From cot to bed- I need help!!

[clairbear]

My two year old just climbed out of his cot for the first time tonight, and tumbled onto the floor hurting himself and becoming very upset. As I am expecting another baby in March, I was planning on moving him to a bed at some stage but didn't realize it would have to be so soon! to be honest I am terrified! He's been such a fantastic sleeper in his cot, going down without a fuss and sleeping all night! Now I guess thats all about to change! Please, please , please I need some advice regarding a smooth transition to a bed, what's the right type of bed and how the hell do you get them to stay there???? :eek:

[maybe1more]

Hi clairbear, hope you are having a great pregnancy and your morning sickness has ease. Im hoping to put Connor into a bed soon, he also sleeps fantasic in his cot, but i want to put him in a bed as i want to start toliet training too, ive seen in the target pamplet that they have the safely rail on special, to stop them falling out, so im thinking on buying one (even though i havent brought a bed yet) . Ive been told the best time to toliet train is in summer so i think im going to try the toilet training then, As for a bed, now that im no longer excpecting bub number two im not in such a hurry to do it as quick. Im sure it will make it easier for you if Patricks in a big bed before baby arrive then he wont get jelous that the new baby is useing the cot. I too would love so info on this matter. Best of luck Clairbear.

[clairbear]

so sweet of you firstbub to take the time to offer advice when you are going through an awful time yourself! i feel I know you a little bit, having read all your posts and knowing Connor is only a month younger than Patrick.
I feel for you and hope you'll be okay. Small comfort I know, but at least you are not at an age where waiting another year will be really hard in terms of risks etc., even though I know you really wanted to start now. Connor being another year older might be a bit easier too- if I wasn't 37 I would have waited longer. Hope I didn't say the wrong thing :o
Thanks for the advice on target bed rail. I do think getting a basic bed (maybe low to the ground from ikea) is the best idea rather than shelling out heaps for a toddler bed...although I would consider getting a second hand one. Hopefully Connor doesn't learn any climbing tricks too soon! Take care and thanks again

[draught]

We moved DD1 into a bed when she was nearly 2 as we needed the cot for DD2. We bought a bed from Ikea which is low to the ground and has the bonus of drawers underneath for storage - the Brekke (I think). We didn't use a rail - just used to put cushions and her little fold out couch next to the bed each night - and she has only ever fallen out once (and didn't even wake up - we just heard the thump and went in to find her on the floor!). We were very lucky as she loved playing in beds already so she thought that it was great having a bed of her own. She slept in it the first night and never looked at her cot again. We do have a little plastic step next to the bed to help her climb up which she thinks is great - she carries it around the house to climb up to other things!

Some people set up the bed in the room for a few days before getting their little one to sleep in it - or try day time sleeps first. See how your little one reacts to the bed and take it from there.

We kept the same routine of stories before bed but moved the location to reading in the bed then tucked her in and explained that she had to stay in the bed. Initially she would get out of bed and play in the dark but we just firmly put her back in bed and talked to her about staying in bed. Our biggest problem was her getting out of bed and wandering around the house at night once she learnt how to open her door. Again we put her back in bed and talked to her about staying there and it seems to have worked.

Good luck with it all!

[draught]

I forgot to say that another option is a bed with a trundle bed underneath it - that way you can pull out the trundle as a soft landing if they fall, and it also acts as a step for them to climb on - and in a few years time they can use it for sleep overs! Ikea also had an inexpensive version of this which we looked at, but we were short of storage for the toys so the drawers worked for us.

[cwsmum]

My son climbed out of his cot when he was about 18mths old. I was woken at 6:30am by a crash and him screaming, thankfully he was not seriously hurt, just a scrape on his leg from the drawers that were beside his cot...the top of the drawers were level with the cot mattress so I have no idea how he got up high enough to fall out :confused:
Anyway, that day I packed away the cot and set up his bed, which had been stored in the garage since the last time we moved house. We kept his bedtime routine the same and didn't make a fuss about the new bed, other than going out that day and buying a new set of sheets for him. He also watched while I put the sheets onto the bed when we got home...and of course showed his daddy when he came in from work.
His sleeping habits didn't change at all, he continued waking up once thru the night, and still does now. He has rolled off the bed twice, we put a pillow under the mattress to raise it up a bit to try and stop him from rolling too close to the edge of the bed, it seems to be working.
My mum also told me that when my sisters and I learnt how to climb out of the cot they just left the side down on the cot so we could easily get in and out, but there was still a bit of the side above the mattress so it was pretty hard for us to roll out.

