My 16 month old DD keeps waking up at night when she hits the top of the cot (there's a bumper, but she ends up squished up against it).
A few people suggested to move her to a bed. Most 'official' info I've found says toddlers generally move to a bed at age 2 at the earliest.
But I've also found a lot of anecdotal evidence from mums whose bubs moved to a bed much earlier, even younger than my DD.
I'm just not sure how she will go in a bed - with her head at the top, near the wall.
At what age are they allowed to use a pillow?
Should I go with a toddler bed, or a single bed with a rail to stop her falling out?
What do you feel comfortable with? I dont think its wise to use a pillow yet? What about a small toddler bed with a rail? and maybe some cushions incase she falls out?
Sorry I am not much help we co sleep so the boys have all the room :P
x
We've moved both our DD's before they were 15 months old. DD1 didn't get a pillow straight away though, and DD2 is 15 months at the moment and doesn't have a pillow. We think she would be fine with a toddler pillow though, just haven't gotten around to getting one yet.
DS1 was in a single bed by the time DS2 was born when DS1 was 19 months old. I think he'd been there from about 16 months. We used a bed rail to stop him falling out and he was fine. He didn't get a pillow until later though. I think every child is different and you know your child better than any book!
I gave up on the cot by around 8 months, but DS slept on a mattress on the floor till he was around 22 months when we moved him to a bed (we just waited till he was comfortable sleeping alone most of the time).
Maybe try a mattress then go to a bed if that seems to work well...? 16 months would be fine for pillows, I think. I'd go to a single, just to avoid having to get another later. We never used rails - he fell out once or twice, but quickly learnt not to thrash around so much after that.
Yeah, that might be ok if she doesn't move around too much. DS was on a queen size (with me for much of the time, I got a tiny sliver of bed and he took the rest)
Hmm she does move a lot, now that I think of it... sometimes she's upside-down in her cot!
I actually don't know if she'll 'notice' that it's not her cot, firstly because of her age, and secondly because she only sleeps there at night. (Day naps are on my lap while being breastfed.)
At night we breastfeed to sleep in the dark, and then put in the cot when she's 99% asleep.
I guess I will find out pretty quickly whether she 'notices' or not!
With my first two boys there is only 19mths between them so we kinda needed DS1 out of the cot
We started at about 17mths I think and just did day sleeps at first to get him used to it. Then we moved onto the night sleeps. It did take a good few weeks to completely transition him and there was times when I thought it was too soon.
Be prepared for lots of getting in and out of the bed (great new game just cause they can now) lots of stories and I also spent many nights falling asleep next to him in his bed.
Definately go for the bed rail. All of my kids are huge rollers and movers in their sleep so although they may start out up the right way on the pillow that is never where they end up.
Rail on one side and wall on the other, we used a thin pillow and also used bedding from his cot just to make it as smooth as possible.
We moved DD into her bed a few months back, she'll be two at the end of this month. She started with one of those flat toddler pillows, but she now falls asleep with a normal pillow, but always ends up in with us anyway. The change was incredible. She went from being tense and unhappy, even in sleep, when we tried to put her to bed, to her willingly going into her own bed. climbing in, pulling the blankets up and waiting for her story. Best thing we did at the time. I was also concerned, she was so little, everything I had read said wait until two, but as I've learned on here - trust your instincts! And she has never fallen out either. I had her fold out couch beside it for a few weeks, but she never fell out.
DD 15m, we moves house, I did put her cot up, then decided she can sleep in her toddler bed, I got it as a freebie, we tried one night with the cot still up, and she screamed and wouldnt settle so put her back in the cot, the next day we put the mattress back on the toddler bed and her and her sister played in it and that night I put her to bed and she fell asleep and hasn't been in a cot ever since.
With DD1 I think she was 18m and we took the side off the cot, she was about 2 when we put her straight to a king single bed, with a rail.
It wasn't much of a transition for both girls. They both went pretty easily into settling into their big girls beds.
A friend of mine moved her 15 month old to a bed after he tried to wriggle out of her cot. She got both her legs stuck and my friend had to call her brother (her DH does FIFO) over so he could saw the cot apart to free her little legs
She has adjusted to a bed fine. It's a normal single bed and she has just attached a rail to one side (one of those mesh ones) and the other is pushed against a wall.
DD was a shocking sleeper in her cot - I think she is like me and doesn't like small spaces...
At 15mths we were given a toddler bed so we took her cot out of the room and put her bed in. All day she played on it and that night she went down like a dream and has never slept better!!!
She does get up occasionally in the early hours of the morning but she just comes into bed with us - this happened maybe 1 out of 30 nights and is usually when she is sick...
thanks for this thread - i've been following it with interest
We moved DS (23 months) to a toddler bed a month ago, as he was able to climb out of his cot and it was dangerous.... although we didn't feel completely ready (or that he was). It was good timing for the family in some ways, as we have another little one on the way soon, not sure if bubs will go straight to the cot though.
we have had mixed success with the toddler bed - he comes into our bed nightly at 2-4am when he wakes.... sigh.... and i find myself putting him to bed really tired, as him getting up after his bottle (yes, we still settle him with a bottle!) is 1) a bad habit (the bottle) and 2) really frustrating when he gets up
so i still don't think we've cracked it. i've had a few weeks of really bad sleep, no doubt due to being pg, but i'm a little worried about how we're going to juggle 2 kids and no sleep, so i think we'll be calling tweedle (or going to sleep school) asap.
If you want to know if she is ready you can try a bed for day sleeps?
I have moved all 4 of my kids at various ages from cot to bed and only one was 2 the next 3 werre all under 2. DS2 was 16 months when we moved him.. not really sure why but we did and he slept so well
My DD was doing the same thing your DD was doing so we started her on a bed for day sleeps and then took her cot down one morning and went from there.. You will have moments when they run out of the room ect but they eventually get used to it and realize its bed time
Oh and I never had any interest in a toddler bed until we got one for DS3, now I would recommend them as we had no issues moving our kids from toddler bed to bed
From cot to bed BEFORE age 2?
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and it was dangerous.... although we didn't feel completely ready (or that he was). It was good timing for the family in some ways, as we have another little one on the way soon, not sure if bubs will go straight to the cot though. 
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