what size bed to transition to

[dolphindance]

what size bed did you have your toddler transition to? toddler bed (which is basically the crib mattress), twin size, double size? and did you do mattresses on the floor? a character bed (like thomas, cars, etc)? our son is 2 yr 4 mos and climbing out of crib so we have to transition now. trying to figure out what will keep him wanting to stay in HIS bed instead of our bed (which is where he is trying to sleep now every night!).

[diaperdad]

My son went right to a twin with the mattress and box spring on the floor. His bed also has a safety rail.

Make a big deal out of his new bed and how exciting it is to sleep in it. I left the crib up and gave him the option of going back to the crib if he wanted (he never did).

My son never slept in the same bed as his mother or me, even when he was a newborn. It is not something he ever did and was never something he wanted to do much. A couple of times we would wake up and come to my bed. I walked him back to his room, tucked him, and then laid on the floor until he fell asleep.

[Newmom!]

My son is very attached to the familiar, so we removed the drop side from his crib and put up a safety rail (at 26 mo old). The first day we did this his first sleep was his nap, and he was so tired that he instantly fell asleep, kind of set a good precident for staying in his bed. (we also talked about staying in it). We do have days that he gets out, but we just march him right back into his bed and remind him he needs to stay in there. Recently (at 28 mo) I have started to tell him that he doesn't have to go to sleep, but he does need to stay in bed. I let him have a couple of small toys and a few books in bed with him. Most nights this works, he plays for a bit then eventually falls asleep.

When his brother is born we are going to move him into a twin bed, which will probably be his bed until he moves out.

Letting your child know the expectations, and then being consistent in enforcing them (especially if you can do it in a positive way) is probably the best way to teach him to stay in bed.

FYI - we do have a baby gate at the top of the stairs at night, just to prevent any wrong turn accidents in the dark. What is nice about this is it limits his movement around the house - although he can still make it to our bedroom if he needs to. Consider a baby gate in his doorway, or in the hallway if you are worried about stairs, or being able to get out the front door on his own, etc.

[maryjamison]

On this matter, I think it's up to you on how to chose the right bed size. In that way, you would be able to really make things work out well by knowing what's best for your child. For sure, you would be able to make things work out and really push this up and go thru on what you and your kids want.
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kids bedding

[MadisonDavey]

Character beds are a great idea. A race car would go down well