Moving Toddler to a Big Girl Bed?

I moved my 2 1/2 yr old to her toddler bed when she climb out of her crib, but even then I was worried about her roaming the house, falling out, staying in bed, etc etc. So, I took her shopping for her new bedding. I let HER choose what she wanted (Tinkerbell) and what kind of bedding. I even let her get a Tinkerbell throw. Well, that evening I went and converted her bed while she was playing in the living room. I washed all her bedding and set everything up. I then called for her to come up. She was SO excited about the bed, she jumped in, went under the covers and said "Mommy, I am soooooo sleepy"- it was only 7:15! She hasn't gotten out of bed and roamed or anything (I told her that if she got out of bed, the only room she could come to was mine and she's stuck with it - it's been 4 months now and she only leaves her bed in the morning when she wakes up). I think getting them involved in the transition as much as possible will really help. Good luck!

Get her used to the big girl bed before you move to the new home, it will be easier for the transition of a new home, room,yard etc.

We went through the same thing. The movers came to move us the day after my son turned 2. I just packed up the crib. We sat the twin bed up in our rental house. He thought he was big stuff. He could not wait to go to bed and showed everyone his "big boy bed"! When construction of our new house was complete(about 7 months later), I put the twin bed away and moved him into his full sized bed. He has been such a trooper. Not one complaint. It made the 2 moves more fun because he got a new big boy bed with each house!!! So I would say if she is safe in the crib until you move, what worked for us was new house, new bed. Also, maybe she could help pick out her new bedding, or a special pillow for the new bed. Good Luck!

Though it would be a good time with all the other transitions, I would say no. Age two is still fairly young.
There were many times that I wished I kept the smaller bed for my second daughther when she was three and close to four.
Maybe put the new bed up after the holidays late in the year. You can buy sheets, a quilt and fluffy pillows and make a big deal about it then. T.

We transitioned our son at age 18months because our daughter was due 2 months later. He was doing well sleeping through the night and moved very little in his crib while he slept. He did absolutely wonderful with the transition, but he was pretty easy to transition with other things, too. So, I'd say you know your daughter best. I'd be a little nervous about so many changes all at once, though...new house, new daycare routine, new bed. Hard to say. In any case, good luck!!

I'm in the minority here but I think you are hitting the nail on the head here! I moved my son from a crib to a toddler bed around 18 months because we also moved AND he was on a cot at day care!! It's worked out wonderfully and we have had no issues. Day care is great to help with a lot of transitional things in your kids life! The kids have to lay on their cots wether they sleep or not, they can't get up and they can't talk...so your child will do the same at home. My son even called his toddler bed a cot for the longest time and I let him and told him that sleeping in his bed at home was just like sleeping in it at school! He's 2 1/2 now and gets up on his own but for months when he woke up he would wait until I came to his room before he would get out of bed. Good Luck, it will be great!

Your move will be a great time to put her in a big girl bed.
You might try putting her crib mattress on the floor in your present home to start the process.
Also, you might want to just put her new mattress on the floor at the new house at first just until she gets used to the size,etc.
Good luck.

If she's fine in a crib...not climbing out, etc...keep her in it!!! We transitioned my daughter to a big girl bed right around her second birthday and boy was that a mistake. If she didn't want to stay in bed - she didn't have to anymore. Think of it that way. Keeping her in the crib a little longer will provide you with some security - knowing that she's actually in her crib :-)

K., I switched all of my 3 kids to toddler's beds when they turned 18 months old. It was kind of nice not to have to get them out in the mornings. They could just come out and sneak into our bed on the weekends or we could stay in bed a little bit longer. We only struggled with naps since they could open the door and come out so we put a little lock outside the door. They would try opening the door and once they noticed that it wasn't going to open then they would just lay down in bed and take their nap. No cries or anything. Our youngest one was the only one that we could just ask her to get in bed for nap and she would do it all by herself! She would go upstairs, lay down and go to sleep. I think if you switch your daughter now, you'll give her enough time to adjust. I'm sure she won't have problems to adjust with the daycare nap. Most kids are excited to mimic what the other kids do around them and she'll probably be excited to be one of the "big kids."

I think kids are a lot more resiliant (sp?) then we give them credit for. Big changes don't seem to bother them as much as they do us. We moved my daughter to a toddler bed at 2 and she never had any problems. At the same time we moved her, we were changing rooms and furniture around. The changes never seemed to bother her. We did have a few rough days at nap time. She figured out she could get out of bed and run around. It was no big deal, I just put her back in her bed and said "It's naptime, not playtime." I only had to do it a few times. She will still play before she falls asleep, but she does it in her bed. She has always needed some time to unwind and fall asleep, so it's not really a new thing. Make a big deal about her sleeping in her new big girl bed in her new room. Kids respond to your enthusiasm. Get her really really pumped for the move and daycare too. Also, if you try the bed and it's an absolute nightmare, you can always put her back in her crib. :)

I sell Usborne Books and we have a book by Kane/Miller. It is called Sophie's big bed. It might be a good icebreaker. You could still use the crib and bring the mattress in your daughter's room to get use to. Make a big deal out of it.

