Jump to content

Menu

Skip the crib and get a toddler bed?


Recommended Posts

We are co-sleepers. Our babies usually stay in our bed until about a year, then I'll start the crib. Most nights they would end up in our beds eventually. So my dd will be 1 in Oct and I'm ready to set up the crib. Well we moved over a year ago and the screws were lost. So I'm thinking it might just be better to go ahead and get a toddler bed. I can get one of those side bars to ensure she won't fall off.

 

Is this a good idea? I don't really want to spend too much money on a crib that can be converted. I would just buy a toddler bed at Ikea. :)

 

Thoughts? Experiences?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sounds good to me. My kids hated the crib, and my dd probably slept in hers three-four nights during her first year. As soon as she learned to walk we converted it into a toddle bed. She was 12.5 months at that time, and we did that for our other two kids as well. Toddler beds have a little rail on the front half to keep them from falling out, and that worked fine for us.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i've never owned a crib, tho i did have a cosleeper for the last one. When he was a toddler, I got a twin sized mattress and put it on the ground next to our bed (our bed is low anyways, so it wasnt too far up/down). Eventually we moved it in to his room.

 

My oldest one had a toddler bed in my room for a while. that worked well, too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My older 2 were in regular beds from around 1 year (the oldest took to vaulting over the side ) with a rail to stop them rolling out. With my youngest DD we bought a double futon bed. Low enough to the ground that falling out wasn't a problem, and plenty of room for nights when I ended up in her bed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd skip the toddler bed, personally. DD went from cosleeping to a full mattress on the floor (full is more comfortable for someone to lay with her...) Now she has a regular bed (queen size, because that's what we had available at the time). The twins needed cribs (they do NOT like cosleeping, and we tried them on a mattress on the floor from 6-9months, but they woke each other so much...), but will go from there to a mattress on the floor. Maybe one full or maybe two twins - depending on what happens.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

How about a pack'n play?

 

We used that with youngest from about age 7 months to almost age 2. Crib was set up, but didn't trust my other kids (both toddlers at the time) around him when I wasn't in the room at night.

 

He slept great in the pack'n play in our room, and I didn't have to worry about him wandering around at night when I was sleeping.

 

Went right from there to a twin size bed with built in rails (low to the ground because it was a bunk set, not yet doubled up).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Depends on her personality - if she is generally a compliant child then I would skip the crib. If she is a spitfire then I would go with the pack and play or buy new screws option.

 

The biggest issue I see is getting them to stay in the bed. I have some that I could say "go to bed" and they would. And then.... there are the others..... Putting them in a bed at a year was a disaster. Mostly it was their personalities though. Some just couldn't resist the "option" of getting up.

 

We co-sleep too (well, 4 out of the 6 did. Two of ours hated it). I typically move my babies to their own beds between 1 yr - 18 months too ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

dd was out in a twin size be also at 15 months. It took us 3 months to figure out that she wasn't doing the mattress on the floor thing. She had to have her whole bed put together and we just got her a safety rail to keep her in and bought her a stool that slid underneath in the day time for her to climb in and out.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...