Toddler bed and cot beds - size difference?

[chloemegjess]

Hi. I am pregnant with DC2 and just trying to work out what to do about cots and beds as our daughter will only be 15motnhs old when baby is born so still using her cot.

Anyway, what I want to know is are toddler beds the same size as cot beds or are they different.

And I have seen some toddler beds that extend. How does this work with mattresses?

you can buy special mattress that comes in parts so as you extend you just add parts to the bottom of it. My daughters toddler bed was slightly larger than her cot bed but i do think it depends on the make of your cot bed. I would keep your daughter in her cot as long as possible so could you buy a cot bed so you can change it when she is ready and then use her cot now for your new baby (this is what i did and cot bed was large enough as a bed for a while!)

amq22 - thanks for that. DD is already in a cot bed, so it is a question of changing her to a proper bed when the new baby needs a cot (we have a crib that is suitable for up to 6months) or to get another cot bed or what. It is so hard. We will get second hand bed/cot so thats not the cost issue, but we will buy a new matress and DDs cost £70 so thats the main cost I think.

A cotbed and standard junior bed are both the same size which is 70cm x 140cm.
I guess it all depends on how old your oldest child will be when the new baby arrives. For safety reasons I wouldn't advise putting a small child into a Junior bed you should really wait until they have outgrown the 'cot' mode of their cot or cotbed which, on average, is about three years old. They've physically outgrown the cot mode when their able to climb over the sides making it no longer safe. If your child is already in a cotbed you may also find the transition of 'cot' to 'bed' a little easier as the child has an object they can familiarise with.
If your oldest child will be to small/young to move into a junior bed by time the new baby arrives and if space+cost isn't an issue I would say get a cotbed for the new baby. If space+cost is an issue, I would say buy a cot for the new baby which would take you to about three years old by which time your eldest child would be able to move into a single bed allowing you to move the youngest child into the junior bed.
Extending beds normally come with additional pieces, sometimes at an extra cost, that allow you to extend both the mattress and base unit. However I would be careful with buying extendable beds as on some models you can feel the divide in the mattress where the extra piece has been added on. Also note that a few models actually convert into a small single bed (75cm x 175cm) rather than a single bed (90cm x 190cm) so you may find it a little hard to acquire bedding.

I hope this has help!

Thanks that is very useful. Space and cost is an issue, but also want things to last iyswim.

I think I am going to see if something comes up on freecycle if it is suitable.

My DD is very active alredy and at 10 months can already climb onto the sofa and most of her toys etc but obviously I don't know what she will be like at 2! lol

i bought a second hand cot from a friend and just bought a new mattress. My daughter hit two and started climbing out of her cot so i changed it to the bed with a bed guard and she has been fine plus alot safer than her climbing out!! Plan is that once she is big enough for junior bed i will then use her cot bed for our second child and i can then scrap the second hand cot without feeling like i have wasted money(it only cost me £30) So yeah i would leave your dd be in her cot bed and just buy a cheap second hand cot and then you can swap once she is big enough for a junior bed. good luck, 2 is a great challenge but also fun as i am now finding out. DD is 2 and half and ds2 is 3 months old.

Thank you. I think I wil do that. Can I ask how much the mattress cost? This is more what is worrying than the cost of the cot as there are often cots on freecyle or being given away on netmums etc.

With DDs cotbed we didnt pay anything from the cotbed as it came from freecycle, and then the matress cost £70, but we got it from mamas and papas as we had some gift vouchers for there. This was there cheapest sprung cotbed matress though!

i think i bought my from mothercare and yes it was between £60 and £70. As it was for a cot and not a cot bed it was slightly smaller so they are a little bit cheaper. I too had vouchers so did not mind so much but they may do one a little cheaper all depends on the size of the cot you get i guess.