As a first time mom, there are so many questions about when it is appropriate to do certain things. Currently I am facing the challenge of moving my daughter from her crib into a bed. I have read many contradictory views on when it is best to make this transition; anywhere from 18 months to 3 years! So, now it becomes a question of what are my needs as a parent, and is she still safe in her crib? My daughter is very tall for her age, so even though she is only 20 months she can put her little foot all the way up on the top of the crib rail. She is also a problem solver, so I am having waking nightmares (otherwise known as irrationally rational parental anxiety) about her stacking up her stuffed toys and blankets and rocketing herself right over the edge of her crib to land catastrophically on her noggin'. I will also be having surgery in a matter of months and will be unable to lift her in and out of her crib for 6 weeks during my recovery period. So. It's time, regardless of what the latest pop psychologists might be saying about leaving babies in their cribs until they are three.
That being said, any insights or comments on your own experiences with the transition from crib to bed would be greatly appreciated! I am going to need all the help I can get!
That being said, any insights or comments on your own experiences with the transition from crib to bed would be greatly appreciated! I am going to need all the help I can get!
It's dependent on a few things. One is her height. When she's 35 inches tall, it's time to take her out. At that height, she can fall out of the crib and hurt herself. A friend of a friend's kid ended up with a broken collarbone that way. I took my almost 20 month old out of his crib and converted it to a toddler bed a couple of months ago. Aside from some naptime interruptions and having to put him in his room with the door closed, it's going all right.
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
Thanks for the advice. Looks like it's time to get rid of the crib! I was thinking of putting up a friction baby gate on the outside door jamb to keep the little girl from running around and falling up and down the stairs in the middle of the night. She is already tall enough to open her bedroom door, so I am going to have to do something!
ReplyDeleteI was just catching up on your blog & figured I would drop you a note on this one. We transitioned both of our girls to regular-sized beds at 2 years. Both slept as well if not better in their "big girl" (or "good girl" as Ann called it) beds than they did in their cribs. We actually had no problems with them getting out of bed at night, but we did install a gate at the top of the stairs just in case. Good luck with your transition...hope it goes as smoothly as ours went!
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