Transition Out of the Crib

17 months might be a bit young, but only you know what she is ready for. If you are concerned with the height of the bed, you can always try to place the box spring and bed on the floor. You can also place guard rails on the bed. As for her running around in the middle of the night you can place a gate at her door and she will have to call to you should she want out or you can place the gate at the stairs to avoid accidents.Toddler beds are at times a waste, they are a crib with fancy decor and if that's the case, why bother taking her out of the crib.Good Luck no matter what you choose.

Is the crib no longer working? Is he/she climbing out? I think 17 months(depending on the child) is kind of early..

You can totally get a full-sized bed. I know other families who have done it successfully for their lil' uns! And it spares you the expense of something that's "in between."

Two catalogues that would be very helpful for your situation. 1) IKEA - Affordable low to the ground bed frames and mattresses. 2) One Step Ahead - great selection of safety gear like bed railings and also waterproof mattress pads. (I have one that fits over the sheets. Accidents are easy to clean up after!)

Best of luck to you!

I had similar feelings when my daughter needed to transition. Once I decided to go to a double bed, I bought a set of mattress and put them on the floor. It was even easy for her to reach and help me make the bed. When I was sure of the bed frame I wanted, which took a long time, I simply put the mattresses in the frame. Just a thought! C.

I think that is a great idea and I did the same thing for my son when he was ready to leave his crib. I ordered a full size bed. I got his through Pottery Barn Kids. I also ordered a mattress and a boxspring. But after they were delivered I realized that the boxspring made the bed way too high. So I removed the boxspring and stored it in the basement until I felt he was old enough to sleep that high off the ground. (which I did at 5 years old) I also bought a bedrail to keep him from falling out of bed. He is now 6 and he loves his bed! I plan to keep him in this bed for as long as he lives with us, so I made sure I got a pretty good quality bedroom set.

I just removed the bedrails from his bed and he is doing great with it.

Good Luck!!

I never bothered with a bed frame,I just bought a boxspring and mattress and fixed it up beautiful on the floor! My kids loved it,it's just low enough for them to get on and off of,so if they do fall it's not that bad!Then when she gets used to sleeping in it ( without falling off)take her with you and pick out a bed.I did this with my kids and it worked out very well for us.
good luck,
V.

We gave up on the crib a little earlier, and have actually had her in a queen size bed, which may sound a little crazy, but we had an extra from when we were both still single, and it seemed a waste. We just have the boxspring on the floor, so the mattress is not too far off the ground for her to get up and down. Her stuffed animals all live on one side, and she has her little nest on the other. It is also convenient if relatives come to stay, and then she comes into our room.

I think you should go with the double. It has long-term viability and I know our little girl loves her big bed. It's also nice, because it gives you a more comforatable space for reading to her in bed.

Honestly, my sleep has been much better since she moved from the crib to the bed, because if she wakes up in the night, she can come to me, rather than the constant half sleep on red alert I was getting before. Of course that's just me. Good luck, and good question

P.S. My daughter is 17& 1/2 months

I haven't read through all the other responses, so some of this may be a repeat.

We skipped the toddler bed and placed a twin mattress right on the floor for both of my kids (now 2 and 6). Both transitioned on the earlier side - but wanted to be in a big-boy bed and so had no problems staying there. My 2.5 year old will walk downstairs to my bedroom in the middle of the night if he wakes up - he stays much calmer with this option than screaming stuck in the crib.

How long are matresses supposed to be good for? I'm thinking I've read 10 years somewhere. So, if your kid ends up needing a larger bed as a teenager, you don't necessarily need to buy that big bed now. One downside I have heard about the bigger beds is that it is harder to find fun kids sheets (like character sheets) for them. This may be changing as more kids get bigger beds, or it may not be important to you. My kids love their Spiderman and Sesame Street sheets though - and were a nice incentive for the upgrade to the big boy bed.

Hrrmm... Does her crib convert to a toddler bed? If so, it might not be as scary converting from the crib. If you choose to get a "big girl" bed, I would say go with a twin bed against a wall on one side and a guard on the other. Also, it will help her keep her room the same it is now, only with a bigger bed, so maybe it won't be as scary. She will also have more space for playing in her room.

