Opinions please - is it time for a big boy bed?

[CharlotteMommy]

22 mo DS will be a big brother this September. He will be 27 mo when the baby is born. He is very content in his crib, and I had thought that we would buy the baby a crib, and keep DS in his own crib until he was about 2.5 – 3 yo. Recently, however, I have heard from several friends about very successful crib to bed transitions of LO’s starting as young as 15 mo, and of course, this got me rethinking my original plan. DS’ current crib transitions to a toddler bed and also to a full size bed.

I’m looking for opinions on what to do. Is it time for a big boy bed or should we keep him in his crib? If it’s time to transition, should we move to the toddler bed, the full bed, or buy him a new bed so the baby can have the current crib?

DS is a very mild mannered and content little guy. He so far has never tried to climb out of his crib (knock on wood!), but I know a bed offers more freedom. So, how should we proceed here? Opinions please! TIA!

[elektra]

He is very content in his crib

KEEP THE CRIB.

I was so thankful that DD was still in her crib when DS was born when she was 26 months.
I still regret moving her at closer to 2 and 1/2 because she had only tried to climb out once and she has only slept through the night in her big girl bed like once.

[WolfpackMom]

You can take this with a grain of salt, since DS is only 14months. My DN switched to a big boy bed at 21/22 months and it made his parents lives so much easier. He stopped waking up during the night (he was moving aorund and hitting the sides etc). They have had no issues with him getting out of the bed etc. If its something you want to do, I think it can be done. It all depends on the temperment of the kid (and perhaps, of the parents if said kid decides to get out of bed). I would consider since you say you were planning on putting DS in a bed at 2.5-3 yrs old and thats just 3 months after you baby is expected to arrive. I think the transition would be harder post-baby than pre-baby.
FWIW I have two friends who also just switched their 2 yr old and 23 month old to big boy beds pre-baby's arrival and it has gone fine for them as well, they both made it into a big event of getting a big boy room etc and the baby having a baby room.

[gobadgers]

My DD was only 22 months when DS was born, but I was also really happy to have her still in a crib when DS was an infant. We bought a cheap second crib for DS at IKEA, used it for a year and sold it. Everyone told us to keep them in their cribs as long as we could - if he's not trying to climb out I'd stick with a crib if it were me.

[justlearning]

My DS1 was 2 1/2 when DS2 was born. Our crib didn't convert into a toddler or full size bed, so we moved DS1 into a twin bed before DS2 was born. We kept the mattress on the floor and also used a snugtuck pillow with it.

DS1 started coming out of his room all the time, so we put a gate up on his doorway. Although he wasn't happy about that for the first few nights, he actually started wanting the gate closed. In fact, he would close it himself when he went to his room at night.

So that situation worked well for us, but every kid is different. In your case, considering that you can convert his crib into a bed, I can see the benefits of keeping him in the crib and buying another for your baby.

[scrooks]

Another vote for buy a second crib. DD was 26 months old and still very happy in her crib when DS was born. At the last minute we bought a second crib at target for DS. Great decision! DD is STILL happily sleeping in her crib- at 3.5! But now I must get her out as DS2 will be arriving in August. I draw the line at 3 cribs! :rotflmao:

[Pear]

DD is 2 and she has had her big girl bed for about 6 months. We wanted her to be able to get in an out safely on her own so for now the mattress and boxspring are on the floor. We will add the frame when we think she can handle the height. She is pretty tiny so she just reaches right now.

[chozen]

my niece moved her lo out around 20 mo. or so and good bye went her naps, so i vote keep your lo in crib as long as you can.:)

[ABO Mama]

KEEP THE CRIB.
:yeahthat:

[HIU8]

My DS was 26 months when he moved to a big boy bed. HOWEVER, he was ready to be done with the crib. One day around 24 months he just up and asked us for a real bed. Seriously, it threw us but DS was persisent. Plus I was PG and I figured it would be a good time to transition BEFORE DD was born (new bed and new room). It worked out well for us. DS really wanted it. We had no issues with him getting out of bed all the time. No issues with naps or anything. This does not work for everyone though.

[baileygirl]

DS1 moved to a twin bed (with rail) at 25 months. We didn't have any problems at night, but he did stop napping for us at that time. DS2 is 25 months and I hope on keeping him in his crib until he is 3.

[JBaxter]

Keep the crib as LONG as possible

[LMPC]

I think it depends on the temperament of your DC...and only you can really answer that question. We moved DD at 26 months because she asked Santa for a "big girl bed" and was really set on the transition. She got out of the bed twice about 3 weeks into it. We asked her if she wanted to go back in her crib...she has never gotten out since. Her desire to be a big girl is stronger than her desire to get out of the bed (thank goodness!!). She also sleeps much better now...doesn't hit the side of the crib when she sleeps and she takes wicked long naps. But that's DD...it's different for everyone! How do you think your DC will react to being in a big boy bed?

[MSWR0319]

Keep him in his crib as long as you can and get your new LO a crib! DS did not climb out of his crib until a few weeks past 24mo. He had JUST started sleeping through the night and taking great naps. We moved him into a toddler bed and it's been a disaster! He doesn't really try to get out of it ( after the first few nights) , but he doesn't sleep well again ( he's 2.5 now) . He's puts himself to sleep just fine but he's always waking up and his nap has all but disappeared unless I rock him to sleep and then he takes a great nap. He's always cranky because he's short on sleep. I really wish I would have gotten a crib tent and kept him in his crib for much longer!!

