Toddler beds

Susan - posted on 07/01/2010

Hi I'm wondering how you got on!!! Have boy/girl twins at 21 months and have been really struggling with this. They went into cot beds a month ago and every night is crazy trying to get them into bed and STAY!!!!!!!!!! During the night they both end up coming through!! Hopefully your's werent as hard as this!x

Lori - posted on 06/18/2010

The first couple of days they did run around. I let them run around for about 10-20 minutes and would go in the room and put them back in the bed. My nanny would stay in there with them until they settled down but that didn't work for me. If they saw me laying on their floor they would get out of bed to try and be with me. They still play sometimes but I just give them a couple of minutes to play with each other. Then I go in there and silently put them back in the bed.

Tiffany - posted on 06/17/2010

Lori, how was it the first week after you switched your twins to the beds? Did they stay up later playing and running around? I'm glad to hear it's going well for you.

Lori - posted on 06/15/2010

I switched both of them a couple o months ago and they are doing great!!!

Christin - posted on 06/15/2010

My twin boys are 22 months and still in their cribs. They love to climb anything but they have not yet tried to climb out of their cribs, so we are holding out as long as we can before transitioning to toddler beds. And they always want what the other has, so when we do make the change we will do it for both at the same time. Good luck to all!

Lori - posted on 04/18/2010

Has anyone switched one twin at a time into toddler beds? One has climbed out and I think the other may not attempt for some time.

Cass - posted on 03/31/2010

If they are not climbing over the rail of the cribs, I would leave them as long as it is safe. Mine were about 18 mths old when B started throwing his leg over the top of the rail and dropping to the floor. I was afraid he would get hung-up. He would do this in shopping carts also! So, we went to toddler beds with rails. Then a twin bed with rails. I could not keep them in their own beds. It was easier to let them sleep together. By the time they were 4, they were sleeping in their own twin beds most of the time. They are 8 now and have their own rooms. You have to do what is best for your 2.

Ignacia - posted on 03/30/2010

I have 20 Mo old boy/girl twins and about one month ago My girl twin would start crying and taking hours to fall asleep in her crib so I put her in my older daughtes bed which is a full and within five min she was asleep! Look for the signs maybe crawling out their cribs which mine did crying for longer than usual at their normal bedtime.
Mine pretty much told me they were ready by climbing out of their cribs and going into their older sisters bed or mine. surprisingly they did not try and get out. they fell asleep very quickly and it was like why didnt I do this earlier instead of litening to the crying and telling them to stay in their cribs. give it a try they might surprise you. Good Luck!!

Katie - posted on 03/16/2010

i have 15mth old twins they r hapi with cots so will wait but as for answer to your question my 21mth old first girl was put in a bed at that age coz she stoped liking the cot and would hurt herself on it. I put her in a bed and i wanted to get a ged bar for safety but i cudnt afford 1 and just put a mattress beside her bed and she never fell out and slept fine & never got out! so just go for it girl try a night light so they can see and arent scared & if they try to get out or if they wont stay in try a sleeping bag they often like them at that age.. hope that helps!

Christine - posted on 03/15/2010

I put my boys in toddler beds at 23 months.. one was close to climbing out and I was due with #3 in 3 months so thought I'd do it now and so they are transitioned by the time she comes. It has been off and on crazy.. Sometimes they go to sleep sometimes they are just hyper and run out make eye contact with me and run back to their room and sometimes they just play in their room awhile and then go to sleep after awhile. At first I tried Supernanny technique where you don't talk to them and just keep putting them back in the crib but they thought it was fun and a game. I had to start using angry/serious voice and telling them they need to go to bed now when they play around like that.. I thought it was obvious that they are testing me since they were running out of their room and seeking me out.. they knew I wanted them in their beds but still would make it known they weren't in their beds.

I really really think that how successful you are depends on how you handle it. (If you let them do whatever, if you make it into a game, if you discipline them, if they know you are serious, if you have a routine, if you are consistent etc etc etc etc).

It's been about a month and I wanted to give them at least a week to get used to the freedom and get it out of their systems before "cracking down" but now that a month has passed I think I am going to start discipling them when they get out.. I think it is the best thing for them and for me. Before they had a physical barrier and it kept them in their beds and they would always go to sleep at nap and bed time and now they need a mental barrier. Even if they wanted to go to sleep the freedom is jut too fun! So I think it will ultimately be better for them. Plus it will help us with a schedule.. I love having them on a schedule and schedules are good for kids but when they play around for an hour or two before napping it really makes things unpredictable. I had my husband take over last night.. he disciplined one once (he doesn't make empty threats so they know he is serious when he says he will discipline them if they get out of their bed) and then they both stayed in bed so it seemed to have worked last night!

