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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

When did you move your DC out of a cot and why?

27 replies

JollyHockeyStick · 12/08/2012 10:23

DS is15 months. He sleeps happily in his cot, but we're vaguely wondering when we should be planning a move to a bed. Clearly he can't sleep in a cot forever!

What prompted you to move your DC into a bed?

And how on earth would we go about it... Do they just get up again once they have freedom? Do they fall out? The sides don't come off our cot, so we can't do it gradually iyswim.

Any advice/experiences would be useful, thank you!

OP posts:

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mumnosGOLDisbest · 12/08/2012 10:28

not sure on the age but dd and ds had a cot bed. when thwy started clumbing out we took the cot parts off and put pillows on the floor untill we were sure they wouldnt fall out

brightonbleach · 12/08/2012 10:39

2 and a half in this house! none of my friends are doing it before this age either, too risky!! at least at past 2 they understand not to run amok once in bed (sort of )

newtonupontheheath · 12/08/2012 11:34

We moved our ds out of a cot (not cotbed, just a cot) at 13months. He's pretty tall/long and dh was worried he'd be uncomfortable (pfb ) We had bought a toddler bed in the sale so took the plunge...

We sat in his bedroom with him whilst he went to sleep (still do) so no issues getting out of bed. When he woke up, he sat on his bed and shouted us. So lucky I that there was no running around but not so much in the numerous wakings!! He loves his bed, and as its a toddler bed its so close to the floor, he's no problems getting himself in/out.

Now ds is 22 months and friends are thinking of removing sides from cots etc, we're a little smug although we've had plenty of other issues that have taken up our time!!

Sirzy · 12/08/2012 11:36

Ds was about 20 months. We were on holiday and he refused to sleep in the travel cot (who can blame him!) so ended up in a bed for the week. It seemed counterproductive to then go back to a cot at home

zenam · 12/08/2012 14:10

I think my ds was 2 1/2, she never climbed out and i changed her cot into a cotbed when lifting her started to hurt my back! I put a stairgate on her door though cos I didnt want her running round upstairs rather than settling into bed.

NoComet · 12/08/2012 14:32

Shortly before she was 3, father Christmas brought a half hight bunk with a slide.

Yes I know she was full little, but she climbed before she could walk. She'd had her cot side strapped down and a step to climb out for over a year.

At 14 she lives in a full hight bunk that almost touches the ceiling. Meanwhile DD2 can fall out of a double bed

Why, because her sister was due.

fivegomadindorset · 12/08/2012 14:34

DD was 2.5 and DS just under 2. They were both climbing out of the cot. DD would get a book and climb back in, DS managed to get out whilst in a grobag.

RubyrooUK · 12/08/2012 14:43

10 months-ish. With mesh side rails that he still has at nearly two years old to prevent him falling out in his sleep. It's a normal single bed (not a toddler bed).

Why? He would never sleep in a cot. Never. The only time he would go in a cot was in the daytime when he thought it was hilarious to climb out. He could climb the cot before he could walk.

He slept in our bed until 10 months when he had hogged the space unbearably and kicked both DH and I out onto the floor on several occasions. He still wakes up most nights now so one of us just gets in his bed with him (and at least his siderails mean we don't get kicked out of that bed).

He rarely gets out of bed, mainly just shouts for us if he wakes up. He really loves his bed. He just never got what the cot was about, but always loved his bed.

PestoSandalissimos · 12/08/2012 15:00

We moved dd1 into her first bed when she was approaching 2 years old.

We didn't have a choice as the arrival of dd2 was imminent

PestoSandalissimos · 12/08/2012 15:00

so we needed the cot back!

Original poster

JollyHockeyStick · 12/08/2012 15:03

Thank you for all your experiences.

My instinct is to leave DS in the cot either until he learns to climb out (in a grobag) or until he is too big for it. We're hoping to try for dc2 at some point this year so we'd like to not have to buy another cot... I think this may end up being the deciding factor actually!

DS loves his cot and sleeps like a dream so I'm a bit reluctant to prematurely make Amy changes!

OP posts:

tara0202 · 12/08/2012 15:06

My dd was nearly 2. Heard a crash one night -she'd climbed (whilst in gro bag!) And fell out and bumped head.

It was a cot bed so we took sides off. We somehow broke the bloody thing and just bought a single bed!