[JMS]

As with everything else, consider the temperament of the child and what's best for the family :wink2: DD and DS1 were both in cribs until almost 3 1/2 and neither one ever comes into our bed at night. They loved their cribs and I think waiting until I they were really ready to move to a bed made the transition very easy.

[mmommy]

DH would like 2 yo DD to transition to a "big girl bed" so we took the side off her crib (I decided this wasn't a battle I wanted to pick).
She asked us to put it back on again.:hysterical: She's always been a good sleeper, and I think she likes the comfort of being in the crib, and I'm very happy with that too.
From the responses its clear that this totally depends on the child.

[jenfromnj]

Another vote for keeping the crib!

We transitioned DS to a bed 2 months ago at around 22 months, after he suddenly hated his crib and would climb out within 10 seconds of being put in, and would continue to do so over and over. He wasn't really "ready" for the change, and we've had a bit of a struggle getting him to fall asleep easily and stay in bed all night. If he had been happy and content in his crib, I'd definitely have left him in there for at least a few more months.

[scriptkitten]

i refuse to transition them. i'm protective of their naps. i won't do anything that puts my 2-3hr break at risk :)

[Dr C]

Another vote to keep him in his crib. Do you really want a toddler on the loose at night when you're a sleep deprived new mama (again)?

[BayGirl2]

22 mo DS will be a big brother this September. He will be 27 mo when the baby is born. He is very content in his crib, and I had thought that we would buy the baby a crib, and keep DS in his own crib until he was about 2.5 – 3 yo. Recently, however, I have heard from several friends about very successful crib to bed transitions of LO’s starting as young as 15 mo, and of course, this got me rethinking my original plan. DS’ current crib transitions to a toddler bed and also to a full size bed.


I actually had to think for a minute to remember if I wrote this post! Our kids are the exact same age and I have been thinking the same thing. When the new baby arrives I'd like to put her/him in the crib at around 3 months and have DS in a twin bed in the same room. DS is a really good sleeper, goes instantly to sleep when I put him down and hasn't tried to climb out yet. And I actually like the idea of him getting up in the morning and being able to get to his books and toys instead of crying for us.

So we were thinking we'd take the side off the crib to test it out in toddler bed mode (although we can no longer buy the toddler rail) so yesterday DH took it off in the morning. So here's how nap time went: We were a little delayed (not unusual) and DS was tired from being out late the night before. He fell asleep in the car so I carried him up and changed his diaper. He saw the crib, remembered the side was gone, and instantly perked up. I left him in there and watched on the monitor as he climbed out and walked around. He kept trying to open the door but stands in front of it so he blocks himself. I finally opened it and found him standing there diaperless in just his shirt (I left his jeans off), which is a new trick. I tried reading a long book, leaving him alone, talking to him, but he just got more energetic. He totally skipped his nap and was a mess by evening.

I'm still not sure if yesterday was a fluke because 1. he was excited about and unfamiliar situation and 2. he was already unusually overtired. We've decided he's not quite ready and the side went back up, but I would like to try again in a few weeks or months. I just don't see us buying another crib and getting him in and out of the crib is going to get harder for me while I'm pregnant. He's usually very well behaved (and there was no punishing or warnings yesterday btw) so I tend to think he can handle it.

Anyway, sorry long post, but since we're in the same situation thought I would share. I'm interested to hear what you decide and how it goes. Good luck.

[ahisma]

DS1 was 22 months when DS2 was born. We kept the crib and used a (very nice) wooden mini crib for DS2. By the time DS2 was ready for a full size crib (around 1 year), DS1 was ready for a bed. He stayed in the crib until he was 3 though.

DS2 is still in the crib at 31 months. No problems. He likes it.

[elephantmeg]

keep the crib! Mine are 25 months appart and DS stayed in his crib til he was 3. Heaven. He dropped nap as soon as he was out of the crib.

ironically both his and DD's crib were recalled shortly after he was out of his crib so I got the money back on both of them and then just had to re-buy for DD!

[MoJo]

I'd keep the crib, but wait as long as possible to buy another.

Our plan was to keep JellyBean in the crib, and have the baby sleep in the PNP bassinet for several months and then decide if two cribs would be the best way to go.

Jelly Bean actually started climbing out of the crib at 20 months, but I got that stopped. However, when Ha was 1 week old, JellyBean became terrified of thunderstorms. I let her sleep in my room, and then my bed. I was too sleep deprived to force the issue. But now, 9 months later, she's still afraid to sleep in her room. I'm SO glad I didn't waste the money on another crib.

[hillview]

KEEP THE CRIB.


:yeahthat:

[Green_Tea]

If he's happy in the crib, KEEP THE CRIB!!

[CharlotteMommy]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I think we'll keep DS in his crib until he is ready to transition. As far as the new LO, either a cheap crib or PNP to start, and then decide what to do from there depending if DS is still in his crib. Thanks again for your input!