My two year old daughter is still in a crib and we've been debating on the right time to switch her over to a "big girl" bed. We want to move her straight to a twin so we don't have to mess with the whole toddler bed thing. Her pediatrician has told me to keep her in the crib for as long as possible unless she is climbing out which she doesn't. I also have a toddler rail for the front of her crib that we can use to transition her to a bed. Does anyone have any thoughts on when we should move her?
4 comments:
We moved my daughter from crib to toddler bed at 2yrs to get ready for our next baby. Then at 2.5 years old, we moved her to the twin bed. She REALLY struggled staying in bed since no crib bars kept her in any more. So, yes, I agree with your ped. Wait until you HAVE to switch her over. And when you do, I'd go straight to a twin bed.
Another good tip is to "train" your daughter to stay in bed until you come and get her. I did it with my two year old, so transitioning to a real bed wasn't bad. Each morning I hear her just talking and chilling in her bed until I come. It's great! I read this in "Toddler Wise"...a great book for potty training, since you might be close to that too.
I moved my kids out of the crib almost as soon as I found out I was pregnant with the next one. We went straight for the twin size. I wanted my kids to be excited about their new bed and getting bigger rather than having them feel like they were getting kicked out of the crib to make room for the next baby. I wanted them comfortable with their new bed long before the baby came home so they wouldn't associate the transition in a negative way.
We actually switched my daughter at 18 months in preparation for a new baby and she did great. She was so used to staying in the crib that she naturally stayed on the bed til we came and got her. I don't know if that's cause we did it earlier than two that she didn't resist or what, but we literally have not had any problems with her going to bed or taking naps. If she does happen to get out, she finds her way back and goes to sleep herself (now 22 months) My guess is because we did it earlier she just naturally adjusted before she became too independent??? Not sure but good luck!! I just hope it goes this smoothly when my next one transitions :)
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