Twins from Cribs to Bed

K.,

Congratulations on keeping them in their cribs for this long. We switched our identical twin daughters to cribs at 2 years old and it did take a bit for them to understand that they needed to stay in their beds. They were in and out of them for the first couple of weeks and then the novelty wore off slightly but I decided that they needed to be in their own rooms at that point and we have been happy ever since. I don't know if that is an option for you but they weren't sad at all and seemed to like their own space. I am definitely happier because bedtime is much easier and in the morning one of them can sleep in if they want.

Good luck!

Hi K.,
I switched as soon as I saw my daughter could climb out if she tried hard enough. Short fall out of a toddler bed is better than a long fall out of a crib.
We also started by putting the baby gate up at her doorway, in case she did get up she couldn't get out of her room. Ensuring that most toys were put away at night kept her from being too interested in playing. A family friend with 4 kids said sometimes they do get up and fall asleep in other places besides the bed, but at least they're asleep, and eventually the child will stay in bed.
I hope you've a great support network with twins! Happy mommin' & Good Luck!
A.

I switched my first son just before he turned 2. I needed the crib for my next son who I was pregnant with at the time. He didn't have a problem. It was fun for him and yes it always playtime with boys. My boys moved around so much that I had to eventually get them full-size beds because they would fall off the twin beds. They both had full-size beds by the time they were 3. They are 11 and 13 and still have them so even though it seemed like they would never grow into their beds it was a good long term investment. I even did the same thing for our daughter who is now 5 and still looks so little in her bed but I know all to well how fast that seems to change.
Have fun with your boys! =)

I also have twins (boy/girl) that are 3 and they share a room. Mine were in their cribs until they were 2 1/2. My plan was to keep them in as long as possible which is what I did until my daughter figured out how to climb out. Once she tried it, I couldn't keep her in it and then of course my son started doing it. This all happened one night around 9:00 ish and my husband and I kept going in and putting them back in the crib, but they kept climbing out, running around the room, getting into the closet, touching everything on their dresser, etc. Finally around 11:00 that night we'd had enough and my husband converted the cribs to toddler beds (we have the 3 in 1 crib, toddler bed, full size bed). That night was awful!!! We figured we better do it right then because they weren't going to sleep until we did it. A few things I suggest that worked well for us are: make sure you have a gate at the door so they don't have free reign of the house and to keep them safe, take the night light out because if it's dark they are less likely to get out of their beds, take everything out of the dresser or just put it in another room (which is what we did), and buy those closet locks (we got ours from onestepahead.com) Our twins still share a room and will be 3 1/2 next month. I was hoping to keep them together in the same room as long as possible, but we are in the process of separating them now because my daughter constantly goes into her brothers bed and bothers him, scatches him and won't let him sleep for bed or nap time. Napping was also a challenge... from the time they starting escaping the crib until about a month ago, they were hardly napping unless I did shifts, 1 in the room at a time for about 1-1 1/2 hours and then switch them. I have them sleeping in separate rooms now and they are both napping again beautifully! I hope this helps and good luck to you!!

J.

Well I also have 3 year old twins (boy/girl) and we just made the switch to beds when they were 2 1/2 and it did involve many hours of play and not sleep. We just moved them to their own rooms and that has helped a ton. We were not really sure they were ready for that because they are so close but we made sure we gave each of them their own "big girl/boy" room and they have done well.

My son went to a toddler bed when he was almost 2 and for awhile he thought that it was play time. But, if I went and laid with him for about 15 min. he would sleep through the night. My 4 year old did the same thing. Hope this helps.

I have two boys ages 5 and 3. While they aren't twins, they share a room. When my younger son turned 2 we transitioned him to the bottom bunk of our bunk beds. Our older son didn't want to sleep on the top bunk, so they sleep together on the bottom. Two years old may have been a little young to change and it was hard to get him to stay in bed. The boys like to play while they are supposed to fall asleep, but we have finally gotten them to stay in bed.
Just remember all transitions are hard, and of course, they would rather play than stay in bed. But at 3 they should have a pretty good bedtime routine and understand that it is bedtime and they do need to stay in bed. When you think they understand that - though not necessarily do it - they should be ready to transition. It will take a while for them to adjust to the new freedom, so you may have a few late nights. But if you are consistant, it shouldn't last too long.
One thing that helps us is to make sure all the toys are picked up and put away so there is less of a temptation to get out and play. Good Luck!!

At 3 years old, they should be able to understand a lot. So just talk to them about it. Make sure they understand that bedtime is still the same thing (make sure you keep the same routine), they'll just be getting new beds because they are growing up. Set a date for "big boy/girl" beds to start and count down the days. If you make it exciting for them and communicate your expectations to them things will go more smoothly. My son moved from his crib to a toddler bed before he was 2 -- but that's because he's a climber and escape artist and that was a much safer solution then the crib at that point. We did the things I suggested to you and things went pretty smoothly.
Also, if your kids just want to play -- maybe bedtime is a little too early. If I try to put my son to bed too early he'll just play and then stay up later. Make sure you watch for the "golden" time when they are starting to get tired for bed.

I had boy/girl twins 9 years ago. I think we moved them to big kid beds even before the age of 3. Since they are sharing a room now, what are your expectations at bed time? How do they go to sleep now? Are they still taking naps? Naps will be the most challenging? I wanted my kids to nap longer than they ever wanted to nap. Just try to set some expectations even at an early age. If you wake up early, try to go back to sleep or play quietly or look at a book. Do not wake others up. Keep the beds and the room mainly for sleeping (we did not have toys in the bedrooms). I honestly don't remember any big issues on the conversion. I'm sure at this age, your kids can get out of the cribs anyway. At least having them in the beds is safer.
Good luck. It is just another milestone.
S.