Just some thoughts to think about. (Letting them get it out of their systems OR just make it never okay from the get go.. making sure they know it's not "play time").

I do think it would be easiest if they could decide they want a "big bed" and they might be more into it.. but if they are climbing out or getting potty trained you kinda have to transition them. I thought for sure they would disturb each other but they don't. I'm sure everyone's experiences are different!

Michelle - posted on 02/24/2010

My boys went into full size single beds and into the same room at 21 months. It went very smoothly surprisingly. Only once has one of them walked out of the room at night and never during the day. In 2 months since the transition I've had 1 week where I've slept them separately during the day as after 40mins they were still chatting and mucking around in the room. Being apart that long seemed to encourage them to settle down quickly again. It looks like I've been very lucky in this transition. Let's hope toilet training goes as well!!!

Laree - posted on 02/24/2010

Hi Holly,I have 26 year old twins and my grand daughter and grandson are into Toddler beds.My boys went into twin beds at about a year and a half,no its not real easy but has anything been?lol Be prepared to have one in the bed with the other in the mornings for awhile.I did put one of their gates up at night in their bedroom door,so as to not have a wondering baby at night.It really didn't take too long for them to get the idea and boy was it nice not to lean over into that cib to pick them up,still have back problems from that.I say go for it,sit in between both beds on the floor get their blankies and whatever they take to be get them settled then read a story,let them get cozy in the new beds before you slip out.If you think it will help do the whole big boy or big girl bed talk for a week or so and let them see you take down the beds and store them away,a special set of sheets they pick is always a good touch too.Good luck,it will be fine.Let me know how it goes,Laree

Mercedes - posted on 02/23/2010

fantasmasheet - that is the most hilarious thing i have ever seen. My girls are 20 months and potty trainng so a zipper would not hold them in a sheet! The are proficient dressers andywho we are still in cribs. The girls posses the skills toclimb out but have not yet atempted to do so. They do try and climb in sometimes. Kids are monkeys. I have several twins moms who transitioned to beds around 2 - some easy so hard. I think it just depends on the way the parents handle it : ) Best of luck.

MARTINA - posted on 02/12/2010

Our 20 month old twin boys sleep in beds-cribs 140x70cm. Since they were one year old they both started to climb out of them. So, I sew some kind of fantasma sheets (they are very expensive, so I made them by myself - I used usual metress-sheet and upper part of pyamma). That works for them. They are coverd all night long, sheets makes them more come and most important, they can't fall out of the bed. More about fantasma sheets: http://www.thefantasmasheet.com/how_to_u...

Liz - posted on 02/05/2010

My twins will be 20 months old on Feb 8th and as of right now they are still in their cribs. But my friend who has twins two days younger than mine have hers already in toddler beds. She said it was a very hard transition, especally for her son, she is still having problems with him, but her daughter took it like a champ.

Heather - posted on 02/04/2010

I think crib tents are these mesh covers that go over the top of the crib. They are to help keep kids in and pets out.

Carla - posted on 01/29/2010

My twins are 17 month old and I haven't even touch about it since one of them is very calm and the other not so I am afraid one will mess with the other and none will stay in bed.

Casey - posted on 01/27/2010

What are crib tents??

Nancy - posted on 01/27/2010

I have 14 month old twins and one is a climber so I am thinking about crib tents...The book Twin Set, is a great book that is about how to cope with twins and they wrote it from polling parents or twins and also doctors who are twin parents and nutritionists...a high number of the parents said that they wished they had waited longer to transition to toddler beds with their twins and also a lot said had they had it to do again they would have used crib tents to give their twins some time to mature before switching...so I am considering crib tents...I am just afriad they won't like them and won't sleep as well...but I think toddler beds would be worse for us right now! Good luck with your transition!

Casey - posted on 01/22/2010

My 22 month old boys are just starting to try and climb out of their cots, so I think we'll be putting them in toddler beds in the next couple of months! Maybe for their 2nd birthdays we will get them beds. I agree though, it's going to be tricky getting them to stay there!