When do you normally do you put a child in a bed?
I think it all depends on the child. I moved my son at 2 years 2 months. But there are some kids that have made the switch as early as 18 months and later at 3 years old. I would take a look at how he/she has done with everything else developmentally (early, late, or just about average), as well as the personality to guage at what age to do the transition. Hope that helps.
We moved our son to a toddler bed when he was 27 months old. He wasn't climbing out of his crib or even trying to but he loves his bed now.
All 3 of my boys were diffrent. My oldest was 2 1/2 yrs (always loved his crib), middle son was 3 since we needed the crib for the new baby, and my youngest was 19 months and had started crawling out of his crib so we converted the crib and put a gate on the bedroom door. I tried to keep mine in a crib as long as they were safe. Much easier when you have piece of mind that they can't hurt themselves.
I'm sure all kids are different. My experience has been - not until you HAVE to - until they crawl out and are in danger of hurting themselves. We moved our daughter earlier than she was ready because we were having baby #2, and it was NOT an easy transtion - she went from being a great sleeper to a poor one - "escaping" her bed at all hours! If I had to put an age on it - I'd say keep them there until 2.5 or 3 if you can!
My first went in at 15 months when his brother came, my 2nd and 3rd when they were 21 months when we moved.
Honestly, it is personal preference. My rule of thumb was when they could walk. For my oldest boy it was 16 months (he was a late walker due to being premature) and for my youngest it was 10 months (he walked at 9 1/2 months - way too early for me). I thinki by introducing it early it eliminates some of the curiousity of getting out of bed to walk around. I also put the baby gate up at the door so if they did get out of bed (being that young) that they wouldn't be able to walk around the house without me knowing it. I would also be able to hear in the monitor if something was going.
Honestly - it is what you are comfortable. My biggest fear was them trying to climb out, because they knew they could walk around, and fall on their heads!
It all depends on the child. My son was in his crib, which he loved and never once climbed out of, until he was 2y7m. We then moved him right into a twin size bed. But, I have a friend whose daughter is over three and still happily sleeps in her crib. Child size plays a part in the decision also.
We actually switched him on impulse because we were going through major sleep problems. I decided that if known of us was getting anywhere near a full nights sleep anyway, then this was the perfect time to make the switch. He loved his new bed and we never had a problem with the switch. And eventually the sleep problems (nightmares it turns out) went away.
Every one of the 6 were in a toddler bed by 14 months and sleeping in it full time by 18 months. We switched to twins and/or full size by 2 1/2 or 3 at the latest.
The earlier you change them out the better, if they are in child care then they go on to cots at 10-10 1/2 months to prepare them for the toddler room and it is just a natural transition at home too.
Most experts say - and I agree - keep 'em in the crib as long as you can! Unless they are too big for the crib or climbing out, which can be dangerous, there's no reason to move them to a big bed yet. You may thing they want a bigger bed, but many toddlers feel safe and secure in their crib; it's what they are used to. So, unless your child is climbing out or too big for it, keep him or her in the crib as long as you can.
Mine switched to a big (twin) bed at around 2.5 years old.
Hope this helps!
I moved my toddlers to beds when they started to try to climb out of thier cribs. I just put a small mattress on the floor (they can't fall out) and had them sleep there at naptime so they could get used to it. Make sure that they have a gate on their door so they don't use their newfound freedom to get into things they shouldn't and make sure that everything is safe in their bedroom.
I've read that they absolutely must be out of the crib by the time their armpits are level with the top rail. Our pediatrician recommended moving my twins when they were 18 months, and was pretty convincing when I heard about all of the head injuries he had treated over the years. You may think your toddler has never tried to climb out, but you can't be there 100% of the time, and you may not be there the one time he does try and is successful. By the way, moving them at 18 months was SUPER EASY because they were in a very easy-going stage, and didn't know they had the option to refuse. Once kids reach the terrible twos, where they say "no" to everything, it's much harder. Also, our Dr. explained that the 4 walls of their room become the walls of their crib, and so every thing in the room has to be secure, and you must be sure they can't get out on their own.
When my boy was @1 1/2, he climbed out of his crib. He took to a reg bed right away.
Not until you have to! If your child is not climbing out, keep 'em there. My son climbed out a few times, so we switched him at 25 mos. He did great! Helped us take down his crib & never wanted to go back, so I know he was ready. Also, I second what another mom said about their room becoming their "crib" and making sure everything is totally childproof, if you haven't already.
