Transitioning to Toddler Bed

I put my oldest in a bed at 2 yr 1 mo. She did great! Picking out bedding might be hard for a child that young. Are you doing it now because you have a need for the crib (pregnant?)? Otherwise, I'm not sure why you would do it so early on. I agree about setting up routines, as well as talking about rules for bed. For example, we told our daughter not to get out of bed, but to call for mommy or daddy if she needed anything or when she woke in the morning. We did that because we didn't want her up and wandering around the house by herself. Some people put gates on their kids' doors.

She loved it. It's funny, though, because they look so, so tiny in a big bed. Good luck.

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Hi B.-

I transitioned my daugther into a toddler bed just before her first birthday. The bed has a guard rail and is very similar to her crib. We started by letting her learn how to get in and out of the bed herself. She thought of the bed as more of a play ground and we played in her bed for a couple of days. When it came time to make the switch, I changed nothing about her bedtime routine except that I laid her down in the toddler bed instead of a crib (before she fell asleep). There were still no lights on, the door was still closed and she still had her blankie. The transition was seemless. The reason I made the switch was that I wanted her to be able to get in and out of her bed on her own to play in the morning. So far, she plays in the morning but does not leave her bed until we come in and get her. The only time she gets out of her bed if something really bothers her. For example, we forgot to completely close the door one night so she got out of bed, walked over and closed it herself and went back to bed. Talk about a creature of habbit. Never the less, you know your child best. If you feel like she's ready to be more independant and have a toddler bed, I think you should go for it! My only recommendation would be to keep all other variables the same when it comes to her bedtime routine. Best wishes!

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I didnt put my child in a bed til 2yr 4mo old. When you do the transition, just make it as pleasant as you can, get her involved in picking out bedding and setting up the room. You might be surpised, it can go smoother than you might think.
Best of Luck

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We put the toddler beds for our twins (who were two at the time) in our room. When we moved into the house we are living in now thier cribs literally did not fit into the room that we had for for them. Our older son (20 mos older than the twins) had always co-slept with us. The twins always slept with each other. Now all the kids have their bed in the same room as us (huge room) and the older son is now sleeping in his own bed, the twins start off in their toddler beds and one usually moves to our bed in the middle of the night (he is scared of the dark). We are getting bunk beds next month and moving them in to their bigger play room for the transition to their own room. This may take a while and we won't push them, but it's a start.

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I don't think I've transitioned any of my six this early, so I'm not sure how different the dynamics will be. One thing I do know, though, is that as long as she doesn't sense any stress from you about it, she will most likely be fine with it. The most important thing is establishing a routine with her for bedtime, and being consistent with it. I would highly recommend the sleep book "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child," by Dr. Marc Weissbluth. He deals with this issue, and with any other sleep issue you could possibly imagine. I've used it repeatedly for various kids at various stages, and it's never failed me.

Hi,

59 year old grandma her, kinship caregiver. What's the rush to get the 15 month old into a toddler bed? For safety reasons alone, I'd keep the crib until at least 2, maybe even 2 1/2 until the child learns more about their "place in space", edges, cause and effect, etc!!

About me. RN with two grown children, 35 and 33 and a 5 year old granddaughter who I am in essence the mom to. Our son's child.

My son loved his crib... he was still in it at almost three but physically didnt fit into it anymore. We bought a toddler bed that has sides near the top and gives him a crib like feel... he did great moving to that. He helped move his mattress and we made sure to use his crib blankets for a bit so it felt like not much changed. I'll try to include a link to the bed so you can see... I think it helped him alot.

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2309245