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Original poster

Number 2 on the way - another cot, cotbed or toddler bed?

14 replies

anchovies · 16/01/2006 19:48

Ds is very nearly 2 and we have another due in 5 weeks. Ds is still very happy in his cot (although it is a fairly small one) however we either need to buy him a cotbed so it lasts longer, get him a bed (toddler/fullsize?) or buy the new baby another cot.

Don't know if I can face ds in a bed, cotbeds seem very expensive considering we'll only get a junior bed in the end, yet another cot seems like a waste of money.

What should we do?!

OP posts:
elliott · 16/01/2006 19:50

I had a 2 yr gap and in the end got another cot for ds2 (actually a hand me down very basic ikea model - but I don't think they are expensive to buy). it was definitely worth it. Ds1 eventually moved to a bed just short of 3 -at a time when HE was ready.

nannyjo · 16/01/2006 19:50

i would bite the bullet and try the cot bed.
Will new baby be in a moses/crib for a while?? When DS is settled aftre new baby i would do the big boys bed with him (while baby is still in crib) then give baby the cot

nannyjo · 16/01/2006 19:51

sorry meant bite the bullet and try the big bed!! OOps worst comes to wotrst and if it doesn't work then get a real cheap cot but it'll only get used for a couple of months, but you could then sell it expressing that point

stinkweasel · 16/01/2006 19:53

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Original poster
anchovies · 16/01/2006 19:58

That was my original plan nannyjo but looks like I'm having another big baby and we could only squash ds in his moses basket for 6 weeks so might not get long before we need the cot!

Elliot - do you know if the ikea mattresses are any good? Just had a look and the cot's are a bargain.

Stinkweasel - was it not a nightmare when you were pregnant though?!

OP posts:
stinkweasel · 16/01/2006 20:02

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

SoupDragon · 16/01/2006 20:24

I had a 2yr gap. DS2 was in the Moses basket for, erm, however long before he grew out of it 4 months? and then went into the travel cot for 2 months or so. Then DS1 was evicted from the cot into a full sized single (mid height loft bed) and never had a problem (DS2 went into one at the same age, ie 2 1/2 ). Personally I think "junior beds" are a waste of money.

SoupDragon · 16/01/2006 20:25

DS2 can't have been in his moses basket for that long... must have spent some more time in the travel cot...

elliott · 16/01/2006 20:30

Well, the ikea mattress seemed perfectly adequate. Probably better than a travel cot which would be another solution. Can't see the problem getting another cot myself apart from the expense, which isn't that great really. Less than a cotbed certainly.
Ds1 was straight into a full size bed.

Lonelymum · 16/01/2006 20:35

My ds1 was 18 months when ds2 was born and ds2 had outgrown his carrycot by 7 weeks so ds1 had to move out of the cot before he was 20 months old. We didn't have money to throw around (what's new?!) and had been offered a cranky old bed from my MIL (full size) which ds1 moved into (and is still in, unfortunately, 8 years later).

Yes, he looked too small in the bed, and yes, my other children all stayed in the cot for longer, but it did him no harm. Because it was an old bed, we were able to abuse it a bit and nailed a plank to the exposed side to stop him falling out, but you could buy a bed with a slightly raised edge to it if you were worried about that aspect. Why waste money on a bed that won't see him through to adulthood?

Klauz33 · 16/01/2006 20:40

No problem moving him at 2ish - our DS2 moved to junior bed at 2. However, do have something to stop him falling out, DP didn't initially bother putting the rail on. One morning I came in to find him asleep on the floor

DS2 loves his thuka shorty bed. Its great, solid and very cosy. Think they also do the same concept but longer.

Gem13 · 16/01/2006 20:54

Personally I wouldn't move him out of it if he's happy in it. He might view it as being bumped for the baby especially this close to the baby's arrival.

We have an 18 month gap. DS moved into a bed at 2 and a half (?) or thereabouts so he had an extra year in the cot (it was a big one though).

We bought the second cot through Friday Ad (free newspaper ad thing). The Ikea ones look fine.

eidsvold · 16/01/2006 23:44

we put dd1 into a bed prior to 2 - simply as we had moved to Aus and figured it was better to just get a bed for her. We were borrowing our baby things for dd2. She coped really well with the bed and bedguard.

AllBuggiedOut · 17/01/2006 23:43

We have 2 years and one week gap between our boys. We put DS1 into a toddler bed (only not a normal single bed because we didn't have the space) a couple of months before DS2 arrived. He had been very happy in his cot, but he has been even happier in his bed! No problems with the transition, and no jealousy over DS2 going into his old bed. Personally I'd avoid buying something that you're only going to need to replace in a few months, and go for a normal single bed. We didn't even bother with a board to stop him falling out. He only did it once

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