If you would like to check my website, here it is:

ubah.com/T2267

J. R.

I had to put my daughter in a bed at 2 also. I had a complete hysterectomy and could not lift for 6-weeks. I literally had to kick her upstairs for naptime with my foot and lower leg inbetween her legs. I had to do what I could when no one else was here. She does good and has always been easy to put to bed. My friends are surprised when they see me back downstairs so quickly.

Good Luck.

Moving, daycare and new bed.... all of those are HUGE for a toddler. Let her stay in her crib if she's happy there and sleeping well. Only do one big change at a time if at all possible. If it's not broke, don't fix it! Seriously. I hear from parents all the time who had a toddler who slept great and then they made "the switch" too soon and ended up going through months or even years of bad sleep habits, wandering children in middle of night, childing coming to their beds, etc etc.

The daycare can use cots, you can use a crib. It won't confuse her or anything... lots of children her age do that.

Most experts recommend staying in a crib until age 3 or they start to climb out for safety reasons. If you do put her in a big bed, make sure you either lock her door or put a gate across so she can't leave. You do NOT want a 2 year old wandering around unsupervised in the middle of the night. It's very dangerous. Some kids go straight to their parent's room but many do not. You also may want to remove all the toys from her room otherwise she may just decide to get up and play for a few hours in the middle of the night while you are sleeping.

hello K.,

our kids love their cribs right? well, you would think so, until they see a toddler bed all decked out in my little pony or dora, and then its "goodbye crib, hello big girl bed". make that big girl bed so appealing she cant resist it, and make sure she has the protective rail if you feel like she needs it. another good idea is to set up both beds in her new room and let HER decide how to make the transition if you are not so sure. i think you will have success immediately either way. good luck...

T.

Hi K.! I switched my daughter to a big girl bed last night! It was her first night in it! My daughter is almost 18 months so no, I don't think she's too young. There will always be something going on that will make you wonder about the timing. Right now it's a new house & day care. Later there will be something else. I would say, if you think she's ready, then go for it!

Our transition last night was seemless! I am so proud. I got her into a regular bedtime routine. At bedtime, we changed the diaper, put on jammies, brushed the teeth & layed down. I did the exact same thing last night. The only difference is, I layed down with her until she fell asleep (took about 10 minutes). She slept all night and when she woke up this morning, she woke up talking to her toys and laughing sitting in her new big girl bed. It couldn't have gone any easier.

I wish you luck K.!

Personally with all those changes ahead for her I would not switch her to a "big girl" bed just yet. I would make the trasistions slow. You don't want her to have problems sleeping. I would let her get used to the new home and day care first and maybe in a month move her to a "big girl" bed. We did this slowly with my daughter when we moved and we really had no problems.

When you do make the transistion I would have her keep something from the bed she is in right now like a blanket or and animal that way she still feels secure and knows that is it home.

Hello, K.. She sounds a little young to me, but I have read that other moms have put thier children in toddler beds at that age. My son was almost 3 when I put him in a toddler bed. He had a little trouble staying in his bed at first, but now he does fine (he's 3 1/2). So, since she is so young, she may not understand that she has to stay in her bed to sleep and not get out and mess around in her room. You may want to wait 6 months or so. By then, she should understand a lot better that she has to stay in her bed to sleep. Hope this helps!
A. M.
www.homewithmykids.info

I would have her stay in the crib if she doesn't try to climb out. It's a good idea to keep things the same when you move. Toddlers don't take change as well as adults. She will probably feel more comfortable in her familiar crib in a new house. It's better to change just a little at a time. My daughter is 3yr and still in her crib. We are planning to move her to the matris on the floor this summer. She will do find at preschool. My daughter has naptime on a cot too. She doesn't have any problem with that and still being in her crib at home. Don't rush it. They grow up so fast. I know that once you move her out of the crib she will be able to get up at will. You will need gates is you have stairs and you might need one to any rooms you don't want her wondering around if she gets up and you don't hear her. My older daughter sleep walks. I put a gate at the top of the stairs so she won't fall down them at night.

Little about me:
I am a SAHM with a 12yr son, 7 & 3yr daughters. I work inventory work and Mary Kay consultant.

One option for a relatively safe "big girl bed" is to get a futon and a low frame, like one that's just a few inches off the ground, basically a platform or pallet, and have your child sleep on that. my 16 month old sleeps on one, and she can get up, but doesn't fall out, or if she does fall, it's very close to the floor. Good luck!

With my boys, we made a big deal out of being a "big boy" (or girl, in your case). We took them to Target and let them pick out the new sheets they wanted for their new bed. It really seemed to help the transition. With our youngest we had a few probs and he would often climb in bed with us in the middle of the night, but I would just put him back in his bed and tell him I would see him in the morning. It took a while with him, but eventually he stayed in his bed. Hope this helps, good luck!