Moving My 15 Month Old Son to a Twin Bed.

My son was the same way when we tried switching him over. Eventually one night we took EVERYTHING out of this room when we heard him playing and he went right to bed. We only had to do it 2 nights and he never again got out of bed when we tucked him in.We also tuck him in with his two favorite stuffed animals as well and sometimes we hear him playing for a short while (in bed) if he is not yet ready to fall asleep.

Congratulation,
My son is 21 months old...he has a toddler bed and a crib in his room. We tried at 15 months also to get him into his bed..but he thought it was play time too. so we stopped...now we are trying to get him to take naps in his bed (with elmo sheets) his favorite. its working out ok. I wouldnt rush it if you dont have too. Good luck with your son and the new baby on the way.

Congrats on the your expanding family. Have a question for ya. Isn't the new baby going to be in a bassinet in your room for a little bit after he is born? Leave the older boy in his crib, probably until he's 2. Twin beds are high, they sell Toddler beds, and you can get some cool bedding. Older siblings usually regress when the new baby comes along. Save yourself and your son the stress. Once he gets used to being "the big brother" and that the crib is for "the baby", he'll like that twin bed don't worry. Good luck.

I recommend a toddler bed. I wasn't a "believer" so to speak w/them, but now I'm sold. My daughter has just transitioned into a toddler bed & is so proud to be sleeping in her "big girl bed." I would let her lay on it, which was fun, but she wasn't sure about it at first. We started w/naptime & she's done great ever since. Good luck!

Hi K..
I had the same issue w/getting my daughter to go from crib to 'big girl bed' (running, jumping, playing). It was NOT easy. What I did was I put the twin bed in her room, w/her crib. I decided to do this so my daughter could transition on her own time. Basically, it was an experiment. You know how individual each of our children are... This form of transition worked for my son, so I was hoping that it would work w/my daughter as well. It took her a bit longer for her than it did my son (about 4 or 5 months), but it did work. ALSO... if your son spends the night at the homes of relatives (e.g. grandparents), having a 'big boy bed' in the same room as the crib/playpen he sleeps in will reinforce the transition you're implementing at home.

Hi K.-
Have you thought of maybe trying a toddler bed before a twin sized bed? Maybe it will be an easier transition since it is the size of a crib. Good luck.

My daughter was 19 months when we took down her crib. She is an extreme climber, and I didn't want to take the chance of herclimbing out and falling on the floor. We switched her to a toddler bed, however, so there wasn't as much shock. She got to keep the same bedding and mattress. We also gave her a night light, and started playing Baby Einstein music for her right befoe bed. She would get out of bed a few times a night right when we put her in, but now, she knows when we turn on her music, and night light, it is time for bed, and she really doesn't get out of bed. I thinking 15 monts is a bit early, especially to switch him to a huge twin bed. I would either invest in a toddler bed (there are always some for cheap at second hnd stores)or wait until he is 2 or so to switch him to the twin bed. Either way, good luck!

Try Layin with him in the bed to show him LOOK MAMA IS IN THE BED Y DONT U LAY WITH ME ... it worked for mine and we got her Her own sheets that she wanted she had her Blankie that she CANT go anywhere with out LoL.... but if he sees that ur with him then he might see it as sumthin that he wasnts to try .. Side vars was another thing that we had to get and she LOVES to sleep in her own bed and every now and then she will sleep with mommy and daddy but for the most that is how we did it with her ... and like the other person under me said if this dont help try the pack and play for a while . and when the baby if here maybe u can tell him that that is where ur sister or brother is goin to be so now u have to be the BIG BOY and sleep in the BIG BOYS bed ( jaz had BIG GIRL BED she still calls it that )

Hope that helps a little and Good Luck with him and the new baby..

J. Marie

My mom used to put the twin bed mattress right on the floor so it was easy to adjust to, and she would at first put the crib mattress on top of that so we had all of our familiar bedding. Is he at least in the same room? It might be too many changes at once--maybe put the twin bed in his old room for a while if you switched rooms. My daughter was a great crib sleeper, and wasn't interested in the twin bed--until I let her help pick out new sheets for it. Then it became her favorite place to sleep. It still took her a lot longer to fall asleep than before, but we just made sure anything dangerous was out of reach and waited her out. Eventually sleep wins. ;)

Oh, and small children tend to feel safer in more enclosed spaces, so without the crib rails he may feel too exposed. Child bed "tents", siderails, or even strategically placed pillows or stuffed animals may help create the nest to which he has become accustomed. ;)

Hi K.

Congrats on the new baby.

My advice is to keep your older son in a crib as long as you can. I put my older son in a crib for his second birthday and boy, was that a can of worms. He wasn't ready and he ran amuck, naps were over. He's a good kid, but it was too early for him to have that much freedom.

I'd recommend a good second-hand crib! Or even get a pack and play for the baby until your older son is more mature.

Get another crib for the baby. He isn't ready for a big boy bed at his age and might not be for some time. I tried it with my youngest and he just didn't sleep so we put his crib back up and everything is just great. If money is tight then look into buying a used crib.

For most kids, 15 months is WAY too young to move out of a crib. Maybe get a used basinette or pack and play for your new one, and try again when he's 18 months old. It's so nice knowing your kid is enclosed for the night, especially when they're so little.

Good luck.

Hi & Congratulations!
I don't have much advice for you but can tell you that I have a 3 1/2 year old son who is STILL in his crib and I am due in two weeks with another boy. He has not seemed to be ready to give up his crib until very recently and now I feel it is lot to rock his world by taking his "security" of his crib with the new baby coming so soon. I think you are smart to have the big boy bed and let him get used to it,I think it is great that he does not see it as scary but seems to think it is fun! I am sure you feel differently when you are tired and ready for him to nap. Do you do the same routine with him before nap/bedtimes so he knows the next step is to go to sleep?? I would say just be persistent and let him know it is quiet time and time to go to sleep and keep trying.
Good luck !

We moved our son to a toddler bed at 2. We had to keep both the crib and the toddler bed set up at night. We would use the mattress from the crib and put it in the toddler bed at night and we would do the normal night routine of bath and stories. We would put him in the bed but he would follow us out.We just kept having to go in and put him in the bed. If he didn't stay in bed after a half hour or so we would put the mattress back into the crib and put him in the crib for the night. I was lucky it took my son about a week and a half to learn to stay in his bed at night. It may take longer depending on the child.