Changing from Crib to Toddler Bed- Help!!

I switched my son to a toddler bed from his crib when he was 18 months old. He never fell out, stays in when I tell him to go lay down for naps and bedtime. So that experience was perfect. My daughter will be 18 months next months and I will convert her crib then, I think she is ready also. She doesn't climb out of her crib, but she wants to be a big girl so bad.

My son turned two in February, and he's still in his crib. He's shorter for his age, and doesn't mind his crib at all ... and he's never tried to climb out or anything. I plan to keep him in his crib until he starts trying to climb out (for fear of him hurting himself) or if he shows an interest in moving to a big boy bed. Right now, his crib works fine for all of us (and his crib converts to a toddler bed). He sleeps well and I know he's safe in there. ;) We have an almost 6-month-old, too ... so it's nice to not have to worry about either of them when they're asleep! ;) I have friends who moved their children earlier, but it was mainly because they were climbing out of their cribs. I always say "if it ain't broken, don't fix it." Ha ha! ;)

My son is 2 1/2. I recently moved him to a toddler bed because we moved. He had not been trying to climb out of the crib and he was very easy to get down at night. Now I hate that he's in a toddler bed. I fight with him for an hour or two to go to bed at night and he's up at the crack of dawn when he had not been doing that before. I tried putting a gate in the door, but he just pushes it down. Unless she's trying to climb out, I highly recommend using the crib as long as possible. Just my experience. :)

My daughter turns 2 on the 4th and I just converted her crib to a daybed(3 sides). That was the easiest transition for us. We simply removed the sliding gaurdrail and put some padding underneath that side in case she fell out during the night. She hasn't had any problems. Oh, and she wasn't climbing out yet or anything.. just wanted to give her a 'big girl bed' in time for her b-day. Good luck.

Hi T. i put my girls in a bed when they turned 2. If your child wakes up at night i would saftey proof her room and put up baby gate so she cant wander around the house. Hope this helps and have a great day.

I switched my son to a toddler bed when he turned 2, but my advice..keep her in the crib until she gets too big for it. If I had it to do over, that's what I would have done. My son could have stayed in his another 6 months or so, but I just wanted him to be in a big boy bed. He ended up getting up during all hours of the night...he'd get up on his own in the morning and NOT come wake me up, he got into LOTS of stuff!! So, to save yourself some trouble, along with saving your dd from getting into stuff that might harm her, I'd leave her where she is until she either gets too big for it, or she starts climbing out on her on. And, when you decide to switch her, make sure that you child proof any areas of the house that she can get to in case she gets up while you're asleep and doesn't wake you up. Hope this helps:D

I have to say that with my oldest daughter I did not change her bed to a toddler bed until she started climbing over the edge (she was 3.5). I tried earlier but she has a little sister and they share a room and my oldest would not stay in her bed once it was changed to a toddler bed. I opted to put the rail back on until she started climbing out and then when i took it off i have had little problems with her getting out of bed after her bedtime.

My daugher is 19 months and she just started her todler bed this month. Our doctor told us when she is 32 inches tall then she can start using a bed. He also said to make sure it has a safty rail. If she has trouble sleeping in the new bed, let her take her naps in it. It was scary the first few nights because I'd hear stomping in the hall. I'd wake up to find my daughter playing on the floor or sleeping there. Some times she would come in our room or go into the living room. I don't want to shut her door at night so I use the baby moniter. Just keep an ear out for her.

My son changed to a toddler bed just a couple months after his 2nd birthday. We had moved and he would not sleep in his crib anymore and I was afraid he would climb out and hurt himself. We did put the toddler rails that you can get at Target or Babies R Us and put on both sides. He has never rolled out and they even came off this March, he was just a little over 3. We did baby proof his room and put a gate up to keep him locked in if he got out of bed.

If i were you, keep her in her crib until SHE doesn't want to be in a crib anymore. I have 2 boys of which my oldest was happy in his crib until 2 1/2. Once he went to his toddler bed, he was up and out of it all nite, not going to bed on time and up at the crack of dawn. My second who just turned 2 in May is still in his crib. He hasn't tried to crawl out nor has he expressed interest in having a big boy bed.I intend to keep him in the crib until he is ready. If she is jumping or falling out of her crib, it's time to say goodbye to the confinement. The great thing about the crib if they are content is that they play happily for a while if they wake up too early. It is also easier to get them to go back to sleep too. Mine are both early risers (5:00am) every morning. Keeping him in the crib can at least extend him until about 5:30 or 5:45!! Heck, that's another few minutes of sleep for us!! good luck to you, but just don't rush a good thing if you don't need to for safety purposes.

When my oldest turned 2, I moved him into a toddler bed. He had been climbing out of his crib for a few weeks before. He screamed the whole night the first night no matter what I did, even if I was in the room with him. He ended up sleeping on the floor that night, refusing to sleep in his cool car bed. After the first night, I had no problems at all.

When my youngest son got his toddler bed, he was two months short of his 2nd birthday. He was a 26 week preemie and turned 2 in February. He transitioned into a toddler bed very well and he went from sleeping with me for some months because I had recently moved and had not brought his crib.

I would advise using a gate in the doorway every time, even if you live on one level. My oldest used to get up in the middle of the night, without waking me, and go watch T.V. or get food out of the cabinets.

Good luck!

I switched my daughter to her toddler bed when she was around 12 months old (I can't remember now exactly when it was haha). She is very easy going and adjusts well to change, so she did great with it. I'm sure you could try changing your daughter's crib into the toddler bed and see how she does for a few nights. If she doesn't seem to be ready, you can always change it back. But I think she is old enough for the change.

Good luck!

i think 2 is the perfect time to switch. we switched at about 21 months but that was only b/c my inlaws bought a toddler bed and had it sent to us. our pedi says that once they turn 2 they better understand that they have to stay in their room/bed. i wouldnt act like it was any big deal though b/c if you make a big deal about it then she might have more trouble switching IMO. we got lucky and my son was so excited watching me put his bed together that he just wanted to use it and slept in it with no trouble at all. good luck

edit: make sure her room is safe and i would get a gate for the door so that if she does wake up in the middle of the night and you dont hear her right away she doesnt go and destroy your house or get into trouble

My dgt's bed changes to a toddler bed too. We tried it a few months before her third bday. She would not stay in it. We had to go back to the crib for a few weks. When we tried again (a month or two before her bday) it worked fine. Good luck!