[Tisme]

My little girl is a horror going to bed in some ways. She is nearly two and as I am expecting again will have to be moved into a bed. She is a great sleeper and easy to put to bed I guess. I read her two stories, tuck in her dolls in their cradle beside the cot then put her in the cot where she stands up and looks at me with big brown saucer eyes. I waslk out of the room and she cries and creates an absolute mess with her sheets and blankets for exactly five minutes then curls up and goes to sleep. I am dreading that five minutes when she is able to get out of bed. Good luck to you!

[clairbear]

thanks to you all for suggestions and comments! we bought the bed from ikea, and a groovy new transport sheet set, but haven't set it up yet, as Paddy has been fine in the cot for his night sleeps and day naps ever since the night he climbed/fell out! Guess he scared himself so much he won't try it again for a little while! So I'm just putting some padding around the floor in case....and if it happens again we'll have to face the inevitable!! :o

[Terrible2+1cutie]

Hi my boys are only 15 months apart now aged almost 2 and 8 and a half months we had Bailey ( baby number 2) in a porta cot for 2 months due to the boys being in the same room, when we moved the boys had there own bedrooms and so we brought a bed and set it up for Blaze. He was 17 months old when he went into a bed, it took 2 weeks of persistance, we closed the door and let him scream for 10 minutes hoping he would eventually fall asleep, 2 weeks of doing this and he slept in his bed so well, we were so bed, we just have a railing on the side of his bed, one that you slip under his mattress and the weight of the mattress hold it there. Good luck with the rest of your pregnancy.

Catherine

[SMBT]

This is a hard time, but well worth it in the end!
I say just keep being persistent.

My children are 23 months apart. I knew I had to get Bailey into a bed before number two came along, so at 19 months we started the transition.

In the beginning, I started with his day time sleeps. I still had the cot set up in his bedroom and said that `big boys sleep in big beds and babies sleep in cots.' Bailey wanted to be a big boy. We also made him a boat bed with a steering wheel, a sail and a step to climb onto the bed. We painted it dark blue and painted his name and waves on it. This made it more of a novelty. To put him to bed I would stage a trip away.........all aboard, Bailey's boat bed will be leaving in two mins time etc etc. At first I had to stay in bed with him until he fell asleep. This lasted about 2 weeks. If he would not co operate and go to sleep, distracted that I was in bed with him, I told him I would put him in the cot, where babies are supposed to sleep. He didn't want to be put back in the cot and kept saying `big bed big bed.'

Then after the two weeks were up I told him that he had to stay in his big bed by himself. Bailey kept running outside to us constantly, so in the end I bought a child door handle lock from Bunnings, which cost $7 and all I had to do was put it over the door handle and he couldn't open it. He did cry a lot at first, but in the end, realised that he had to go to sleep. We have never looked back since!

Good luck with your transition. Every child is different, but I know that persistence is the key. Just keep saying ` You must have a sleep in your big bed now.' Good night!

Hope this helps, from Melissa. :)

[melzy]

My little girl went from basinette to cot at 7 weeks and from cot to bed when she turned 1yo. When she was in the cot she NEVER stood up at all when she woke. She would just sit there and wait for me to walk in. NEVER even said boo so I didn't know she was awake so I guess I was lucky not to have her climb out.I put the single bed in her room about a month before I put her in it and let her get familiar with it and get her to understand that it was for sleeping only and that she was becoming a "big girl". I then took the cot out and pulled it down and sold it so I had no choice. We had a small barrier around it until she got used to sleeping in the big bed and after 2 months removed it. She fell out of bed once at the beginning and another time several months later. I guess I was lucky. I guess persistance is the key.

[sugar n spice]

hi moved my son into a bed when he was just past 1 yrs old i can't remember the exact age. We bought a racing car bed from a friend because he wanted to get rid of it so we thought we'd keep it and wait till he was ready but he wanted to use it. He took to it really quick. It was low to the ground and had raised areas where the wheels were so it acted as a bumper and he never fell out.

Bride 83 :D