I slept in twin/singles until I was 23. My husband slept in twin/singles until he graduated college and was in his own apartment, about 25. Dorms have twin beds; sleep-away camp uses twin beds (if not using sleeping bags); twin linens are cheaper (particularly if she wants to "re-do" her room every couple of years once she gets into tweens and teens).

During potty training, if she has an accident, it's a lot easier to clean than a double. Besides, you never know when/if you will move. Moving a twin is much easier, and if you are cramped on space, it doesn't matter how big/small her room is. A twin fits nearly everywhere.

-- Good luck! A.

I must agree with some of the other mothers out there that 17 months is quite young to be considering taking your child out of the crib.
Some time between the ages of 2 and 3 is ideal. If she is trying to climb out, there are still ways to hold off on letting go of the crib, such as purchasing one of those mesh tents that go over top (my friend had this for her daughter and it worked beautifully), or by simply putting her in a sleep sack, as she will not be able to spread her legs wide enough to climb over the railing.
If you're still dead set on moving her now, I highly recommend "Young America" by Stanley Beds (just google the name, and you'll find them. Many big furniture stores carry the line). These are extremely good quality beds that are designed to be very safe for children of all ages. They have sturdy wood slats at the bottom of the base that act as support so that a box spring is not needed, and the base can be lowered to a nice low level for a toddler, and then can be raised as he/she grows. They also happen to be gorgeous! Just don't flip out the MSRP mentioned on the website, as most stores who carry the line will sell them for about half. Also, definitely get crib rails to keep her safe and snug.

Good luck to you!

my daughter is about the same age, I personally am not attempting the toddler bed yet. I think the toddler bed might be best to start out with, because it will be "her size" she might feel lost in a huge double bed all by herself? craigslist is great for things like that (toddler beds etc) - I found one on there not too long ago for like 20 bucks...just a thought.

Maybe try a Futon frame since it is low to the ground?... You might be able to have something made by the Amish that fits a double, but is low enough to be safe. Otherwise, invest in good railings:-)

I had the samee question a couple months ago! My son is now 20 months old - at the time he was 17 months and climbing out of his crib.

We debated back and forth about the toddler bed idea and finally decided it wasn't worth the money for the short amount of time that it would be used. Instead, we bought him a twin "big boy" bed. There are a couple ways you can keep it low enough - we tested both out before we settled on one, as it really depends on the thickness of the mattress and the bed frames, but you can:
- Omit the boxspring and just put the mattress on the bed. (If it seems too soft or that there may not be enough support, you can add additional cross beams to the bed frame or even get a 1/4" piece of flat plywood from Lowe's or Depot for extra support).
- Put both the box spring and the mattress on the floor.

Of course, for safety, we have safety rails that we picked up at Babies R Us.

Hope this helps and good luck! :o)

Why rush? Yeah -- I would say plan for your newest adventure. My 2 year old started crawling out of the crib at 20 months - so we put a crib tent on top of the crib. Would you leave your 17 month old unattended at anytime? Anthing can happen in the middle of the night. She can get into trouble even in her baby proofed bedroom. For safety sake and your own sanity, please reconsider.

Don't rush her out of the crib. I kept both my kids in their cribs until they were almost three and potty trained....much easier to change and wash crib sheets when a diaper leaks. I had a few friends that moved their children into beds at 18 months and that is when the sleeping nightmares began. They are too little to understand why they have to stay in bed when they are capable of escaping. By three years old you have a much easier time reasoning with them about that. Good Luck!

My advice would be if you don't have to - don't rush. I have many friends who took their toddlers out of the crib too soon and now spend nights running interference as their baby escapes from his/her room over and over again. My son is 2 1/2 and still happy and secure in his crib - we don't plan to move him until this summer, because we have a new baby on the way. When you do decide to move your daughter - I would skip the toddler bed and go straight to a real bed (with rails)- the toddler bed just seems like an unneccesary expense to me.

