Toddler Bed vs. Twin Bed?

[Anonymous]

Boy am I clueless! My 28 mo old DS is more than ready for a big boy bed - he naps on a cot at daycare and walks himself to bed at night and waits to be picked up and put inside. He's never tried to climb out so I've been putting this off. But now it's time!

Ok so - do you do a toddler bed and then a twin bed later - or just go straight to a twin -and what is the difference in terms of size and such? Can you get twin beds w/safety railings? Finally, how long will a twin bed last him? 16, 17yrs old ?? ha ha!

Anywhere good in the DC area to actually LOOK at kid's beds, besides Ikea and PBKids? I see alot online but I'd like to see some in person..

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

We have full sized beds for our children. My in-laws gave us one, and DH and I were in a full size until the summer when we got a king. When we got our new bed, DS got our old one. I have waterproof covers, that also keep dust and dust mites out. DS's bed does need a new mattress, but I think it will be the only replacement before he moves out. At least that's my hope that it will last 15 more years.

[Anonymous]

We put our son into a twin bed. We bought a bed specifically for little guys (from Belfort) which allows you to set the bed at a low low level and eventually raise it. We also opted not to use a boxspring to keep him even closer to the ground. We could have bought matching bed rails but I just bought some from BabiesRUs which worked out great.

[Anonymous]

OP here - thanks! it did seem a little silly (and too cartoonish for our taste) to do a toddler bed and then something bigger so soon later.\

Also - what is a reasonable price to expect? PBKids and some others seems pricey but I guess if he'll be in it for a long time...

[maynie]

My daughter was in her crib until just after her third birthday. She liked her crib and never once tried to climb out. We had a convertable one, but if I tried to take off the side she wanted it back on so...we went with the bed and frame below. It's called the South Shore Marina mates bed. It was only 150 for the bed frame. We did get the bookcase headboard also.

[Anonymous]

I got a toddler bed because I didn't want to spend the money until he was water tight through the night. Right choice for us.

[Anonymous]

We got twin sized bunk beds from Belfort and have been happy with them. They come apart, too, so if we want to use them separately we can do that, too. We ended up getting a safety rail from a friend and that works just fine. The other side of the bed is against the wall. I like having a twin bed because my son sometimes wants us to lay down with him before he falls asleep - that wouldn't be possible with a toddler bed. Personally, while I like the style of PBKids, I don't know if they are worth the price. I thought Belfort had a great selection and was much more reasonable - I think we spent about $400-500 for the bunk beds. We bought the mattresses separately.

[Anonymous]

When our DD turned 3,, we tried the toddler bed, but it seemed too small (since she couldn't sleep rail to rail like she did in the crib) and it was so low to the floor that it seemed the temptation to get out was too strong. So we switched to a twin with a rail and it's worked much better.

[Anonymous]

We put our DS in a twin bed at 2 years (his little brother needed the crib). The reasoning behind a twin vs. toddler is that 1) it would last him a much longer time and 2) if need be, we could lay down and snuggle with him comfortably. We simply put a box spring and mattress right on the floor, so it is nice and low and there are no hard or sharp edges anywhere. I paid $300 for the mattress/box spring set from mattress warehouse. Yep, it was cheap, but it is totally fine for now.

[Anonymous]

We put our son in a toddler bed when he was almost 2, because he learned to escape the crib and a twin bed just seemed way too big. It's been a great choice for us. I never worry about him falling out, he can get in & out by himself, it was not very expensive ($135 compared to $400+ for his crib), and it uses the crib mattress. We bought it at Great Beginnings.

[Anonymous]

Our son climbed out of his crib at 18 months and fell hard. We lowered the railing so he can climb out safely. At two, he still rolled out of bed. But soon, we'll move him to a regular bed, with a barrier if he's still rolling out. I don't want to have a toddler bed to dispose of after 1 or 2 years, and a real bed can be used for guests if need be!