My second son will be 18months old next week. Last night he woke crying and then his crying increased and I went to check on him and he was out of his crib and trying to get out of his bedroom. I couldn't believe he got out of his crib! It's a bit of a shock but not a total suprise since his older brother stated getting out of his crib when he was 19 to 20 months old. When it started happening with our oldest we decided to transition him to a toddler bed. However I really expected to have the second one in his crib much much longer. I don't believe it's a design issue with the crib, when he is standing in it his nose is just above the rail. He doesn't have bumpers or any other items in the crib that he can stand on. We do have a video monitor and when I put him to bed tonight I observed he is pulling up on the rail and using his feet to kinda climb up the vertical slats, he didn't make it out of the bed (yet) but he did get up on the side and fell into the crib rather than out. I'm just not sure what my strategy should be: should I do what I did with the first child and move him into a toddler bed to avoid any injuries that can occur with falling out of the crib? or do I try to find some kind of contraption that somehow keeps him in the crib? Any words of wisdom? And what age were your children when they moved to a bed?
Thanks for the responses. Yeah I know he's done with the crib. I had heard that for an active toddler that a crib tent can be a strangulation hazard. I may see if I can drop the mattress all the way to the floor in the crib like someone had advised. But if that's not possible the crib does convert to a toddler bed with a side rail so that's what I'll do. I've just been through this before so I know it's going to be many sleepless nights working on keeping him in the bed. Can't blame me for seeing if there was some miracle out there:)
My twins were out of their cribs around that age. If you haven't done it yet, put the crib mattress completely on the floor. This extended the crib for a few more months with one of my sons. I've heard about crib tents, but I didn't try them for fear my children would destroy them. I've also heard that they're not considered safe, but some people swear by them. Good luck!
He is done with the crib. If you cannot drop the crib to the lowest setting, consider taking it apart and letting him sleep on his crib mattress up against the wall. You do not want a tragic accident to happen because "You are not ready for him to be out of the crib".
Follow your child's lead.. he is finished with the crib..
FYI, Our daughter was scrambling out of her crib by 12 months.. she was like a monkey and could hoist herself over really quickly..
Crib tents are dangerous because children who are ambitious and strong enough to climb out of a crib have gotten entangled in them. Time for a toddler bed and lots of PATIENCE and training. My pediatrician tells me that once child can crawl in or out of the crib, convert to toddler bed. He says more broken arms and legs occur from falls from cribs than I could ever imagine. I wish you the best. My 18 month old just showed me this weekend he can crawl into his crib. Looks like his crib will be converted to toddler bed this week too.
If he's already trying to climb out of his crib a crib tent can become a strangulation hazard, the manufacturers warn of this and there have been deaths attributed to them for this reason. I would recommend childproofing his room, putting a barrier gate across his door, and him in a toddler bed, no chance risking broken bones or head injuries.
put him in a toddler bed. our oldest was in a toddler bed when he was about 15 or 16 months old. he loves it and always has, no issues. why did you want him in a crib for a long time?
I think you're probably going to have to move him. I'm sorry to tell you that b/c if this were me I'd probably be crying! LOL! Since your older son moved at this age, I guess you'll know what to expect. ;) Hang in there!
They make those crib tents that go on top of the crib... my neighbor used these for her twins and loved it
If his room is baby proof and you put a very secure gate in his doorway he can get up and do whatever. We had to let the little ones do that sometimes. They usually fell asleep in a little bit and eventually decided to stay on the bed.
Another thought if you're not ready yet. See if he'll stay put in a pack and play. But he's old enough to transition to a toddler bed or a mattress on the floor.
I agree that the crib is no longer useful for him.
Mine did the same, both at about this age. I decided to show them how to climb in and out properly, and lowered the railing to half mast. This worked great for both. My son stopped trying to climb out altogether, and moved to a real bed around 3 after we finished his room. My daughter is 2 3/4 and still in her crib and likes it.
I don't think change is easy for kids. I think going straight to the toddler bed may be better than adding a tent and then eventually moving to a bed anyway.
We went to a toddler bed and used bribes to keep my daughter in bed "until the sun came up" each day. For her, painting toe nails or chocolate chip pancakes. (Find what works for your son.) "When the sun comes up" helped her since time isn't something they quite understand at that age.
Good luck!
I totally understand why you'd like to keep him in the crib.
I know this will sound simple, but have you talked to him (your son) about it? Our daughter climbed out when she was about 22 months and fell and cried. We all told her how lucky she was she didn't get hurt, and how it was super dangerous to climb out of the crib, and how if she needed out to call Mom or Dad or Grandma if she wanted out but not to do it herself. We talked about it and stressed this message for a couple of weeks and she never tried it again. Of course, we also had a video monitor so we could watch her and when she called, we would honor our part of the bargain and go in. We moved her to a toddler bed when she was 3 years and 4 months. It was awesome and an easy transition as she was ready. At 22 months I am not sure it would have been easy for us.
I have heard of people using the crib tents happily - we have a sleigh style crib and it didn't fit.
Good luck.
Aren't the drop side cribs all recalled for death or is that just simplicity and graco? (genuine question lol, I didn't know if only a couple brands did drop side cribs).
I would transition him. My daughter was in a toddler bed at 18 months. If he can climb out, he can get stuck and really hurt himself.
Like others said the crib tents are hazardous. You will eventually buy a bed anyways :P
