When to switch to a toddler bed?

[youremyheartkid]

I'm just wondering what age you all recommend on this, for the non co-sleepers. My (now 21 month old) DD co-slept with me for the first year, then I started having her sleep in a crib right next to my bed because she was getting so mobile. When she was 18 months old, we did a little remodel and she's been in her own room (right next to mine) since then. I've noticed the past few days that she is attempting to climb in and out of her crib, and we have hardwood floors (not ideal at all) so this is starting to worry me. Is this too young to transfer her to a toddler bed? I don't know if she would EVER go to sleep without her crib, she would most likely keep climbing out and playing with toys, etc etc. I'm a single first time mom, so I can use all the advice I can get. :)

Should I wait? And if so, what age do you recommend and how do you go about getting them to go to sleep in a toddler bed?!

[lifeguard]

We switched to a single bed (with rails) when ds was about 18 months. I was still nursing him to sleep so getting out of bed while falling asleep wasn't a concern.

[lovepiggie]

We are still cosleeping for half the night, and DS sleeps in his own toddler bed for the other half. He's 18 months, and we just got it for him. I wasn't sure how he would respond to it, but he was very excited. He brought over his sleep monkey and pillow, and crawled right up! We are still sharing a room, though.

[Mal85]

DD just turned 2 and we switched her to a toddler bed last weekend. I tried implementing a bedtime routine, but she never did fall asleep in her crib. She's always fallen asleep on the couch with me or DH then we lay her in her crib. She would just cry and cry when we tried to put her to sleep in her crib. I was hoping the toddler bed would help with that. We tried for several nights to do story time in her bed. I let her pick out what books she wanted to read, but she never made it through one book and just kept getting out of bed and trying to leave the room to go play. So, we went back to putting her to sleep how we always have and laying her down in her toddler bed instead of the crib.

The first night, she woke up every couple of hours really upset like she didn't know where she was. Around 2 in the morning that night, she wandered into our room and got in bed with us. She's come into our room in the middle of the night a couple of times this week, but most nights she stays in her bed and gets into bed with us early in the morning to sleep for another couple of hours.

It's kind of nice that she can come to our room on her own. Now we don't have to get out of bed to go get her if she wakes in the night, which she still does on occasion. I worry about her wandering the house though, so we close off all the rooms except for the living/dining area and our bedroom. She can't get to the kitchen or the bathroom on her own right now.

[aHikaru]

My babe is 26 months and still in her "crib", I plan to co sleep (sleeping in the same room) for another year or two, so I'm not worried. But we did get a toddler bed and she hasn't warmed up to it, its only been two months, but it's there, so only time will tell :) 

[anjsmama]

My DS  "moved out" of our room at a year, and by 18 months we had to change his crib into a toddler bed! I laid him down for a nap, walked out of the room, and heard "CRASH". Yes, my (not very tall!) 18-month-old climbed out of the crib. And then as I came back in the room, he was climbing back IN the crib. We changed it that night. It was just way too much of a hazard to have him climbing in and out. I was also afraid he'd never stay in the bed and get any sleep., I will say this was an important time for us to have sleep space and play space seperated. His bedroom (sleep room)  was his bed, dresser, and bookshelf with books. His other toys were in a different room. He did occasionally get out of bed and curl up on the floor? (toddlers are silly!) but I'd just move him back into his bed once asleep, and that phase only lasted a month or so. 

As for the actually getting him to sleep, just keep following  your routine. Try to give the impression in the best way possible that nothing has changed. I was very surprised by how little resistance I got from him (especially considering what an independent little soul my DS is!). When  switching to the toddler bed remember to check for hazards in the environment... are the outlets covered? Is there anything that could fall on her? Stairs that need a gate? Etc.... I remember being torn apart that he was just too young for a toddler bed but it was really necessary for his safety! And it ended up affecting his sleep very little. If your DD doesn't have a night light, it is useful to have one when switching to a toddler bed so they can see where they are walking if they DO get out of bed. Also, when he really did need me, he could come find me, rather than stand in the crib and yell, which I found extremely preferable :) Good luck! 

