I am wondering at what age have you put your child in a twin bed. I will not be using a toddler bed. My first born never really slept in a crib so I can't remember. My second oldest is now 7 and I am thinking I put him in his twin bed around 1-2 years of age, but I really am not sure. I have received a great bed for my youngest and it is just sitting downstairs. I am not sure if I should plan to store it for awhile or set it up soon?? My son is 15 months and is having no problems in his crib. He is not crawling out or anything.
Also, we recently bought a new travel trailer and plan to camp in 2 weeks. Any suggestions as to where he should sleep?? There is a couch that folds down next to our bed, I was thinking there. Should I be concered of him falling on the floor?? Nothing to keep him in like a crib??
Thanks in advance. J.
My second (now 19 months) learned how to crawl out of his crib at 16 months, so we put a mattress on the floor for him. My oldest sleeps on a loft bed and my little guy's mattress is underneath. I love the arrangement and both boys seem pretty happy. It just took some work to get him to stay in bed at bedtime.
I have an almost 2 year old (23 1/2 months). We are just transitioning from crib to twin bed. We put the twin bed against a wall and a railing on the open side, he has a foot stool at the foot of the bed so he can get on/off the bed. So far, so good. We introduced the idea over the last month; let him see the new bedding (which he loves because it's sports) and play with it, then when we finally got the bed, he watched us set it up. We let him spend time during the day on it, reading and just quiet time and we also used that time to establish the rules (i.e. no walking on the bed, no standing, no jumping). Once the railing arrived we put that on and let him get used to that couple days. We started reading his bedtime story in the twin bed but then going to bed in the crib. Then a week ago we started putting him down in the bed at night and the next day, nap and night. I've noticed he does stay up and babble a little more before he falls asleep, but already, this is getting less and less. We've had no major problems so far and he really seems to like it.
I don't think that most kids will stay in a bed much before the age of 2. I tried earlier than that once and it was a big mistake.
I would wait until he's a little older. Especially since your not having any problems with the crib. I transitioned my 1st child to a twin bed with rails when she was around 2 1/2. My 2nd is just about 2 1/2 and I will probably transition her in the next couple of months.
At 15 months they are probably not going to be able to follow directions well for staying in bed. You may end up with bedtime/sleep issues. I know it is tempting, but I would wait until he's older. Not worth the hassle for you!!
My daughter transitioned out of her crib at 22 1/2 months in preparation for baby #2. She did just fine in her crib but we need it for the baby. I would have liked to go straight to a twin bed but have to use a toddler bed for now due to space. It took 2-3 nights to get her to stay in the bed but she LOVES it now! My sister transitioned her son from his crib to a twin mattress on the floor around 2 years also. She didn't want to pay for a toddler bed so the twin mattress was on the floor and worked great!
My daughter started sleeping in her own twin bed at 3-1/2 years old but if I had the bed sooner she could have been in there at 2 or 2-1/2 years. My one year old can get on it but I don't trust her in staying without railings or without fighting trying to keep her in the room.
I would just cusion the floor with pillows in your travel trailer just in case your child falls/ Is it possible to use child railings for the travel trailer?
Hi J.,
I would see if the bed rail would work for the pull out bed in your trailer. It may or may not work.
Also what about a Pack N' Play? I am not sure how much room you have in the trailer but the Pack N' Play folds up nicely. I use it all the time with my 2 year old while traveling. I did purchase a Pack N' Play Mattress so that it would be more like a bed. The mattress does not fold up but you should be able to lay it flat in the trail somewhere for easy transport.
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2786140
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2266103
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2415249
The Pack N' Play is about $60 and the mattress is $20-$23. So you may not want to spend the extra money. Maybe ask around to see if a friend or family member has a Pack N Play you can barrow... you may have to buy a mattress but that would only be $20 then. I would really suggest a mattress if you go this way, my daughter slept so much better becuase it is a lot nicer then the hard board they have in there.
All of my kids were out of their crib by the time they were a year old. I felt as long as they could crawl out of the bed, they would be ok. For the twin bed, when I put my 18 month old in it, I had a bed rail so she couldnt fall out. Worked like a charm. The bedrail is also portal, so would work great for your trailer too. Good Luck!
