Toddler Bed Conversions and Timing

I do not think there is necessarily a "right time". I transitioned both of my boys at 16 months to a toddler bed, and they did great. I am guess your is already older than that if you are needing a tent. I would transition now before going to a new place, it will be easier to get used to in his normal house than in a new place I would think. It can be difficult to keep them in bed at first. I put a gate at the door so they could not leave their room. The first couple of nights he fell asleep at the gate, and the third night I found him under the bed, but after that he got it figured out and has been great at going to bed ever since.

Oh my goodness, I have to say that as soon as you wrote "down the shore" I thought, "She must be from the Philly area"!!! (I grew up in Hershey, but all of my family is from the Philly area...what a phrase!) If she is happy in her bed at home, you could keep her in the crib there, but just allow her to sleep in a special new bed while you are at the beach. Honestly though, I think the right time to transition is when they crawl out, and since she has done that, she is probably ready. I would definitely just remove the side rail and put a guard rail up. It is the cheapest way to do it! Finally, while at the beach, why don't you just bring a blow-up mattress for her to sleep on? My son did really well with those when he was really little, and they are a lot cheaper than buying another bed. Just a thought...have fun!

right time is individual. i will put my son in one at three years which will be in july. i would try to transition her with the convertible crib. sounds like you are on the right track.

I agree to go ahead and do it. All three of mine went from crib to a twin size mattress and box spring on the floor at about 18 months. We put the mattress in a corner, so 2 sides were against the wall, and then put a bed rail on the open long side. We also put a gate at the door to keep them from getting hurt if they woke up in the middle of the night and started to wander. A while down the road, once everyone was comfortable that they wouldn't roll out of bed, we got a real bed to use with the mattress and box spring and eventually removed the bed rail as well.

If you can convert the crib at home, that's fine, but I'd also skip the toddler bed for the beach since you really wouldn't use it for long anyway. Either use an air bed as previously mentioned or get a twin mattress, both of which will last much longer.

Good luck!

Hi D., I'm old school I guess and always went by the rule that if they can climb out of the crib or start to attempt to climb out it's time for the toddler bed! So, go ahead and convert your crib and buy an inexpensive toddler bed or even a sleeping bag for her at your summer home. Best wishes.

We put our son in his crib with the toddler rail at age 2, with a The First Years All Clear Swing Gate at the entrance to keep him from wandering the house at night. He can't climb or open this type - he can every other type.

A toddler bed is a waste of money as you'll need the crib matress anyway. My son started outgrowing it at 3 so we moved him to a twin bed, with a double rail that slides under mattress (these are sold at One Step Ahead or Buy Buy Baby). For travel, we have used the AeroBed for Kids (sold at amazon, rated 5 stars by 496 parents, $65), that easily fits in a suitcase and sets up quickly. It's the size of a twin bed but has built in raised edges, uses regular twin size sheets.

We went from crib to mattress on floor at about 2 years old for ours so they wouldn't get hurt learning to stay on mattress. Plus we already had their mattresses that way for future and we didn't have to buy so much gear. Crib mattresses work great on floor too to save space.