn't come out of her room. It was early and still dark, so I think the darkness kept her in her bed. She has transitioned quite well without any issues. I would suggest going right to a twin bed with a side rail. It gives them more of a cozy feel like the crib. Good Luck

My 5 year old switched to a toddler bed when she was 2 also. I loved it and so did she. She felt like such a big girl and it might help her cope easier to the new baby if you let her kow she is helping out. That is something of hers that she can share with the baby. Let her help you pick our her own sheets and things. I am not sure if the children will be sharing a room but by the time the baby is big enough to get a toddler bed maybe you could get bunk beds. Most toddler beds use a crib matress so you could use either the same sheets or get new. I know they have like dora and other smaller children types.. Good luck..

If you don't mind ordering online The Company Store has lots of bedding options for toddler beds.