Time for the Big Girl Bed?

I found that it's always more pressure on the parent than the child when it comes to moving out of the crib. All 3 of my kids transitioned around the 2 year mark. My first was about 2.5, my second, we gave her a new room for her 2nd birthday and my youngest broke the crib a couple months before she turned two with all her jumping and what not so it was good as time as ever to trash the crib and get her a bed. My only advice, is the day you move her to the bed, get the crib out of her room so she doesn't think she can transition back in case she doesn't like the bed. All my kids slept throughout the night from the first night we put them in their new beds. None of mine ever got out of bed either to go play with their toys. I treated them the exact same as if I was putting them down for sleep in their cribs.

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You're over-thinking it. Take out the crib. Tell her she is bigger now for a new bed. If she feels nervous without the rails there, tell her to start sleeping by laying closer to the wall. Put a big pillow on the floor next to the bed in case she rolls out of bed in her sleep. She will most likely roll out of bed at some point in the next year. That's ok. Pick her up and put her back in. Do everything else just the way you always have. Then IF she does start getting up to play in the night, you'll think of a good solution. But not all kids do. You can do it! :)

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kinda same senario with my 2nd daughter, I keep her door open with a kids latch in place where she cant shut it from inside at all. Then I have a baby gate up, one that is extra tall so she cant climb over. I have a monitor in her room as well, but the transition was me on a air bed next to her for about a week. Now its like she falls asleep on our bed or where she is playing and we place her in her bed and shes great. She once in a while gets woken up, usually by our darn puppy barking to go out. If that happens she usually sits up and cries for us, verses getting up and coming out or playing with toys. NO need to get rid of toys I think. Just more baby proofing if you dont wake right away.

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I wouldn't change anything except the bed she's in. Keep the same routine. Don't make it a big deal, except to tell her that it's a cool thing to sleep in a "real" bed.

Our daughter was out of her crib at 14 months and onto a mattress on the floor. She didn't wake up any more often than she had before, which was almost never.

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We switched both kids to twin beds when they were less than 2 years old. They did just fine. My kids actually stayed in bed so I didn't have to worry. Maybe put up a gate so she can't get past a certain point in your house if you're afraid of her getting up.

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Is she getting out of the crib AFTER she's done napping/sleeping? If so, I'd say you could probably hold off a little longer, unless she's hurting herself, then obviously go for the big girl bed. Have you asked her what she wants? I'd definitely start getting her really excited about her big girl bed, it won't be long now!!

Of course she'll 'test the waters' and screw around at first, just be persistent and she'll understand that it's still nap/bedtime, nothing's changed except her bed :)

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I totally hear you about the apprehension of "ruining a good thing going"!!!! We JUST transitioned our 3 year old twins into beds! (We did it a week before they turned 3). It went way smoother than I expected. We stuck to our usual bedtime routine. Once they were all tucked in and it was time fo us to leave the room, I looked at them and in a very serious and stern tone (but not scary or mean!) I said, "You need to stay in your bed. Its night time and its time for you to go to sleep. If you need me for anything just call for me and I will come help you." I don't keep toys in their room to avoid any temptations of getting out of bed and I definitly recommend you do the same. If they are tired and there is nothing around them tempting them to get out of bed they will fall asleep. I would AVOID laying next to her the first few nights. You'll only create a bad habbit. However, I do understand your intentions of wanting to be near her because the first few nights we transitioned, I hardly slept at all!! I kept going in to check on them thinking they were going to fall out of their bed (We didn't use toddler beds. Their cribs converted to full-sized beds). And as a heads up, you will probably worry the first few nights like I did! But, after her first sucussful night, make a big deal out of it in the morning. Tell her what a big girl she was for sleeping in a bed and that you are so proud of her for staying in her bed all night. :)
A side note.... If your daughters room is upstairs you may want to put a gate at the top of the stairs in case she wakes in the middle of the night and get disoriented.

Best wishes!!

