Transitioning Toddler to Bed

My best advice is to just do it. My son started crawling out of his crib and so we immediately changed him over for his own safety. It was hard the first couple nights but he did really well. We eventually got him a toddler race car bed and he loved that thing until it started to fall apart. Now he is 3 and has an ikea low loft bed with hide out under neath and he loves it. Good luck
M.

then my 5 year old was almost 2...we Put the bed against the wall with a pillow on the out side. For the twins my son went on the matress on the floor. and my daughter against the wall with a pillow on the out side. My 5 year old i think fell out once and she doesn't even remember.
The Big Girl/Boy bed has always been a big deal in my house and if you present it properly..... He will be as excited as you!!

J.,

I think you were the same one with the question about potty training your 18 month old boy. Again, too early. Don't rush the big stuff! They are only that small once. I know you are trying to make it easier for your family but I just wouldn't do it. I'd be afraid he'd get up in the middle of the night and be curious. We didn't give our sons toddler beds until they were 3.

Best regards,
L. R.

My daughter moved to her big girl bed last year and it was an easy transition. We had to move her to another room from the nursery, so we fixed up the new room just for her and didn't let her in until it was ready. After it was finished, we put a bow on the door so it was like a present to her. We had the railing on the bed and made a big deal about it when she walked in. She was so excited and loved her big bed. I hope that helps. Good luck!

with our son he was 12 months. We bought this really cute pine toddler bed, bought one of the long rails and had one side against the wall, footboard, headboard and then the long rail leaving a small, and I mean SMALL opening to get in and out of. Worked great! But of course he hated his crib..so we didnt have to deal with him wanting one bed over another.

Good luck! :)

You've already got some great advice. We did pretty much the same stuff. We actually let our almost two year old pick out her bed (with some strong swaying towards the one we wanted, "Look this matches your crib!") and her bedding. We talked to her about how the baby was coming and she was going to be the big girl in the house. She understood the baby needed a place to sleep and was so excited to let her have the crib as a gift from her. I think the more in control of it they are, the better they feel.
Tracy C: We were going to put a baby gate up in her doorway to keep her in, but ended up just shutting the door and she didn't come out, so we were lucky. We kept the baby gate at the top of the stairs for safety.

Hi J., when i wanted to do the same w/our son,i just converted the crib right over to the toddler bed. I did put a guard rail up so he wouldn't fall out. I bought a special sheet and comforter set('cars' movie),so he wouldn't have to sleep w/the 'baby' crib sheets any more. I told him he was a big boy now and he could have a big boys bed. He was excited. Some kids do tend to want to get out of bed 'cause of easier access. Just get him something special to sleep w/for sleeping in his big boy bed and he only gets it when he stays in his big boy bed, also a cool night light is helpful. Our son did just fine w/the transition and just before he turned 3, we put him into a twin bed. He really feels like a big boy and plus there's alot more room to move around. I wish you luck on the transition, congrats to your son for going into the big boys bed. Congrats on your second pregnancy.

J.,

Hi...I too have an 18 mo. old and am considering moving him to the big boy bed. My only worry is about keeping him in the room! Let me know if you get any good tips. I also have a 5 yr. old girl...and I think they will probably just want to hang out after mommy goes to bed :)

email anytime...

We just put our 21 month old into a twin from a crib!! I did it the same way with both my kids, I totally skipped the toddler bed cause I think it's just a waste of money for the frame and the bed sets cost almost as much as a twin size bed in a bag!! But what we did was took the drop rail off the crib and put one of those mesh safety rails on that you would use on a regular bed. The mesh rail is as long as the crib only not as tall for him to climb out of. Did that for about 2 weeks and he was fine. So we gave him big sis's bed (she got a new captain's bed). And got some really cute truck and car bedding at Target(he love trucks) and a extra side rail for the other side. This has been since Thrusday!! He has done great. Doesn't get out at night and nap time was our biggest battle. He would get out of bed and come find me. I just pulled a Supper Nanny on him on how she has parents deal with kids and sleeping and yesterday he didn't even fuss!!

J.,

We moved our 2 1/2 year old into a double bed when he was 15 1/2 months b/c his little sister was arriving in another 6 weeks. We painted the room and Nemo-ized it (he loved Nemo)and he was very excited to have a new room. We put pillows on both sides of him. He fell out once and was fine! He still likes Nemo and is proud of HIS room! Hope it goes well!

H.

When I transitioned my daughter into a big kid bed, I lowered the drop-down side of her crib and had a twin bed butted up against that side of the crib. So, if she did climb out, she was in the big girl bed (with a safety railing of course). We talked up the big girl bed and how she was getting to be such a big girl! Some nights she opted for the bed, some for the crib and sometimes we found her in a different place in the morning than we'd put her the previous night. Then, I just told her that the crib was going bye-bye and one day it did. You have a prefect situation with passing it on to the baby! You can make your son feel so great and involved by talking up the fact that he's giving the new baby a BED! What a nice thing to do!!! What a big boy!!! BTW, baby-gating the bedroom door will keep him in his room at night.

Congratulations on the new one!

D.

The transition to a big boy bed is sometimes challenging, but necessary and adoptable. First, you have to assure him that his comfort level is not being taken from him. Get a very comfortable mattress and adorn the new bed with his same favorite toys. Second, don't expect the transition to be an overnight success. Wean him into it by staying consistent with where he sleeps. If he's not sleeping their regularly, you will set bad precedence. Breathe, it will happen.

I recently transitioned my little one to a toddler bed. It was a difficult transition, but a friend of mine had a suggestion and it worked like a charm! Leave the bedroom door open with a baby gate across it.
Worked for me!

We bought a Mickey Mouse bed set (at Walmart) since my son loves Mickey and he watched me set up the bed and he loved it from the moment I had it assembled. Granted, it's only been 2 nights that he's slept in it, but we haven't had any issues yet *knock on wood!*. My son sleeps real well on the cots at daycare and has always done well if he needed to sleep with me on a random night or 2. He seems to transition well to things, though. We still have the crib in his room but he doesn't seem too interested in it anymore. Here's hoping that it works, and the best of luck to you, too!

Are daughter was 2.5 when she went to crib to a twin bed. I was pregnant and due med September. We bought the bed in early August. We had her pick out what bedding she wanted. Even though she picked out her own bedding, she was still attached to the crib. it took a month for her to sleep in her bed. She sleept in her bed when she was ready. She would take naps there but not sleep there at night. We did not buy a frame for the bed for another year, we put the bed on the floor and we baught a bed rail.

You are nuts! Haha, but I told you that already. So funny to see your post here. Get healthy sleep habits, happy child, it will have some advice. Much love and good luck.
L.