Quick Question about Big Boy Beds and playrooms

I've got a big dilemna and am thinking of changing around many of the rooms in my house but before I go into all the advice I need about that, I need to decide whether I'm going to move them into big boy beds.

I'm looking for people who waited until past 3 to move them into big boy beds. At what age did you do it? My boys are the oldest that I know still in cribs (and crib tents) but they certainly aren't bugging me to move and I'm wondering if I should fix it if it ain't broke. Getting kind of tired of the "They STILL aren't in beds?" Anybody regret moving them earlier.

If I decide to do the move, I'll have a much longer post for your wise women to help me decide how to reconfigure the house. Part of the reconfiguring the house includes moving the playroom from the open concept living room/kitchen/dining room into a spare bedroom upstairs but I'm wondering how practical that would be since the boys play while I'm doing things in the kitchen and I can keep an eye on them (mostly to act as a referee). It's where it all happens including the change table (this summer they will be potty trained though) and even all their clothes. So another short question is how old were your kids when you let them play unsupervised on a different floor of the house.

Thanks

 

Erick was almost three when I moved him out of the crib but Kayci was 3.5! She had a crib tent, tended to be very impulsive (still is!) about things like getting up before she was supposed to and wasn't complaining a bit about the crib. If possible, I'd move them one at a time so one is used to the freedom before he has someone to get in trouble with. The room that would be the playroom upstairs...I'd actually separate them and move them to beds. Nobody to egg them on that way. I wish I'd been able to separate my little ones but space didn't allow. As far as playing unsupervised...at about 4 I let them play for short periods back in the bedrooms but it's the same level and I could still hear them. When you have more than one the same age, things tend to escalate quickly. And I am a control freak about certain things. Knowing what my kids are into is one of them! So, we have the family room set up as the kids' tv/play room and the main living room as our sitting area/tv area instead of a formal living room. Even at almost 5 I don't think I'd want them playing too far from where I was. And honestly, they tend to bring toys wherever I am so I'd be constantly be moving toys around!

 

I moved my girls to beds at 20 months, so no idea how old is too old. However, if it's working for you and the boys, why change? Sure, people will talk, but whatever.

As for putting their playroom upstairs... we did something similar a few months ago. Our house is all on one level, but we moved the playroom from the family room to a spare bedroom off at the end of the house. In the process, we changed around a bunch of rooms, so the family room became the dining room, the dining room became the living room, etc. I'd have to say moving the playroom wasn't our best idea. Now if the girls want to play, they have to leave the main living area, which means they either spend more time alone, or I'm constantly running back and forth when they need something. There's less casual interaction when I'm making dinner or cleaning up because they're either tucked away in the bedroom or they're wandering around the kitchen/living area with nothing to do (because the toys are back in the bedroom). I've also noticed that they use fewer of their toys because they're more out of sight. And the toys that do get used are frequently dragged out into the old family room so we now have toys scattered all throughout the house.

Can you tell I'm not a fan?

 

I have no complaints about moving my kids to beds earlier than 3. In fact, I like their ability to climb into bed themselves, stretch out in bed (my toddler beds are about a foot wider than the cribs were, long story, but thanks Ikea.) I like the fact that they are more likely to get up and get their own blanket/binky/Fishy (monster toys) if they drop it and not whine for me to come get it. I didn't like the initial change in the fact that they love to play with their clothes, but I put them all in totes for about a month. After that, no problems with the clothes.

 

We moved from cribs to twin beds when they were 3y3m. They were happy in their cribs, and the only reasons I moved them were:
1 - I was getting tired of lifting them in & out
2 - I wanted to buy new furniture
3 - I just felt we were all ready for a change

Don't fix what ain't broke!

Our house is all one floor, but it was around age 2.5 when I started feeling OK letting them be out of sight for extended periods (more than 5 minutes, say). However, that very rarely happens, since when I'm home, they are usually stuck to me like glue. I wish they would just go somewhere and play! :laughing: But it depends on the kids' temperament, and also whether you can hear them wherever they are. In our house, even though they might be out of sight, they are almost never out of earshot. And by the time they were 2.5, I already knew that they were unlikely to get into serious trouble.

 

No help with the bed situation, we converted our cribs to toddler beds at about 20 months, and then moved to twin beds at about 3 yrs 8 months. A crib just wasn't working out for DS, so out of lack of any other ideas to get him to not throw a fit when we put him down, we converted the cribs. It went perfectly, just put a baby gate on their door and left the door open for a few nights...no problems at all. I was planning on converting the cribs about the time they were potty trained so they could get up if need be, but doing it earlier was just fine.

Now, about the playroom...we have a one story house, but recently finished off an upstairs bonus room and turned it into a playroom. It is the only room upstairs, and I LOVE having it up there. All their toys, kid stuff, TV etc is up there, and i can shut the door and not deal with the mess - out of site, out of mind! The stairs leading up to it are right off the open concept living room/kithcen/dining room, so I can hear them when they are up there. It took a little while, at age 3&1/2, to get used to/comfortable with them playing up there by themselves, but it doesn't bother me in the least now.

As far as the toting the toys all over the place, we tell them that toys belong upstairs, and stay on them to keep them up there. But I did buy a handled basket and I leave it on the stairs to toss toys etc in to go upstairs. When I need to clean up downstairs, I grab the basket and go through the house tossing whatever goes upstairs into it. Next time I go up I take it with me! Seems to work out well for us!

 

We moved my girls just around their 3rd birthday and aside from them getting in each other's beds and playing a bit, we've had no problems at all!!

The reason we switched was because we are moving and i want them in twin beds in the new house so wanted to start the switch before we moved.

Good luck!