Bed or cot for 20 month old?

[Stubbed56]

My son will be 20 months when the next baby arrives. I don't know whether to buy another cot or if I can just put him in a bed (we have a normal single bed). Does anyone have experience of trying it, and with any success?

I put my ds on a single mattress on the floor iin January aged 17 months. He was just simply too big for his cot! At first, he was fine, then after 2 weeks he clicked he was 'free'. So we took the side off the cot and put this at the base of his mattress on the floor, and put the cot up against the side of the bed along with his changing table. The head and other side against the wall. He was then trapped back in but in a single bed. After 2 weeks, we took the cot away and bought him a proper bed frame with a high foot end and a mesh side.
The first couple of nights he was fine, then again he worked out how to get out. I shoved a broom under his door handle (I know it sounds really bad!) but he got up, tried the handle and went back to bed! He has a tub chair next to his bed so I can read to him, which he climbs on to get back into bed. We have no problems now and he loves his bed. He was 19 months yesterday :)
We wish we'd bought the frame from the start!

Both my kids went into singles at 14 months - DD no bed guard DS with - i have always seen cots are for babies and past 1 just not necessary but thats me :) not judging at all my DD had a dummy till age 3 DS barely and never since 3 months all kids are different

Not much use really

Most toddler beds r from 18 months if u want to put him in a normal bed get a guard rail to put on the side. Just put my 22 month old in a toddler bed and he loves it just goes straight to sleep so fingers crossed for u x

Normal bed at 16months. He was fine.

Good rule of thumb, get them into a bed before they start trying to climb out.

Dd has been on the toddler bed setting of her adjustable cot from 10 mo, no bed guard up as its less than a foot of the ground, she has yet to fall or climb out.

Ds1 was in a normal single bed from 11 months when he climbed out of his cot and fell and chipped his front tooth.

DS went into his 'big boy bedroom' at 20 months, DC2 is due in 13 days and I wanted him in the new room well before the baby came so he wouldn't think he was being moved because of the baby.
His bed is as low to the ground (grandparents treated him to a car bed) as a toddler bed, and he has been brilliant. The first couple of nights were a bit unsettled - I think he was unsure where he was when he woke in the night. And occasionally we can hear on the monitor that he's out of bed looking at something at 4am. But, he takes himself back to his bed when he feels tired after a few minutes play.
He loves his new room and bed and I have no regrets whatsoever about moving him on.

I'd start with the mattress on the floor, but definitely wouldn't buy another cot for a 20m old.

My 18mo has been in a single bed for the past month or so and doing fine.

Ill go against the grain and say keep him in a cot for as long as possible. The baby will probably be in a carrycot/crib/Moses basket for a while anyway.

My twins are three and still in cots.

Do you think it may be worth buying a cot bed, use your cot for the baby, cot bed, converting to toddler bed for your 20 month old?
I wish I'd bought a cot bed, but I didn't know my little man would be so tall, but we've had little problems with a single, so it's really up to you if you think he's ready.

I have a convertible crib, and dd who's 23 months, still sleeps in the cot version.

I agreed with you, HDEE, on a personal view. I keep my dc in cots for as long as possible. ds1 was in a cot until he was 3.

If you want to put him in a bed, you can do as it's safe with a bed guard :)

My twins were in their converted to bed cot beds from about 18 months due to climbing! You just have to keep taking them back if they get up, only one of mine was bad for getting up so you might be lucky. I certainly wouldn't be buying another cot if I was you.

Thanks for all the advice

I have got the same gap as you will have and had the same quandary. In the end I left Ds1 in his cot and had Ds2 in a Moses basket in our room. I bought an Arms Reach co-sleeper thing that attaches to our bed that ds2 is now in (aged 15 weeks).

I felt the same about ds1 feeling any change was because of ds2 coming along. However we went away in January. Ds1 was in a cot and Ds2 in his basket but we realised we're going away a few times this year to people's houses and to a couple of haven sites and realised we would need 2 travel cots and that takes up lots of room when we would have beds Ds1 could sleep in.

When we got home as we had broken the routine dp took the side off the cotbed on a bit of an ill thought out whim. Ds1 climbed in, went to sleep and it was a total non-event. After a couple of days he realised he could get out but we put a gate on his door and he's fine.

I went in once on the first night and he was asleep in the floor but I think he must of slid out rather than fallen as he didn't wake up and I was checking every 2 mins and didn't hear him. He hasn't fallen out since. He's slept in proper beds since and not needed a guard (touch wood).

It's actually quite nice to be able to kiss him good night, tuck him in and read a story in bed (and I was firmly in the cot as long as possible camp).

Ok - backinaminute - maybe that's an idea. To get something attached to our bed for the little one. That might be best since ds1 was feeding at night til he was 8 months....