When is too early for a twin bed for a toddler?

[Tenacious_D]

Since we are in the process of prepping for boy number 2, we decided that we are going to slowly try and transition little E to a twin bed vs. a toddler bed. I have a hard time thinking of buying a bed that my tall boy will likely outgrow and the fact that we won't be able to use it again in X number of years. First off, is 20-22 months too young for a toddler to try a twin w/ rails? We are also thinking of getting a bed with drawers underneath since we are clearly stuck in this 2 bedroom apartment until someone decides that we can afford to buy a home...that could be a long time! E can easily climb up on the couch, coffee table, tv stand etc. so I am not too worried about him getting into bed but am hoping this doesn't completely throw off his sleeping at night.

Just looking for some BTDT advice from fellow parents! Thanks

[migirl]

We put DS#1 in a full-size bed (that's all we had, and I wasn't about to go out and buy a toddler bed that he was just going to outgrow!) when he was ... 28 months, maybe? We pushed the bed up against the wall and put a rail up on the other side, and he did fine. He always stayed in bed when he was supposed to and it never threw off his sleeping. I have friends, though, whose kids were constantly getting up out of bed because they could. I don't think E is too young, but just be prepared for some adjustment!

Oh, and his bed is waaaaay up off the ground (rails, box spring, everything) so we got him a two-step stepstool (from Target, I think) that he uses to climb easily in/out of bed. It works perfectly for us.

[SuzySunshine]

When is too early for a twin bed for a toddler?

A sleeps in a toddler bed but has slept on twin and full size beds when visiting family without issue.

[Meenah]

Oliver will be 2 on June 18th, and he moved into a bed this week after climbing / nose diving out of his crib.

[Tenacious_D]

Phew!! What a relief. Thank you wise ones. There were some folks around here who thought that was way too early and I didn't want to believe it was impossible.

[Ladybug]

You can always start with a mattress on the ground too. The biggest challenge is that they can walk to your room. LOL. We had to put a gate up in DD1s room to keep her inside and get some sleep. She was 2 1/2.

[Urowife]

I hope 20 months isn't too early, because my 14-month-old DD sleeps on a full-size mattress on the floor (and has since she was about 6 months old!). This began as a way for me to get some sleep while nighttime parenting. Good luck with the transition!

[GrayMatterWife]

I don't think 20 months is too early. We put DD in a twin bed at 16 months. She sleeps on a twin-sized trundle bed (DS sleeps in the main bed), so we didn't have to worry about rails. The top of her mattress is about a foot off the floor!

[Chrisada]

I was in the same situation. Richard's bed was converted into a toddler bed, but we made it back into a crib and bought him bunk beds when Pierce came. He was 2 1/2 I believe.

[Meenah]

I think it is probably safer to fall out of a bed than to climb / nose dive out of a crib!!! Neither option is ideal.

[HouseofWool]

I think Caleb was around 18 months when he moved into a twin bed. It was pushed up against one wall and had a rail on the other side. He never had a problem with wandering around at night, he always stayed in bed.

[Auspicious]

How mandatory are the rails when moving to a regular bed? Cora is 2 years 7 months and has only slept in a crib, but will be moving to a full/double bed when we move. She can climb on and off of it by herself (and does so many times a day!)

Do they really roll out of bed? Can I just put a rolled-up towel under the fitted sheet near the edge of the bed as a bolster? How about with pillows on the floor? How long do they use the rail and how do you know when they're ready to sleep without it?

Maybe we'll just put the mattress on the floor and stow the box spring and frame in the basement, but I'd prefer to just have the whole bed assembled from the get-go if possible.

[SuzySunshine]

Julie, I think its really hard to tell. A has a toddler bed with the little short sides and I've found her on the floor once in the year she's been in it. Of course it doesn't seem to bother her when she falls out but its also only about six inches off of the floor. She has slept in a regular bed both at my mom's and in a hotel without issue. She has a toddler size air mattress she sleeps on sometimes when we travel and she has also rolled off of that though I think part of that may be because its not fully inflated at times.

If I were doing that, I think I'd just do the mattress / box spring on the floor. She likely wouldn't roll out a lot, but when she did it would be a big fall.

[v-girl]

We put a body pillow next to our oldest's bed when she got her twin bed (3 yrs). She'd fall off and not wake up that way. LOL