She's always been fine in it but we do have a stair gate over her door as it doesn't fit stairs and they're right outside her door and v steep.

thepowerofvoodoo · 12/08/2012 15:10

ds was 18 months. he'd been sleeping at nursery on mini camp bed things for a few months and so we just went for it. when he was out of the cot, i just put a stair gate on his door, so if he wanted to get out of bed that was fine as he wouldn't be able to fall down the stairs. sadly (it was quite nice that he was enclosed!) the stair gate had to go at 2.5 when he started going to the toilet at night.

Knittingshouldbeanolympicsport · 12/08/2012 15:15

Moved ds when dd was about 6 months old as I'd had enough of being an all night buffet. He would have been 2y2m.
Moved dd at 23m as she was potty trained day & night stealth boast and needed to be able get up for a wee!!

CailinDana · 12/08/2012 15:21

This is something I'm thinking about at the moment actually. DS is 19 months and DC2 will arrive in February. He has never tried to climb out of the cot, has never occurred to him, but he loves beds and loves pretending to go to sleep in the spare bed so we're thinking of moving him in the next few months, to get him settled before DC2 arrives. Plus I'm finding it hard already to get him and out of the cot so a bed would be much easier. It seems like a big step and I'm being a totally mushy mammy about it though :(

vodkaanddietirnbru · 12/08/2012 16:01

dd was just about 2yrs and wasnt happy in the vot any more. DS was 2½years and was getting too big for the cot (wasnt a cot bed, just a cot)

vodkaanddietirnbru · 12/08/2012 16:02

cot, not vot!

dietcokeandwine · 12/08/2012 18:52

3 for DS1 and will be 3 for DS2 - cotbed for both, so plenty of room. I think (unless they are climbing out, in which case you really have no option) that it can help to leave the cot-bed transition till later, simply because their understanding is that much better and you are less likely to have problems. I know of soooo many people who had issues with bedtime/night waking/early morning waking due to moving their DC to a bed too early....whereas those leaving it till 2.5/3 years seemed to have a pretty easy transition.

I am currently pg with no 3 and will move DS2 into a bed well before this baby is born, but it will still be no earlier than his 3rd birthday (he's 3 in October). Had I managed to fall pregnant earlier and have a 2 year age gap I would have bought another cotbed for the baby rather than move DS2 to a bed any earlier.

BikeRaceRunningRaceNoSkiing · 12/08/2012 18:53

19 months, because he was climbing out.

Kiwiinkits · 12/08/2012 23:48

17 months, as we needed the cot for the new baby. It went without incident.

CointreauVersial · 12/08/2012 23:53

DS moved into a bed at about 19 months, because his little sister needed the cot.

DD1 moved out a little earlier, because she was a nimble toddler and started climbing in and out (without incident, but it seemed daft to keep her in it).

She later taught DD2 how to climb out.

thunksheadontable · 13/08/2012 00:04

Still in one at 2yrs 8mths. Cot bed, he is happy there and we have just had new baby so no rush for more change.

olibeansmummy · 14/08/2012 19:26

Ds was 15 months actually. He was very wriggly and kept banging his arms and legs on the side so we turned it into a toddler bed and all was well :)

MaliKat · 14/08/2012 19:41

2 years. We gave him a bedroom as his birthday present. Straight into a single bed. He didn't fit in the cot any more. If he lay down with his feet at one end then there was just enough space for a baby pillow. He also kept banging himself on the sides of the cot. Plus which I wanted him out and in a bed before the baby arrived so he didn't think she was taking his bed.

He is just learning to stay in his room at bed time. It's taken a while (9 months!) and a few night time rampages, but I hope we're there now.

Fuzzymum1 · 14/08/2012 20:04

I left it as long as I could as I liked the fact they were safely enclosed especially as we lived on a narrowboat when DS1 was little. I guess it was about 2.5yo for him (it was a long time ago now as he's 18) DS2 was almost three - he hated change so I left him there until he got too big - we later discovered he has asperger's. DS3 was 2.5yo - he had been in a cot in our room until then as we didn't have anywhere else to put him - two bedroom house and three children. When DS1 was 15 he moved out into the caravan and we split the bigger room in two for DS2 who was 11 and DS3. He had to move straight into a bed as his bed was the bottom bunk and the room wasn't really big enough for the cot as well. He would happily have stayed in his cot as he loved it :D

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