18 Month Old Jumping Out of Crib

My daughter was 20 months old when she learned that she could climb out of her crib and onto the attached changing table. Because it's a convertible crib, removing the changing table was not an option.

That was a month ago and we moved her to a toddler bed and the transition has gone very well all in all. However, I still rock her until she's very sleepy then put her in her bed and rub her back or just sit in her room for awhile.

I have heard of some people moving their kids as young as 13 months to a toddler bed!

My recommendations would be:

1. Crib tent - if you like these. I was not a fan because I felt like my daughter would feel caged in.
2. Toddler bed - I recommend closing the door or putting a gate on the door.
3. Toddler mattress on the floor (to get her used to a new sleeping arrangement but not yet a toddler bed).
4. Twin or larger bed (if you'd rather) with a rail.

Good luck!

Mine first escaped from her crib at about 11 months. I bought a crib tent off of Ebay for $38. We haven't had a problem since. I initially bought the tent to keep the cat out of my daughter's bed. The bonus is that not only does the tent keep the cat out of the bed, it also keeps the child in! The tent fits over the top of the crib and is made of a cotton mesh. It's very breathable and it doesn't hinder her ability to see out. I'm thrilled with the product and highly recomend it.

Good luck!

All three of my boys learned to climb out of their cribs before they were 2. We converted their cribs to toddler beds, baby proofed the room and put a doorknob cover on the inside of the door. It took a few nights of putting them back into their beds again and again but they learned to stay put. The twins are 4 now and the little guy is 3. Bedtime is easy now. They all run and jump in their beds and dont get up till morning. Hope this helps. You need to move her soon before she gets hurt. One of my twins got a black eye when he fell out of the crib. We moved them to their new beds the next night.

My daughter - now almost 5 - learned how to escape from her crib when she was 14 months. We tried the toddler bed - her crib was a convertible - but she wouldn't stay in that. We ended up getting a full size futon mattress and putting it on the floor. It gave her lots of room to roll around and if she fell off she wouldn't get hurt. We made sure her room was baby proofed and we put up a gate. It took awhile, but eventually she stayed in her bed. Now we use the mattress as a spare bed for sleepovers and she is sleeping in a real bed. Good luck!

Hi S.,
I have a very active (now 3 year old) daughter as well. She started climbing out of her crib a little before 18 months. Rather than have her hurt herself I took the front part of her crib off making it sort of a day bed (her crib was meant to do it). That definitely didn't work because most nights I would find her spread out on the floor with her pillow & blankets. It was then that we bought her a full size bed (I opted for that one since she's so active & I was afraid she'd fall out). With that addition in her room she really felt like a big girl & I made a big deal for her & created her own space I knew she would like. I also used a baby gate at her door to make sure she didn't go wandering off through the house at night.

The key, I've always believed, was to make sure that her cool toys she always wanted to play with were in another room. If you make their bedroom fun to play in at this age, they get distracted & don't go to bed as easily. I read to her every night & she has an assortment of stuffed animals in there to keep her company, but on the whole she doesn't have anything that would make her want to get out of bed. It took a few weeks to get her used to this, but if you stick with a plan, it should work eventually. Good luck!

Crib Tent. We used a crib tent to keep our cat out & our boys in.
Also when our oldest boy moved to a toddler bed he did not stay in bed for many months. We found him sleeping on the floor or in mid play. We put up a baby gate to keep our boys in their room. Our oldest did not shake gates so we used a pressure gate, but our youngest was a gate shaker (he would shake any pressure gate until it fell) so we used a hardware mounted gate. Eventually they both learned to sleep in their own beds.
I hope this helps!

God bless!

It is now time to take her out of the crib. There is more danger falling out of the crib than a regular bed. I am a grandma and will be a great-grandma in the fall, and in all my years I could never understand why anyone would spend money on a toddler bed. They last a very short time and then you have to spend money again! Not just for the bed but for the sheets and other bedding. There are rails that fit under the mattress that kept my children safe. Like my husband said, eventually she will learn to stay in bed. If you consistently but her back to be and are firm she will learn to stay. It is hard work but it can be done.

Hi Sararh,

I have a daughter who began jumping out of her crib at 20 months. I was afraid she was going to fall so we went ahead and got her a bed. It has been a couple month and she stays in it. She may get out once or twice during the week. She's doing great. I thought that there was no way she would stay in it since she too is incredibly active and curious, but when she would get out of bed we would remind her no bed time and put her back. She stays through the night. We got a real bed vs. a toddler bed and got a rail. It isn't as easy to get in and out of so maybe that helps. Good luck!

We use a sleep sack year round because my son has eczema that he would scratch otherwise, and so that has kept him in his crib. I don't think it would work if he had already learned to jump or climb out, though; I think it would probably just make him more likely to fall out and hurt himself. I would bite the bullet and do the big kid bed. It's just too dangerous, and I know I would not be able to sleep myself, always wondering if the kid was going to fall on her head.

