When's Too Early for a Big Boy Bed?

I started with a toddler bed for my son but he moves so much in his sleep that I had to go in his room three times a night to pick him up off the floor and back into bed. We just bought him a double size bed and put it on the floor and put the rails on and he's fine. But I would recommend putting a baby gate up in his doorway to keep him from getting into stuff in other rooms

I left my 1st daughter in her crib until 3. She never asked to get out. It was great. My 2 year old is still in hers and shows no signs of needing a bed. It's so much easier to keep them in a crib as long as possible!!

What about a toddler bed, I think you can probably pick one up cheap, less than $100 at a baby consignment store? They also make convertible cribs that go from a crib, to a toddler bed to a twin or full size bed frame. This would be more money but could also be a good solution. Good luck and many blessings.

Congratulations on your second child (and your first)! I say, put the mattress on the floor. and gate him into the room. Try to make his room less interesting so that he will not be too motivated to make bedtime into playtime, he should be motivated to go to sleep. It will be a hard transition because he is so young, but it might be an easy transition because he is so young!! As he gets better about staying on the mattress all night, you can get him a regular bed. It will take a long time - kids are pretty wiggly at night and my little girl always managed to find a way to fall out of her bed even with rails on it!! Have fun!

I know you have learned alot already, but I have two boys only about 14 months apart and I tried the NOT buying another crib thing too. Anyway after months of lost sleep I bought another crib! Big brother just was not ready to give up his small cozy sleeping space and baby no longer fit in the cradle my bed. So I went to Walmart bought another crib and both boys were happy and we all were sleeping again! Big brother moved out of his crib last year at just over 3, and baby will be out soon. I would rather have the small expense of another crib and many good nights of sleep then the hassle of putting a baby that is too young for the switch. But that is my own experience and you and your husband need to do what ever is best for your babies and your lifestyle. Good luck on both the bed situation and congrats with your new arrival.

My feeling is that he is too young. Babies that age pull themselves up to stand in their cribs. If he were to do that on a regular bed he would fall right over the top of the side rails. I know it might not be easy to have a second crib but don't rush putting your son in a regular bed quite yet.

Hi R., I started all 3 of my kids out on the mattress on the floor, before going tinto a twin bed. Worked perfect, they moved around a lot so I placed all their stuffed animals around the matress, I used their crib mattress, but a twin will work just as good if not better, what we did, we went ahead and but the twin bunkbeds up, we were planning on another one so we decide to get bunk beds instead of buying two seperate twin beds, and our son, all of the suden after sleeping on the crib mattress decided to move to the twin bed on his own, and he did fine. J. L.

There are so many schools of thought on sleeping/transitioning. But, I agree with the first post. You have to take into consideration your child's current development. My son is two and not yet in a big boy bed full-time, but I have chosen to co-sleep and have begun the transition now. By waiting until he is older he can better comprehend how the big boy bed works, and really make it his own. I've let him pick out his own bedding, CARS the movie sheets, and his own lovie to cuddle with. We spend time in his room and take naps in his bed. The night time transition is a whole other thing, but if your son is already sleeping in his own bed and doing well, why mess with that right now?

It's really in my opinion about letting your child take the next step, and giving them a sense of ownership and independence. Check out the guidelines in the first post, I found them very helpful and made me feel better about my own plan.

Somethings, I'm wondering...

Will you newborn have her own room? Have you considered a bassinet, to let you son get a bit older before transitioning him? My friend used a bassinet in her room, until her daughter was four months old then, moved her to the crib in her own room. That would buy you some more time...just a thought.

Well, I hope that every little bit helps! And, congrats!!

I would put the bed on the floor until you know he is ok. Then you can use the rails. He will probably need to be on the floor for a couple of months. I would also start the transition soon so he doesn't feel like his sister is replacing him. If you transition him next month when he turns one you should be able to avoid that.

Hi. My son stayed in a crib until he was 2 1/2. But I know some people switch at age 1. I would use a toddler bed before a twin bed though. There ia one that my friend bought at Babies R Us for $79.99. Here is the link:
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3103091
One thing though. Once my son was out of a crib he got up in the middle of the night a lot. Same with my friend who put her daughter in a toddler bed at 1 year. Good Luck.

Hi My daughter at 9 months refused to sleep in her crib, so we put just the mattress on the floor and she was fine. We baby gated her in her room at night. A few months later we added the box spring then the frame w/ the bed rails. We didn't have any problems. Good luck K.

Hi! If he's a climber, I'd ditch the crib. Also, I wouldn't use rails on the twin bed because then if he climbed that, he'd catapult further and from higher up! Just place the mattress on the floor until he gets used to it. You can even place it by a wall. If he's an escape artist, a gate on his room door would be perfect.

My kids never even SAW a crib and a toddler bed is just wasted money (IMHO). We did family bed, then at 18 months, my daughter got a good quality mattress on the floor, at 2 or 3 years she got a box spring and then she got a lovely wooden bed when she got tall enough to climb in and out safely. All of this went really smoothly BTW.

