Most children have their cribs changed to toddler bed around 18-24 months because they will start to climb out and that can be very dangerous. Cohen has never had the desire to climb out – if he wants out he will literally shout “MMMMMOMMMMMM” or “DDDDDADDDDDDDDD” till we come to his rescue. After he turned three there were a few times we tried to encourage him to climb out or at least try it. He would yell for us for about 10 minutes, lay back down then 20 minutes later start up again.
I really had mixed feeling about whether I wanted him to learn how to climb out or not but secretly I was planning on keep the crib till he was 10. It was amazing going to sleep peacefully knowing that he was ok. When he turned three though – Cohen began to really show himself and his opinion. He would not use a blanket or pillow. If you put it in there the first thing he would do before he laid down was throw them out. Then he would only sleep side-ways (I couldn’t move him since he’s the lightest sleeper in the world)!!! So between freezing at night and having a cramped neck Cohen started becoming a super light sleeper…..this was not ok.
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So the next thing we knew Cohen was sleeping between us or should I say on Mikey head or across my face. A sleeping toddler is like a fish out of the water. I could not remember the last time Mikey or I got a solid night’s sleep. The hunt for a toddler bed or any bed this child wanted was on because we. were. so. tired.
This new bed is 4 months in the making! Yes, four …..you might wonder why it took us soo long to get him in another bed and why we suffered through the 4 am kicks in the face? Well because we loved him. Even though he’s three I want him to make him own choices and whenever we went to look at toddler beds he never liked any. Maybe because he knew he was going to bed the boot from ours.
After our trip to DC this past weekend – we decided to stop by IKEA. Cohen has looked at the beds before but usually ran past them to the toy sections. This time was completely different! He was rolling around in them and wanted to get under the covers. HA!! If you could of seen the way Mikey and I looked at each other!! Hallelujah! Cohen wanted a toddler bed and we were going to get a good night’s rest! After 45 minutes of Cohen going back and forth he finally wanted the dark wood bed with the fox down comforter. We didn’t need a mattress since we thought we could use his crib mattress but if your going to buy a bed from IKEA just note – their mattresses are about a foot longer…….
The one thing I LOVE about IKEA is their small packaging. We drove my little mustang that day and at first we thought about waiting to buy the bed but we really wanted it now! I can not believe it fit – thankfully the bed came in two boxes!!!
Below you can follow the Instagram photos that show Cohen’s journey of finding his big boy bed!
One of the biggest things Mikey was worried about was that Cohen was going to roll off the bed. I’ve been told by other parents if Cohen does – the bed is so low to the ground it doesn’t hurt. Well second to last image above you can see Cohen sleeping on the floor 😉 I didn’t want to touch him because I knew he would wake up but when I went to check on him 20 mins later he had already put himself back in bed and covered up again!
Ahhh it breaks my heart a little to see him grow up but I love it that he’s finding his own way!! Other then the one roll off – Cohen LOVES his new bed. He’s not cried once or asked to sleep with us. When he’s tired during the day he will lay down by himself or get in it easily when I say it’s nap time. But the best thing is …..he still shouts “MMMMMOMMMM” or “DDDDADDDDD” when he’s ready to get up 😉
Now here’s a few of our favorites from a quick session we did of him and his new favorite spot in the house
xoxo
Samantha
Don’t you love the fake food hidden under his bed 😉
And thank goodness this thing doesn’t have a weigh limit 😉