Toddler Is It Time for a Toddler Bed?

M.,

If you really want him to stay in a crib longer, there are dome shaped nets you can purchase that fit over the top of the crib. eBay would be a good place to look or any baby specialty store would have them.

I put my first two kids in a bed at age 17 months. It took 3 days to a week for them to stop sleeping in front of the bedroom door and sleep in their beds. I went in after they were asleep and put them back in bed so they learned to wake up in the right place. To keep them in bed, you put away things of interest they can reach (books, toys, etc.) and shut the door so they can't get out. If your son knows how to open doors, put a lock on his. If you are concerned about safety, take the lock off after he is asleep. With my third son, I waited until he was 22 months to make the switch and he stayed in bed the first night.

Best of luck,
S.

I WOULD GET HIM A TODDLER BED, IF HE IS TRYING TO CLIMB OUT. I GOT MY SON A BED WHEN HE WAS 16 MONTHS OLD. HE DID REALLY GOOD IN HIS NEW BED.

ALSO PLZ. EMAIL WITH HOW YOU ARE TAKING YOUR HUSBANDS NEW CAREER CHOICE. MY HUSBAND LEAVES ON SUNDAY TO START A CAREER AS A OTR TRUCK DRIVER. PLEASE EMAIL ME AND LET ME KNOW HOW YOU HANDLED THIS. MY HUSBAND WILL BE GONE FOR 8 WEEKS BEFORE I GET TO SEE HIM AGAIN.

email is --- ____@____.com

I can't really say for you but my 18mt old girl is into everything!!! I am look into a COZY CRIB TENT. I saw them on the TV when the septuplets were on and the kids were 3yrs. and still in a crib. I think it will beat taking them to the hospital for a broken arm from climbing out of the crib

At 18 months my son was climbing in and out of his crib. I caught him, one day, flipping out of it and almost landing straight on his head. I literally caught him right before he hit the ground. The crib was removed from his room that day. He was able to get in and out of his toddler bed and for a while we just rocked him to sleep. Not the ideal situation, but it worked for us for a while. By the time he was almost three, we realized that we had to be a little stricter in getting him to go down on his own. It has taken a lot of walking him back to his bed over and over, crying and pleading, but he finally will go down the first time we ask and while he is wide awake. Sometimes he will even put himself to bed when he is tired. He loves his room and his "big boy" bed. My advice is just to never get in the habit of rocking your baby or letting your baby fall asleep in your bed. (This also encourages him to come and visit you in the middle of the night, if he should wake. --Not FUN!) Make a bed time routine and stick to it with all your might! It may take a while, but he will eventually know that the only option is to go to sleep in his bed at his bed time.

I personally think it would be alright to put him in a toddler bed. My daughter slept with us until she was just over a year. My fault really, but I had to have my bed back. She didn't like her crib much anyways. Her room was carpeted, the bed has side rails on it and she could fall asleep on the couch if she was tired enough and not fall off (of course I ALWAYS put pillows behind her). So I decided it was time for her to sleep in her own bed. We took the easy way out and set up a TV in her room (daddys idea, I'm against having the TV on when it's bedtime). It worked and now she is 4 and hasn't slept in my bed since. A few months ago I started turning off the TV when it was bedtime. She didn't like it much, but she has adjusted. We love our storytimes before bed.

Sounds like it's time for the toddler bed. Yes it is a pain having to make them go back to bed when they crawl out of the toddler bed but it's better than him getting hurt falling while crawling over the crib railing, which could very easily happen. Eventually he'll get used to sleeping in a toddler bed and he won't get out of it, but you have to make yourself put him back in bed when he gets out of bed, and not let him get in bed with you or he will not want to sleep in his bed. Hope it helps.

I think it is!! My pediatrician told me that the first time he tried to cloimb out is was time for a taddler bed. His reasoning was that if he tried to get out and fell a toddler bed is closer to the ground and woudl minimize the injury. He also suggested getting a gate to put in his bedroom door to keep him in his room and try to make sure that his room was a toddler friendly as possible.
good luck!!