Here are my two cents as a mom of an almost 6 year old.
My son transitioned out of the crib when he was about 26-27 months. I didn't have a problem with him getting out of it, he just seemed ready. I did however, transition him first into a toddler bed (the "firetruck" one that a lot of little boys have.) I picked that for a couple of reasons - #1 I could still use the mattress from the crib and it still felt cozy for him and #2 - the way it was designed, he couldn't fall out of it. Because I too had a fear of falling down steps etc at night, I made sure I had a LOCKED GATE at the top of my steps at all times at night. In the beginning, I even put one of those tension gate type things in front of HIS bedroom door so he would have to call for me to leave his room - some people may have an issue with that but I did it for my own sanity and his safety. He stayed in that bed for about 2 years, then he went into a double bed but instead of getting him a boxspring, the guy at the mattress place suggested we get a "bunky board" to put under the mattress instead - it's the really thick wood that they use under bunk beds. That was the best decision. At almost 6 he is still using that and not a boxspring.
Hope that helps with your decision.
Good Luck

Hi R.,
We put our daughter in a double bed from her crib. The box spring and mattress worked well for her and she loves her bed. She had just turned 2. It was low enough for her to be safe. She rolled off a couple of times (we had put pillows at the edge and nothing sharp such as a nightstand near her bed) and she got right back in bed and went back to sleep.
Now that she is almost 3, we put the bed into a corner(less ways to roll off) and added cool bedding and pillows and she loves her new look. She can now sleep different ways and still be safe.Good luck on your decision!

Hi R.,
17 months does seem a little young but mother knows best and if you think she is ready go for it. I recommend going to IKEA and getting a platform bed or a single and putting a ceiling hung net over the top with a bed rail on the side. It is a pain to have to put it together but the cost is sooo much less in the end. IKEA has a service (for a fee) to put the furniture together for you if you need to. That is how we transitioned our daughter and it worked well. Use pillows to make her feel safe and cozy. We, too, started out with a toddler bed but found it easier to comfort her by laying with her. A single or double gives you plenty of room to snuggle and read books etc. So, we wasted $150+ on the toddler bed! Whatever you choose, GOOD LUCK! It's a whole new world when they leave the crib!

I can't say that I have found anything that was low enough for a toddler, but big enough for a teenager. We have two children, and we found a nice, white metal frame toddlerbed for cheap- less than $50. It uses her crib mattress. We just bought a twin bed for our 3 year old, and gave the toddler bed to our 21 month old. It worked, and will get our money worth out of it. The girls share a room, and there isn't room for two double beds in their- so we'll see what happens down the road.

I just responded to similar question a few days ago. The author confirmed her apprecaition for my response so I hope you don't mind me just cutting and pasting it here for you! I hope you also find it helpful!

"Unless the crib has become unsafe because she's climbing out (or attempting to) then I suggest you keep her in the crib as long as possible. We JUST transitioned my 3 year old to a toddler bed. She never climbed out but has been fully potty trained for over 6 months and I felt bad putting her in a pullup every night when I knew she'd stay dry but felt bad NOT putting her in one since she couldn't get up and go to the potty on her own. She's old enough to know that she can get out but still doesn't unless it's to go potty. Even then, she comes to me first so I know she's up and so I can confirm that she gets back into bed safely.

Anyway, I've read several posts about moms transitioning to a toddler bed at 2 and younger and I just don't see what the rush is. God forbid she got up without your knowledge and got into the knife drawer or stumbled down the stairs. Keep her safe in the crib as long as possile. That's my advice. Good luck!"

What's the rush? Why are you making the transistion if yoiu dont mind me asking. My 29 month old is still in her crib, doing fine, sleeping great, by the time she will be ready to move she will eb mature enough to understand it all and also old enough to not wander in the middle of the night/playing/ and/or getting hurt.

They have Toddler beds, Kmart.com for under $20 right now, I only mention thsi because I feel like an 18 month old would be lost in a huge bed. It may make the transistion even harder.

Too young. Don't do it. You will regret it.

Unlike most of the respondents so far, I decided to go for a toddler bed for several reasons. First of all, I decided that the bed I would purchase when my son is 2 would probably not be the same bed that he would sleep in until he moves out of the house. The toddler beds are so much fun for the kids ... if you are concerned about cost, i would recommend to look for a used one on www.craigslist.org (or e-bay), you can often get great deals! Also, the crib mattress fits into the toddler bed and therefore its another expense that you can postpone to later. Lastly, my son LOVES the fact that his bed looks like a car, which made the transition that much easier.