Transitioning My Toddler From A Crib To A Toddler Bed

“When is the right time to transition your toddler from a crib to a toddler bed?”

Is it when they are 18 months? Or 2 years old? Or 3 years old?

During my absence, while I was in my first trimester, two major milestones happened with my daughter.

The first milestone was that her language development had grown exponentially and she was talking up a storm as many of you know in my previous blog post where I provided tips on how to get your toddler talking.

The other major milestone that happened was that we transitioned her from her crib to a toddler bed when she turned 2 years old.

Which has been interesting, to say the least.

My daughter started off co-sleeping in our room when she was a newborn and then we transitioned her from co-sleeping to her crib when she was about 5-6 months old.

Now we have made the full transition from her crib to a toddler bed.

She has been fully transitioned for a few months now and it has been great because she stays in her bed the entire night (most nights) and doesn’t get up wandering around at night.

Because we have had success with this transition, I always want to share what has worked for us in hopes that it will work for the next momma who struggling with this transition.

Here is how we transitioned my toddler from a crib to a toddler bed.

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Signs Your Child Is Ready For A Toddler Bed

Before we get into some tips, we have to got to discuss the signs of whether or not your child is even ready for a toddler bed. Because there is such a thing as moving them too soon.

They Are Crawling/Climbing Out Of The Crib

This is by far the number one sign that your toddler is ready for a toddler bed.

The crib has become a safety issue at this point because that child could potentially hurt themselves trying to escape their crib.

I know for us, my daughter hadn’t quite figured out how to escape her crib just yet before we made the transition, but she was starting to test the limits.

Even with the mattress being on the lowest setting, she had started swinging one of her long legs over the top rail which to me was already a sign that she was going to get both legs over the side eventually.

This was the sign for us that we knew that she might be ready.

They Are Physically Too Big For The Crib

This is a great point that Cara Dumaplin mentions in her post on The Every Mom.

When their size in the crib starts to interfere with their sleep, it is probably time to make the switch. And according to Cara, this will likely be around 3 years of age or about 35 pounds.

Some toddlers are not daredevils and don’t really show any interest in trying to get out of the crib which is what prompts most parents to transition to a toddler bed.

But they eventually have to make that transition and sometimes that transition is because they have literally outgrown the crib.

They Are Asking For A “Big Kid” Bed

This was something I did not think about but another great point that was mentioned by Nina from Sleeping Should Be Easy.

What if your child is actually asking for a big kid bed?

This sign is clear as a day to me.

If you have a little one who is actually telling you that they want a big kid bed, then why not consider it?

If they want to give it a try, I say make it happen.

After considering all the signs on whether or not your toddler is ready for a big kid and they are showing that they are ready, then it is time to make the transition.

Let’s get into how to transition your toddler from a crib to a toddler bed.

Transition Your Toddler From A Crib To A Toddler Bed

Make The Transition Before New Baby Arrives If Pregnant

As many of you now know, I’m currently pregnant with our second baby girl and when she gets here, she will need somewhere to sleep as well.

She will be getting her big sister’s crib and her big sister will be getting a toddler bed.

This is what prompted us to start getting her ready for a toddler bed because we knew that she will no longer be sleeping there when the baby arrives.

Dr. Harvey Karp from Happiest Baby recommends moving your toddler out of the crib a few months before the new baby arrives (assuming your first child is old enough to be out of the crib).

We started this transition very early on in my pregnancy in order to get her used to being able to get in and out of the bed by herself before her little sister got here.

Let Them Help With Choosing The Bed/Converting The Bed

This is a big deal and something that they should be a part of so let them help with choosing the bed that they will get to sleep in.

This can look like them choosing a completely new bed and bedding which is what we will be doing once our second baby arrives.

But for the time being, we have this Fisher-Price 4-in-1 Convertible Crib that we converted into a toddler bed for our daughter and will be converting back to a crib once our baby girl needs it.

We let her be a part of the process by watching us take the front part down and adding the guardrail to it.

We also acted excited and tried to get her excited about being able to get in and out of her bed like a big girl.

Once she hopped in her bed for the first time, we took pictures of her in it to get her even more excited and we praised her for becoming a big girl.

We wanted her to be comfortable and happy about this transition so we tried to involve her as much as we could.

Childproof The Room

With your toddler being free to roam about their room since the crib will no longer confine them, this is the time to make sure that their room is safe.

We had childproofed our home when my daughter turned 18 months because she was already getting into cabinets and we also have stairs that we didn’t want her wandering up and down without supervision.

As she has gotten older and now at almost 2 and a half years old, she is getting around a lot better and has a better understanding of what she can and cannot do so we don’t worry as much now.

I know many parents who have utilized gates to keep their children in their room so they cannot leave the room and wander around at night which is a great tip.

We don’t do this, because our room is very close to our daughter’s, so she walks straight into our room when she wakes up, but we do make sure to lock the gate on the stairs so that we don’t have any of those kinds of accidents at night.

It is really about knowing your child and their behavior patterns.

Start With Naptime

We did this with my daughter as well when we were trying to move her from co-sleeping to her crib.

The number one thing you are going to deal with during this process is trying to keep your child in bed and it’s better to start doing this during the day than in the middle of the night when you are exhausted.

Start with putting them in their new bed during naptime and be consistent with them about staying in the bed.

And yes, you will be walking them back to the bed.

A lot.

It is a commitment that you have to make when doing this.

Stephanie Brown from Verywell Family even recommends if possible to have the crib and bed in the room at the same time using the bed for naps and the crib at night.

As they get the hang of the naps, start implementing this at bedtime as well.

Stick To A Familiar Bedtime Routine

This is not the time to change up the bedtime routine that has been working.

If your toddler has a bedtime routine that they are familiar with then keep it going.

With an unfamiliar bed, they need something to feel familiar and if that is reading books before bed or snuggling with their favorite toy, then so be it.

Take It One Step At A Time

And my last tip is to just take it one step at a time which I got from Dr. Leah Alexander from Mom Loves Best.

She said that if you’re trying to transition to a bed, maybe potty training isn’t a great thing to start at the same time.

Which is exactly the mistake we made.

We are currently in the process of trying to potty train our toddler and it has been going so much better now that we are focusing on potty training instead of potty training and trying to get her to sleep in her own bed.

Trying to hit so many milestones at once can be overwhelming and we have to remember that when it comes to our little ones.

With patience and commitment, things will start to look up and our little ones will get it.

Your Turn

Alright, everyone that is what I did to help my toddler transition from her crib to a toddler bed. So now I want to hear from you all. How did you transition your toddler from their crib to a toddler bed? If you have any more tips, leave them in the comments for our fellow mommas. And while you are still here, check out my previous post below. Until next time!

• Read More: What To Put On Your Baby Registry As A Second Time Mom

Love,

Just Jass