Help! Advice on how to move my 2 year old todder from a cot into a bed

[whizzymummy]

Hi
Am looking for advice on moving our nearly 2 year old DS to a bed from his cot. I am 7 months pregnant and we feel like we want to move him to a bed before we actually need the cot for the next one. It's not desperate yet as we have a small crib to start off with the new baby, but DS was born so big he only lasted a month in that, so we may not have much time!
Anyway, DS already has a bed in his room and the cot as well (it's not a cot bed). He had lots of fun when we set the bed up properly with a guard rail a couple of months ago and he has lots of his teddies in it. We read him his bed time stories every night in his bed (he jumps in and tucks himself under the covers!) but when it actually comes to going to sleep he asks to be put in his cot. This weekend we tried going and buying some fun duvet covers with cars on and making a big deal of it being in his bed ... come actually trying to get him to sleep there he really freaked and eventually we relented and put him in his cot.
My DH and I disagree a bit on this, I think perhaps DS is just not ready and he is such a good sleeper (also never tries to climb out of his cot), always 12 hours, that I don't want to harm that (especially being so tired and pregnant!) or cause negative associations with sleep. DH thinks we should just get on with it and make the move to a bed how. I know we need to move him to the bed soon if we want to use the cot again for his brother or sister but I also know if I wasn't pregant again we'd just be leaving it until he was a little older as I feel he's not ready - he has afterall spent 2 years in the same cot and when he moves into his bed he'll still see the cot there. Anyone got any tips!? Or perhaps know any good books I could read him about it?

[gagarin]

If he can see the cot then I would suggest you need to dismantle it and put it away out of sight if you want him to cope in a bed. It's too cruel otherwise.

Are you going to have the baby in your room until a year? If so you prob can't just move it without hiding it for a while (3 months plus) otherwise he'll think he's moving in with you!

A better option is prob to buy/borrow a cheap cot and put it in your room for the baby.

Your dh seems a little tough in his outlook - it's the price of a cheapo cot after all as opposed to possibly endless disturbed nights. You could innocently explain to dh that he'll be the one getting up to ds as you'll have other things to deal with.

If you do go for the bed option decide in advance whther you're going for a shut or open bedroom door - yours and his, (safety worries over wandering 2 yearolds...)and if open put a stair gate on the door while he's still in the cot so when he goes into the bed he is used to it.

[whizzymummy]

Thanks Gagarin,

Yes we are going to have a crib/cot in our room to start with so there's no real urgency until we want the new baby to share a room with DS which could be a while away.

I am inclined to agree with you and buy or borrow a second cot for now but perhaps it's just because I know I'll be lumped with any sleep problems if they occur by forcing DS out of his cot now. Perhaps you're right and I suggest if we go "cold turkey" right now that DH has to be home at 7pm every night to deal with any problems never mind once we have a new born to deal with too!

In any case I think him seeing his cot just makes him want to be in it.

I was assuming a shut door would be okay for now but I suppose I don't know whether that will work yet do I!

[mybestfriendiscalledstig]

To recount a similar-ish situation. Dd was due when ds was 2.1. He was historically a rubbish sleeper, but had suddenly sorted himself out. He wasn't climbing out of the cot, or looking too big for it.
We invested in an Ikea cot for dd - think it was £50 all in. I soldfor £20 it at a NNS once ds moved to his big bed (at about 2.8 I think)
So - overall outlay - £30. Totally worth it.

As a horror story for you... my mate, who had the same age gap, moved her excellent sleeper into a big bed to make way for her new arrival - excellent sleeper turned into a nightmare.

It ain't broke. Don't fix it

[whizzymummy]

Thanks - I think that's helped me make up my mind about what we'll do (just a matter of letting my husband know! ), which is letting things be for now.