Best wishes to you and your babies!

M.

We moved our daughter to her twin at 18 months - it took her a while to figure out it was not a crib and she could escape! We bought a daybed - with 3 sides and a rail for the fourth. We also put a soft stool at the bottom so that once she could get in and out, it was safer.

It is your call - if you and your husband are fine with the twin, go for it!

We put my daughter in a twin bed at 16mo. We never used bed rails for any of our 3 kids. With my older 2 we gt a twin frame and mattress but instead of a regular box frame we got one made for bunk beds. It's only about 2 inches thick at max so it kept the bed close to the ground, but not on the ground. A friend of us got a regular box spring but not a frame and just had the box spring and mattress on the floor. It's about the same height off the ground. I needed under bed storage though so that wouldn't have worked for us. :)

I, personally, like to keep my babies in cribs longer. I want them to stay in their beds until I get them and I don't want to frustrate them by giving them more responsibility than they are ready for (staying in bed when it is so easy and tempting to get out!). But I know your dilemma, my two babies are 15 months apart and we debated the bed options. I didn't want to buy another crib, but I didn't think my oldest would be ready to be out of the crib by the time I needed it for the baby. We ended up buying another crib. If you want to go economical, you can look for a used crib (we found one that was "used" but actually had never been used so it was like new and we got a great deal on it). My oldest stayed in the crib until a couple of months before his third birthday, and my baby is 26 months and still in the crib (I expect to transition him as he approaches 3), so it was a good investment. The cribs get a lot of use and both of my boys LOVE/D their cribs!

Good luck making your decision and congratulations on baby #2!

We moved our daughter to a big bed at 12 months bc she climbed out of her crib and fell onto our hardwood floor. What I did was put the box frame on the floor without the bed frame. This made it easier for her to climb onto and the fall was not very far (we had sleigh bed box spring). Also use the toddler rail. It worked for our daughter, but every child is unique!!

For my two cents I say leave your child in the crib as long as possible (until they begin climbing out of it). I transitioned my daughter at age 2 (to make room for my second child in the crib). Transitioning her to a toddler bed caused her normally wonderful sleep pattern to evaporate. All of a sudden she had mobility and an entire room to explore. The first night she got out of her room 77 times (yes I counted). I stood at the door and silently put her back to bed just like the books say to do, but it was a very frustrating 3 weeks until she settled down. She still gets up a few times a night but now I have a gate at her door so she can't wander the house. You can buy cribs that convert into day beds or find cribs inexpensively on craigs list. Also Parent Connection holds a Family Swap meet (parents selling great stuff that their kids have outgrown) twice a year and the next one is Sept 28 at 9am at the Canyon Crest Academy, 5951 Village Center Loop Rd, San Diego. Hope that helps!

If it's a money issue , buy used. I have two year old twins and a ten month old, they are all in cribs. They love it. Yes, we had the issue of crawling out but we bought crib tents (you can also buy at second hand shops). I do want to transition them but they are so happy in their cribs. I would really only be doing it for the excitement of "big boy" beds. I plan to switch them when they ask. If that's when they turn four, so be it. Lastly, you have a baby on they way it seems for yourself and your 11 month old you should keep your routine as consistent as possible.

why don't you get a convertible crib so then if you ned to you can convert it to a toddler bed and then to an adult bed-that is the best bet. L.

You might try going to a toddler bed. It's just a crib mattress on a small bed frame and if he falls out, its low enough to the floor that he shouldn't get hurt. This will help him transition into a twin bed when he's ready. To cut costs, you can usually find toddler beds at garage sales and second hand stores as well as discounted baby furniture stores. They're really pretty inexpensive on their own if you go new too.

I was always told that when they can climb (or jump high enough to put them in danger)out of their crib, it is time for a bed. All three of my kids were in beds by the time they were two. Good luck!

my kids didnt move into a bed until 2 or 3 years old. they never tried to climb out. they were safe and it was easier then dealing with a bed.

my 2 oldest children are 17 months apart. not quiet as close as yours will be. we were able to use a pack and play for the baby in our room and kept the older child in her crib for a while longer. i also didnt want her to think she was being kicked out of her crib for the new baby.

good luck, but my thought would be you could do it without a 2nd crib.

I have four and they were all in cribs until they turned two. Seems like most of my friends did the same. You know your own son best, however. I would feel most comfortable with a mattress on the floor, at least for the first 6 months or so. My main concern is that you seem to have already taken your 11 month old out of the baby category and put him into the kid category. You refer to him as your son and as a kid, but never as a baby, when that is exactly what he still is. A baby. It is very common, especially when baby #2 comes along close behind baby #1, for the parents to "rush" baby #1 along. Push him to mature more quickly, because they already have another baby to deal with. Please guard against that. You do not want to rob your son of his babyhood simply because he will now have a sister.

We actually transitioned my son at 14 months (same age as your son will be) when we moved back to Los Angeles. We have a queen bed that would eventually be his so we got 2 rails and put the bed against the wall. So far he's climbed out 2 times but I put him back in and told him to not get out of bed. I think the climbing out was a result of big sister's influence! :)
He's 17 months and so far it's working well for us.
Good luck.

