The Crib to bed transition

15 Mar The Crib to bed transition

This is a stressful time for lots of parents, myself included! I was dreading that day. Because I had such a great sleeper who was not getting out of his crib ever!

When should I move my little one to a bed?

It is best to wait as long as you can before making the transition from crib to bed! Ideally, your little one would be 3 years old or older. Oftentimes, when we move kids into a bed early, it is too much freedom for their little brains and it causes disruption in their sleep.

But I know for some families, this is not realistic. Some have a baby on the way and want to use the crib or your child has incredible climbing skills and has found his way out of the crib early on.

Before deciding to make the switch, I recommend trying these out first:

1. Having your little one in a SleepSack. This will make it harder to climb out of the crib.
2. If the crib has a taller side, switch the taller side from the wall to the outside.
3. Put pillows and soft things around the crib and look at the monitor. As soon as you see you’re little starting to climb, either say time to lay down in the baby monitor or go in the room and say it.
4. If your little one managed to get out of the crib, put them back in without too many interactions.

If you have tried these and your little one is still climbing out of the crib. It might be time to switch them into a toddler bed. 

Before you do that, here is what I suggest doing:

Have a family meeting!

This is simply a conversation with your little one about the coming changes and the new rules that will be applied. For your little one, going from the crib to a bed, and having access to the entire room, possibly the entire house. Is a lot of freedom. So we need to guide them into this new freedom.

Implement Sleep Rules (talk about it during the family meeting)

These can be very simple:

1. Lay down in bed
2. Be quiet
3. Close your eyes
4. Go to sleep
5. Stay in bed until mom or dad comes to get you

You can make a nice poster that can be hung in their bedroom and design it with them! Kids love seeing themselves, so try to include a few pictures of them!

Make the room safe

Make sure your little one room is childproof. 

Be fair but firm

If your little one is not following the rules, walk them silently back to their bed. You can do this 30 times if you have to. If they have a hard time staying in their room, you can put a baby gate at the door.

If you need extra help during this transition, reach out!