nicole548 asked a question in the Advice for Moms group that many of us wonder about as our kids start nearing age 2--is it time to move my crib-sleeping daughter to a bed?
"She has NEVER once tried to escape it, either. But is 2 too old to be in a crib? I would like to switch her, but I'm not sure if I should," nicole548 says.
Pediatrician Dr. Cheryl Hausman, MD, medical director of primary care at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, says the general rule from moving from a crib to bed is when:
- The child learns to climb out and you're worried he'll hurt himself;
- He's outgrown it and doesn't have enough room to stretch out; or
- He asks for one.
There's no downside to letting your toddler stay in his crib past age 3 or even 4. It's actually safer--less temptation to wander around and fall down the stairs or make mischief while you're conked out. Hausman suggests making the switch a big event--let them pick out the design on the sheets and really play up the fact that they are a big kid now. (BTW, there are some great convertible cribs out now; check out Cafe Suzanne's nursery furniture post in BabyBuzz.)
The worst possible time to move a toddler to a bed is when a new sibling is coming. Many parents often choose this time to make the switch to avoid buying another crib. But that timing is almost sure to make your child feel deprived and slighted--leading them to resent their new bed and sleep poorly at a time when you need all the rest you can get.
What age did you switch your toddler to a bed?
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Comments 15
My DD is turning 2 tomorrow! her grandma is getting her a toddler bed. but i am going to wait till after we move next week and she is all settled in and used to the routine there before i make the switch. i don't want to pile to much change on her at once.
I am going to keep my DS in his crib as long as he'll let me! When I moved my DD out of her crib we went through a whole month of trying to get her to stay in her bed.
LOL.... That my picture you used! We switched my oldest son (he's 2.5) into a bed a few months ago... and you can see from the picture how that turned out! Every morning around 4 am he wanders into our room wanting to sleep in Mommy and Daddy's bed. We DID switch him into his toddler bed shortly after his baby brother arrived, but it was still HIS bed. We just converted his crib into a toddler bed and bought a new bed for the baby.
My twins will be two next month and at the moment we plan on switching them to twin beds in the spring. So far they've not climbed out of their cribs, they still fit in them, and they're not asking for big beds either.
I have read that if they do climb out but you don't feel they're ready for a bed you can keep them in their cribs but let them sleep with the side down (less distance to fall). Add some pillows or cushions to the floor and a gate at the door and you're good to go!
my son is definantly not ready to be switched to a big boy bed. i dont plan on changing him until hes climbed out more than once, he hasent yet and is fine in there, i dont see what the big push is to make kids grow up faster than they need too.
my daughter sam is turning two this november and since she turned one last year she has been using a toddler bed already. she doesnt mind sleeping there although there are nights that she would like to go sleep with our bed.
I sooooo wish this discussion would have been available a few months ago. My daughter turned 2 in August, and I felt really bad that she was still in her crib. It wasn't too small, she was safe, and she never asked for a big girl bed. My BFF (hee hee) had given me a princess bedroom in a box thing, it had the bed, a rocking chair, and a little storage thing for toys. (I love it!) I was excited to set it up! If I would have known that is was really okay for her to stay in a crib until she was 3 or 4 I would have left her!
DS just turned 3 and has been sleeping in his toddler bed for a year. we'll get a BB bed after I get back to work soon. He still ends up in our bed usually after starting out on the 2nd crib matress that is a trundle under his crib !! he's a silly kid!!
We switched my son to a toddler bed at 18 months because he could climb out of the Pack 'n' Play he'd been sleeping in. It took some coercion, but it worked just fine and he learned to love being able to get up and play in the morning rather than yell for mom! :-)
i switched fayte a month or so ago. she is 21 months now and she does great with her bed. when its bed time i tuck her in give her a kiss and shut the door. she does not get out of bed. i have even put more toys in her room lately(the livingroom was getting crowded). even when she wakes up in the morning she stays in her bed and talks and plays for a bit and when she gets bored she cries. she will not get out of her bed until i come open the door. its kinda strange. im not complaining i think its great just a little different. the other day her baby doll fell out of her bed and instead of getting out of bed and picking her up she just looked at her and said uh-oh over and over again until i went to see what she was doing. i think every child is different and u really dont know whats gonna happen til u try. i didnt think fayte was ready yet, but her crib was recalled. she surprised me she was more ready then i was. lol