Another poster gave great advice--get all of the toys out of there. Go and put her back in bed every time she gets out. She'll get that you are serious and give up. It might be a hard week, but then you will know she is safe.

Both of my boys did the same thing about 18 months. One of them climbed out, the other jumped from the top kind of like a cat!! The first time we just put the mattress on the floor afraid he would fall out of bed. The second son we just converted his crib to a daybed and both worked fine. The first took about a week before he finally stayed in bed, the second one stayed in bed from the first night. I think in this case the difference was personality not our techniques!!! Good luck!

You could use a crib tent if you're not ready to put her in a toddler bed. You can get them at babies r us or ebay. good luck!

I will second the crib tent. Our daughter was 18 months as well and being our third we wanted to keep her in the crib as long as possible. We ended up buying the crib tent, even though I said I would never use one of those. She loved it as well - I think it made her feel cozy in her bed. Anyway, it bought us another year to year and a half and well worth the $75! This was the best advice we got!!!!!

I put my daughters both in a regular size twin bed at 18 months. We had the same problem with them getting out, and my littlest one fell on her head. I don't know if I am jsut lucky or what, but all 3 of my children took 1 week to train. every time they got out of the twin bed, i spanked them gently(they had a diaper so it was more the sound than pain- I was VERY gentle)... after usually 2 days, they stopped getting out, and they will call for me when they wake up to come and get them out... good luck!!

Both of my children were out of their cribs by 18 months old- and each time I thought "They'll never stay in a bed", but I was wrong. They both did great. It isn't safe anymore to leave your daughter in her crib- she will eventually get hurt jumping out so it's time for the move. I would recommend using the SuperNanny technique for bed time- which is, 1. First time to bed you kiss her and say, "It's bedtime, you go to sleep and stay in your bed" 2. Second time you say, "No it's bedtime"-and that's it!! and put her back in her bed 3. Every time after that you simply put her back in her bed without a word or a kiss or anything. Since she hasn't started with any bad habits it won't take her long to get the message and she'll be in her big girl bed in no time.
However you decide to do I wish you luck and patience :)Stay consistent and you'll do great- Good luck!

The crib tent works great!! I think they are called Cozy Crib Tent, but they sell them at Babies R Us. They are about $70, but I found mine to be worth it.

My oldest son had the upper body strength to Launch himself from his crib at a young age, I got him in a toddler bed with a rail and baby gate across his door. I spent several nights putting him back in his bed, not interacting not responding just pick him put him back in...I found him asleep on the floor a few nights, but eventually he got it.
I have seen the tent like nets that zip up that you can find at Toys R Us, I was a nanny for a family of twin boys that used these to age 2 and 1/2...not sure if that would work for you, but might work if you are not ready to give up the crib yet. Good luck
B.

welp.... it's time for a big girl bed. It's just not safe for your child to be climbing (or jumping!) out of a crib now that she has learned how. My son started climbing out of his crib at 18 months and we changed him to a big boy bed. We made a huge deal out of it and went over and over the rules and we actually had very little trouble with him getting out when he wasn;t supposed to. I guess the challenge was gone! :o) Good luck!

I assume you have a coil crib mattress, on which children can jump very easily. You may want to try a solid foam mattress (made by Colgate) that is sold at Goodnite Rooms in Kirkwood (phone ###-###-####). Children get no "bounce" from a foam mattress and that should do the trick.

We moved our oldest to the toddler bed when she was about 20 months. She actually slept better once she was in the toddler bed. It was a struggle to keep her in bed sometimes but we were just consistent with a bedtime routine and always putting her back in bed and she figured it out.

Hi S.,

I would say if your daughter is jumping out of her crib then she is old enough for a "big girl bed." We moved my daughter into a toddler bed when she was about 26 or 27 months old mainly because I was about to have another baby but also because she was showing interest. We were nervous that she would get out of bed as well and wonderfully enough we have not had that problem. Setting a nightly routine and allowing her to have a few stuffed animals and books in bed with her might help. I know after we read books our daughter likes to pretend play for a little bit before she falls asleep. If you can avoid spending any more money on items to keep your daughter in her crib than I would. To be is sounds as if she is ready to be a "big girl"! Good luck to you :)

Socks. All three of my boys started climbing out of their cribs before they were 10 months. They got traction from barefeet so I put them to bed with socks on and they couldn't get tration. Also all of my boys moved to a toddler bed at 18 month. I thought they would climb out but they didn't. My youngest will be three next month and he still calls me to get him out of bed in the morning even though during the day when he is playing he climbs in and out by himself. Good luck.

Hello S.,

I bought a crib tent that fits over the crib and that kept my son in until he was old enough to go into a toddler bed. You may be able to find a used one on Craigslist. Hope that helps you some, it did us. C.

She needs to be moved to the toddler bed! Too dangerous otherwise. Good luck!

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