[tzs]

dd has been in her own room since around 6 months and we just switched her to a twin bed on the floor a couple weeks ago. she's 18 months.

she was fine in her crib but i'm due with #2 in may, want to sidecar a crib to my bed, and didn't want to own 2 cribs. she was pretty much sleeping through the night 7-7am and putting herself to sleep with a water bottle. she's also really independent and would often wake up and sing to herself for a while or i'd go in and she'd be comfortably lying there with no intention of getting out. so i figured she was ready and i wanted to do it so it wouldn't coincide with the new baby.

i was nervous about how it would work and kept putting it off (because she did love her crib...she would run up to it when she was tired) but in theory i was also ok with her getting out of bed, wandering around or playing, and then passing out wherever for a while until she figured it out (we close the door to her room.)

when it came down to it, it was so much easier than i ever thought i would, i probably got very lucky but it is possible for it to be a breeze. she was really excited about the bed and was jumping on it and we were fooling around on it all day. but when bedtime came she WAS a little apprehensive, tried to go to the crib, and cried when i tried to leave the room....a real cry, scared, not just bedtime crying. so for maybe two nights i had to lie with her for a couple minutes (not too long or else she'd just get super silly), the move to the chair, then slowly out. the second day was much easier, the third day i think i was able to leave right away if i left the door cracked, and then by day 4 or 5 i could just leave and shut the door. 

naps were more of a concern because she is less obviously tired and more playful in the crib before sleeping so i thought she'd be up and out for sure but it ended up being much easier! went straight down the very first day!

i couldn't be happier that we went ahead and did it. she likes her bed, it's more accessible so i can always join her on it for a good cuddle or just to lounge around, and it buys me a little more time in bed in the am since she doesn't have to scream for me to take her out the second she wakes up. it's been so amazing listening to her singing herself to sleep or when she wakes up instead of shrieking for me to rescue her from the crib.

the weirdest part is peoples' reactions though. even though i am so so happy with how it's going the common reaction is "but she's so young!" and when pressed for why this would be an issue i can't get an answer. i've even been suggested to get her a crib tent instead (um....she had never even tried to escape her crib.) or that a toddler bed is an easier transition than a twin on the floor like we did (why? and why would i want a piece of furniture that i can use for like 1 more year...especially since the floor bed is working amazingly?!?) or to get a bed with rails. i don't get it.

[anjsmama]

Originally Posted by tzs 

the weirdest part is peoples' reactions though. even though i am so so happy with how it's going the common reaction is "but she's so young!" and when pressed for why this would be an issue i can't get an answer. i've even been suggested to get her a crib tent instead (um....she had never even tried to escape her crib.) or that a toddler bed is an easier transition than a twin on the floor like we did (why? and why would i want a piece of furniture that i can use for like 1 more year...especially since the floor bed is working amazingly?!?) or to get a bed with rails. i don't get it.

  Hahaha! So true. My DS was in the toddler bed that his crib changed into, and then when I turned it back to a crib when  I was pregnant with DD, we moved him to a full size bed on the floor. He got to "help" redo his room (since we were revamping the nursery for DD) and when friends/family came to help or see the end product they all had the strangest reactions to his bed... about how young he was, about how we could use a bassinet for DD & he could stay in the crib (even though he'd been out of the crib for over a year), and that there's no way he'd really stay in the bed. Hmm... interesting points of view :)
 

[treeoflife3]

I moved my kiddo to a toddler bed at almost 25 months.  She never tried climbing out of a crib so I just waited until I felt confident that she understood bedtime was bedtime and wouldn't try to stay up now that she could get out of bed and leave her room.  She is really good about going to bed though so I'm lucky.  She even did better than I expected once switching too.

I felt so weird having her wait so long (most people I know actually do change to a toddler bed around 18 months.. funny people think it's young!  not my experience) but it didn't seem like she was really ready before 25 months... I was actually going to wait a bit longer but for some reason I suddenly felt the NEED to change it.. glad I did because she was ready! :)

[youremyheartkid]

Wow, thanks for all the responses! I always wondered what the use of a toddler bed is when you use it for such a short time. My sister is storing a toddler bed for me, so I'll probably use it to start. I agree that removing the toys from the sleep room is a good idea, I'll be doing that today. She has a nightlight up high and her room has been babyproofed. I think we're gonna go ahead and switch her this week! She seems ready and it's not worth the risk of her falling out onto the hardwood floor.

Thanks again ladies!