Converting from Crib to Toddler Bed

My 27 month old just potty trained (day trained), and he is still in his crib. I intend to keep him there until he starts to climb out or be uncomfortable. It is hard to teach them to stay in the bed at night, and forget about naps if you switch! It's always easier if they are older.

He wears a diaper at night/nap and undies the rest of the time. We talk about how we wear a diaper at sleep times because he can't go to the potty. He's happy with that for now. Also, I was always very against using treats to potty train, but jellybeans worked for him. My husband started it, and after 3 days we "ran out" of jellybeans, and now he doesn't ask for them at all. It depends on the kid, and you have to be able to say no at some point. Good luck!

both of my children switched at about 18 months, as did all of the other kids in our family. The trick is to be 'large & in charge", be firm, & stick to your guns! Talk about rules & boundaries, make a poster together for his room showing what bedtime is all about, let him take ownership of the room & it's responsibilities.....& let him know the consequences for breaking the rules. I know this sounds dorky, but consistency & full-out openness is the key to this transition. AND it will set the stage for cooperation & obediance in future endeavors!

Keep him in the crib for as long as you can. He could stay in the crib for another 6 months easily. You will save yourself a lot of time and trouble.

There is no connection to potty training and staying in the crib. Potty train when he is ready, have him help you buy his big boy pants and then have lots of time--easier in the Summer time. Take him to the potty on a regular basis and especially about 1/2 hour after eating. Always be positive, NEVER ever be negative or scold. Could do sticker rewards for a short time just to get him interested. Never use food as a reward.
You will do fine. Good luck.
N.

My daughter was just over 3 when we switched. Unless there is a safety issue with climbing out of the crib, for your sanity, keep him in the crib as long as possible.

When we did change her over, we completely redecorated her room. New curtains, wall decor, toddler sheets so that it was a big kid room, not a nursery. We also have a big pillow and blanket on the floor so that if she wants to, she can lay down there instead of the bed. We also have a gate across her doorway so that she can't leave the room at night.

M.

We haven't moved my 2.5 y/o out of the crib, but he is night time and day time potty trained. He is a pretty light sleeper and calls mommy whenever he needs to go at night. It is moderately annoying, but honestly, even if he was in the big boy bed he would still need help. A lot of times he just holds it all night though.

Good luck with your decision! My son really has no desire to climb out of the crib. He has only done it a few times and most of the times he just cries for me if he needs something.

You don't mention how old he is in your message.

The advice from our pediatrician was to wait as long as possible. If he's not trying to get out of the crib, it's the safest environment for him.

Our son was 2.5 when we moved him - it was WAY too early for him. His little sister was 9 months, and we wanted to put her in the crib instead. Bad idea. He's only stayed in his room all night a handful of times in the past year + that he's been out of the crib.

Once they're out of the crib, you have a much more difficult challenge of getting them to stay in the bed and in a safe environment.

Good luck! Hoping your experience is a smoother one than ours.

I just want to echo waiting as long as you can. I've read that it's best to keep them in the crib as long as they aren't trying or able to climb out.

We converted our daughters crib to a bed when she was a little over 2 because she wasn't napping well at home (she naps fine for daycare), and we thought maybe if she had a big girl bed, she'd be excited about taking a nap. It didn't help with the naps, and we then spent weeks trying to keep her in bed at night. (and worrying that she would get up in the middle of the night and roam around the house while we were sleeping). I wish we had kept her in the crib longer.

As far as potty training, our daughter started potty training at 28 months, and didn't sleep through the night dry until 4 months later. We stopped putting diapers on her at that point (32 months). However, she rarely wakes up because she has to go potty. She wakes up because she peed on herself already. So I don't think you have to worry about potty training him in the crib. I think it'll be a while before he's able to wake up and go to the potty in the middle of the night. My guess is by the time that happens, he'll be ready for a big boy bed anyway. (potty training takes a long time in general, and a really long time for night time training)

I hope that helps

Good luck!

A.

My son's 3, and we put off doing this until now, tried pror attempts, but switched back to crib, he was waking up a lot and getting him to sleep took over an hour of reading(husband and I would usually fall asleep, too). It was causing tension in our marriage so it's worked this time, knock on wood. The convertable crib/bed is a good idea, the 1st time we tried, we failed because we tried moving him to a full size bed too soon. We converted the crib, and it's went much better. You probably have one already, but stick with the same bedtime routine(bath, book) what ever it may be.. If he starts waking, and comin int oyour bedroom(usually the first place kids go to), remain as calm and non-reactive as possible(being half asleep helps) and gently say "i'll tuck you back in" and then go. I watched this on "supernanny"-it worked like a charm everytime on the show. The worst case scenario, is that you will do this for 1-2 nights, waking with him like he's a baby again, but if you just stay calm, firm, and CONSISTANT, it will work. If it doesn;t despite your efforts, try the crib a little longer. Best of luck, for me, I would sometimes cave, because my little one screaming to be close to us would make me sad as heck sometime, but we are all sleeping better now