Three Year Old Going to Bed

He's fine. This is just so normal. At this age their imaginations are working overtime, and they are learning so much. Being alone to fall asleep can be scary. It will pass. Just remind him that he is safe and that Mommy and Daddy are there if he needs you. If coming into your bed doesn't disturb your sleep, don't worry about it. Again, he's fine.

I doubt sleeping in a toddler bed is really effecting him. We skipped the toddler bed altogether. Our oldest had a twin bed from the time he was 16 months. Our youngest is in a full, but that's because we bought a twin over full bunkbed and he has slept on the bottom bunk since he was about 18 months.

He's fine. If you want to change his bed and he seems ok with it, go for it. If he's nervous, just wait. I think he'll be just fine either way.

Ah its scary for him. Can you put those stars on the ceiling or let him fall asleep to a movie? I never had an issue as long as my daughter started in her room she could crawl in if she got scared.

Since his coming in to your bed is not waking you up, I'd just let that go. It's OK. As Gidget said his imagination is working and he's learning all day long. It's normal to have some difficulty getting to sleep.

If you don't already, have a 30 minute or so quiet bedtime routine during which you spend time with him, perhaps a warm bath, reading a book, cuddling, etc. so that he winds down and feels the security of your love.

I don't see how the kind of bed he sleeps in would affect his ability to sleep as long as it's comfortable. I would try a night light and soft music tho. Stars and planets on the ceiling might help occupy his mind and thus help keep him from feeling scared.

He will outgrow this phase. He needs your reassurance now.

My son never slept in a toddler bed, and we didn't have many problems with him coming to our room during the night. A brief phase here or there that only lasted a few nights maybe, but that was it. Consistency with walking them back to their rooms is key.
If you aren't aware he is there, though, that makes it more of a challenge.

Our son went from his crib (climbing out before his first birthday) to the mattress on the floor, to a twin sized bed well before age 2. At around 2 1/2 he went into a full sized bed in a different room altogether (had to clear out the nursery for the sister on the way).
I will say that with a "real" bed (not a toddler bed w/crib mattress), you can use those safety sides and that can help them feel secure AND encourage them to stay put. I don't remember him ever getting out of bed at night once he moved into the full sized bed (with the saftey rails).
Good luck. :)

Well, he's really too old to be in a toddler bed, they are for toddlers which are kids from ages 1 - 2. They aren't typically very supportive or comfortable after that.

My daughter is 3.5 n still in the toddler bed. She sleeps great n still naps most days as she needs it. I say let it go until the first of the yr n actually see how many times he is getting out of his bed. If its more then 4 times a week then something needs to be changed , either shutting his door or putting a gate up so ge learns to stay in his room

You could try what we did with my daughter at about this age. We got an OK to Wake Clock http://www.amazon.com/Wake-Childrens-Alarm-Clock-Nightlig... and set it for when we'd like her to come out of her room. In our case, it's 7:30 am. I also hung up a calendar in her room. Every night she stays in her room from the time we put her down until the time her clock turns green, she gets a sticker. After four stickers, she gets a prize of her choice out of the prize bucket. If she doesn't make it all night, then she gets an X on her calendar and has to start all over again. Our daughter is a very prize motivated child, so this worked for her. Hope that helps you too!