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take the crib out. put her to bed in the toddler bed and that's it. make as little of a deal about it as possible. put up a baby gate in front of her door so she doesnt go roaming the house before you wake up. it may be semi difficult since you waited so long to put her in a toddler bed. I wouldnt sleep in there with her, just do everything like you normally do except for put her in the other bed, say goodnight and done.

With my son wo just turned 2 he never did try and get out of his bed but we turned his "baby bed" as he called it in to his "big boy" bed he doesnt really get out at night unless he has a bad dream for say. for the first few night i would lay next to him bcuz it was new for him and hes like me and doesnt like change but hes fine with it.. If i was u and bcuz u hasve both let her pick what cool bed she would like to sleep in ask her the baby bed or the big girl bed or how ever you word it.. if she wants the big girl bed she will tell you.. maybe try both nap in big girl bed and see how that works first.. good luck

We didn't transition our son until he was 3 but he never tried climbing out. For us, it was about expectations. We told our son he could not get out of bed until mommy or daddy came into his room to get him. We keep his door closed to keep out the cats, but there are still lots of toys and books in his bed. We have a very large bed rail and tuck him into his covers pretty well. He's always been a great sleeper and transitioning him to his bed was a lot easier than I imagined! I expected him to be getting out of bed every night but that never happened. You know your child and what she can handle. Climbing out of the crib seems more dangerous than the difficultly of sleep training in her new bed. I don't know that I helped you at all, but that was our experience! Good luck!

We tranistioned our daughter at 23 months when she spontaneously self-potty trained (yes, I know, it seems exaggerated but she quit diapers cold turkey one day and never wore one again!) We had the same concerns you do but I have to say, she never got up in the middle of the night and left the bed. About 1 month after the transition Daddy left for 6 months in Iraq and she started waking very early (5am) and coming to find Mommy. We purchased an "OK to Wake" clock from Amazon and she has been great ever since- going on 10 months in the big girl bed! Give it a try; she will probably be just fine!!

Yep, its time! Dont want her falling out an getting a broken bone. I was very anxious about transitioning my son, but it went great. We got him a (hand me down) race car toddler bed, and when we broght it home we washed it with a bucket & sponge in our front yard (just like a real car), and he helped. then we took it too his room and set it up. We immediately took the crib down and told him this was his awesome new big boy bed. He loved it. I was very pleasantly surprised that he STILL does not try to climb out of bed. I guess he was about 26 months or so when we transitioned, and now he just turned 3. Once he is in bed, he does stay there until we come get him. I know that wont last forever, but it has lasted a solid 6 months now! We were anxious too b/c he was not a good sleeper as a baby and it seemed like it took forever to get to that awesome 8 to 8 sleeping schedule and we did not want to mess with it. But he started to try to climb out, and then one day a little girl in his class at day care came in with cast on her wrist from falling out of her crib. Her mom told me she had already ordered the toddler bed and everything but it was just a few days too late! She was fine, but we decided it best to switch him right away. Dont change your routine, just change the bed. And dont get in the habbit of laying with her unless you want to do that forever :)

If it was me I would do it right away. My youngest started climbing out of his crib at 7 months and I took him out and put him in a pack and play right then. I was always scared that he would try to climb out in the dark and fall on his head. If you want to transition her I would have her start with naps in the bed. See how she does with that. Just build it up to her about being a big girl. I don't know if I would close the door (unless you do that now)I know my son's would not sleep with the door closed. Does that cat wake her up now? If not I don't think that would change a whole lot.

Good luck and God Bless

Our pediatrician said once the climbing out of the crib began it was time to move to a bed, head injuries or broken bones from falls are too dangerous to chance, and it's so easy for them to slip while climbing out.

Take the crib out, dismantle it and store it, put up a baby gate to keep her in the room in case she tries to wander. if you can put the toys somewhere she can't see them that's good, too. And put the cat somewhere your daughter can't hear her ; )