Hi R.,
I have 2 sons 13 months apart. We transitioned the older one to a twin bed at 1 year. The baby slept in a bassinet for the first few months and we never had trouble with the older one feeling that the baby had "taken" his crib. This way we did not have to purchase a second crib. The bed was against the wall and had toddler rails. Each time we put him down, we lifted him over the rail. It took almost 6 months for him to figure out that if he crawled to the end of the bed, he could get himself out of bed! We did not have any problems with the early transition. Good luck! :)
S.

a year old would be a little early for my taste. i have an 18 month old daughter and we leave her crib rail down (not off but at its lowest setting) and her matress is at its lowest setting. she can climb out but she doesnt. i do this as the start of the transition to the toddler bed (we have a 3 in 1 crib). i think a twin bed is oftly big for a baby his age. but if you decide to get a twin bed i would leave it on the floor to start off with and also use the bed rails so he feels secure and may not be tempted to climb out of bed and play with his toys so he doesnt end up sleeping on the floor instead of his bed. i would try a toddler bed instead. good luck!

I was in the same situation as you with my second son. We decided to put the mattress directly on the floor, but I still put the side rails up - not for safety, but only because I wanted him to be used to them when we finally did put the mattress up on an actual bed. I worked really well for us. He was about 2 and a half when we finally put him up in a bed and to be honest, I don't even think he noticed. He just felt more like his big brother. Good luck to you and try to remember that our little ones adapt so much easier than we do to change. :)

we transitioned our son at 18 mos. and he did beautifully. it was such an easy transition. we did a twin bed with a rail. we keep his bedroom door closed at night and his room is completely safe. i believe the transition was so easy because he was young. we never had any problems! i have many friends who have done the same thing and agree the transition was so easy. on the other hand, i have heard from many parents the difficulty of transitioning children when they get older. at that point, they have developed a trust/security/routine within their crib (kinda like bottles/pacifiers/diapers/etc. for older children) and it makes it that much more difficult. like anything in parenting... it has to be considered on an individual basis!

It is up to you, however I would say he's too little for a big bed. If you insist on getting him out of the crib I would try the mattress on the floor. But...my son is two and we tried putting him in a toddler bed and amattress on the floor. It was fine for about a week or two then he wouldn't go and stay in bed! It would take me two hours to get him to lay down and stay in bed! I had his room baby proofed also but he would throw his toys ontop of his brother who slept in a crib, take his "poo" out of his diaper if he had gone and play with it.....it was a nightmare. I had enough and we put him back in a crib. It's a piece of mind for me and he gets the rest I know he needs. However, all kids are different. I've heard if you transition a kid to a bed before a new arrival that you shoud do it months before the baby is here so he doesn't feel like he's being pushed out or having things taken from him.

Here are some links & guidelines:
http://www.google.com/search?q=when+can+a+child+be+in+a+t...

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&a...

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&a...

If you really have to, I would opt for a mattress on the floor. We have done that as well, when my girl was younger and then at 2 years old or so, we got her her own real bed. Even with toddler rails on a "bed"...they can and do climb out or fall out.

But please do look at the links and guidelines... there are concerns addressed and general safety guidelines, in addition to "opinions."

You also need to address maturity level, motor coordination, and appropriateness for a 1 year old... if moving him to a toddler bed. Not all children or 1 year olds are the same... also factor in "transition time" for him, if you do change him into a "bed"... sometimes this can take even a couple of months for a very young child to get used to.....they will not just stay put. Even 2-3 year olds commonly will not stay put in their beds...hence sleep problems. Also, it will not only change their sleep/nap routine, it will change yours...because you will be needing to run interference in the interim that they are "adjusting" to the "bed." For example, in a bed, unlike a crib, there are no tall railings to keep them contained...thus, when putting them down to sleep or nap... they will very often just NOT stay in the bed. It may/will take longer to have them actually fall asleep etc. That's why... a crib... is cool...because it keeps them contained and more prone to actually napping and sleeping IN it... not escaping it.

Also, WHERE is he going to sleep? Hopefully, not in the same room as baby? Being in the same room as baby will for sure, interfere with HIS sleep ability and would not be fair to him, and all the new expectations he will have upon him as being the "eldest" sibling all of a sudden. Just remember, that he is still a very young child...who happens to have a sibling. Let him adjust to that. All kids adjust differently.

For us, my son is 24 months old, and he is still in his crib. Sure he is completely mobile....but this is the safest for him for now, and he still sleeps very well in it and likes his crib still.

Also address with your son, the coming of the 2nd baby... being a "sibling" is a BIG change for them... and it can take time for them to adapt, sometimes even months or longer.

All the best, and congratulations!
Susan

You would normally move a baby into a bed between 2 1/2 and 3 years old. One is WAY TOO YOUNG to do it. I'd get a pack 'n play for the baby and use that until he's ready for a bed if you don't want to buy a new crib. Good luck on the birth of your daughter. :)