Simmons Crib Day Bed Conversion Kit?

My 27 month old daughter just learned how to climb out of her crib . She is really good at it and just scales down the side like a little monkey. I'm trying to decide about what kind of bed to get her with also the possibility of getting a new bed, maybe even bunk beds for my almost 5 year old son. I thought that converting her crib to a day bed was a good short term option for now so I have time to shop. I called Simmons yesterday to order one and now I'm wondering if it was a good idea. How do people like these conversion kits? It just seems like the simplest option for now and I don't need to buy any new bedding, etc.

My son never climbed out of the crib so this is all new to me. We moved him into a twin bed because my daughter was on the way and we needed the crib for her.

I am not sure if you mean you will get your almost 5 year old a bunk bed and move your DD to his bed or if you mean you would move your 5 year old to a top bunk and put DD on the bottom - For safety reasons, I would never put a child under 6 in a bunk bed, over 6 it would depend on how they sleep, if they get up in the night, if they often need backrubs or snuggles to sleep.

My first climbed out of his crib at 22 months and landed right on his head - he moved to a twin mattress on the floor. Our crib has the option of being a toddler bed but it seemed too high still and I wanted the crib available for his brother who was due 2 months later - granted his brother has never, ever slept in crib so that was a moot point LOL!

I converted my dd's crib into a daybed and it worked really well! I used both guard rails in order to make sure she wouldn't roll out. I think mine came with the toddler bed rails though...

No, I wasn't planning on putting my 5 year old in the top bunk, but separating the beds and giving the top bunk with the rails to my daughter until she was older and then getting her another bed and giving the bunks to my son.

There are just too many choices and I'm not happy with the bed that my son has now (bookcase headboard captain's bed but the drawers always slide open on their own and the headboard is wobbly). Even a full bottom/twin top bunk that can be separated for now is an interesting option.

ajweeks said:

Even a full bottom/twin top bunk that can be separated for now is an interesting option.

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I was looking at that at Costco yesterday - that is an interesting option.

I don't know if the Simmons conversion kit comes with rails. I don't think it does....maybe I could use something else to make sure she won't fall out?

I just pulled my instruction sheet and mine was a Simmons also! Ours was the Crib n More. It came with both a daybed rail and a daybed guard rail. You could use either one alone or both together. We used both in order to make the side taller. DD2 used it untill she was 3.5 and still fit! I seem to remember having to order something from them, but I think it was some hardware that I had lost. To convert it to a double bed frame, there are different parts that I think I would have to order. I probably won't ever use it that way, though.

ETA: Maybe you can ask Simmons about it?

Mine is the Simmons Easy Side crib, bought at BRU in late 2001. The instructions say the day bed kit comes with all hardware, instructions and the day bed rails. Hopefully "rails" means the guard rail too. I'll have to call Simmons tomorrow and ask.

I'm pretty sure the "rails" they are talking about ARE the same that I have...nothing else on the crib changes. All you do is take off the dropside and the dropside tracks, then add the rail and/or guardrail. Pretty easy and my DD loved it! (Next came the munchkin getting out of bed constantly )

msbeltran said:

(Next came the munchkin getting out of bed constantly )

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lol

I had to switch dd over from the crib to the toddler bed at 25 months since dd was taller than the reccomended 32 inches. She was never going to climb out of her crib. The bending & lifting was killing my back. And I was worried that she was just going to topple over the (Now) low rail. It only came to just below her hips, from what I recall.

I have a Storkcraft Crib/daybed setup and it was really easy to switch over. Pull gate off, lift up mattress boards to center position, and a really nice wood rail was fastened to each side with screws.

I did not like how the wood rail was designed only to hold the mattress in place and was about 1 1/2 inches below the mattress. It was also too high for dd to scramble up. Heck, it was almost as high as my bed!

So I moved the mattress board back to the lowest level which made it about 2 inches lower than the side rail. I padded the rail with a winter comforter that raised the entire edging to about 3 inches. DD has never rolled off. As she's gotten older, I've used less padding around it, and now it's just the rail as an edge. I suppose she could now have it set to what's normal, but she's happy with the set up.

The only drawback is that after I made this change, within a week, she went from playing happily and going back to sleep eventually until 7am -- to a new habit.
I'd hear the pounding of running feet across the landing, my door opening, and "mama, I've FOUND YOU!" at five am It's been work ever since keeping her sleeping (and me) until she's really ready to face the day.

Nights were no problem. It's the wee hours of the morning, made even worse when daylight savings ends in Oct-Apr.

Well the getting out of bed was a real problem when we were just on vacation. She discovered how to climb out of the crib at my inlaws house (very bad timing!) and since they have easy to reach door levers instead of door knobs, she could get out of the room very easily--making it a very fun game! My son was sleeping in the same room as her and I could hear him telling her to stay in bed and that Santa wasn't going to fill her stocking if she didn't go to sleep.

Now since we have been back at home, she has only climbed out of the crib once and immediately started crying when she couldn't open her door--she hasn't quite mastered door knobs yet and ours are higher up. So I think the novelty of climbing out of her crib has died off a bit since she can't totally escape. I still want to move her out of the crib though since I know that she can climb out. It will be a few weeks anyway before I receive the conversion kit from Simmons--hopefully the rails work out well.

Yep, I know what you went through. Our old house had all door levers too Kind of miss them too.
Thankfully, dh had installed a mesh gate (similar to the Kiddy gate -- http://www.onestepahead.com/product/85217/1166/117.html ) across the stairway opening next to our bedroom door and across from hers. It was a very small landing that had open railings and a steep slippery wooden stair case. He also placed one across her doorway so occasionally, she'd open her doorway and still be blocked. But she could let me know she wasn't happy via the moniter and hollering.

With luck, your daughter won't figure out round doorknobs for a while. Mine hasn't and I'm not encouraging her at all. I stuffed tissue in her door latch so it doesn't snap shut and we have a french door lever on our bedroom.
I expect her to come in when she wakes up scared or cold or has a wet bottom. It's easy enough to guide her to her cot in our room and everyone goes back to sleep very quickly as long as it's not past 5am. After that, my brain goes into high gear and it's difficult to not get moving. If she emerges before I go to bed, then whatever the problem is fixed and she resignedly is tucked back into her own bed.
At least she doesn't wander through the house.

I'd hear the pounding of running feet across the landing, my door opening, and "mama, I've FOUND YOU!"

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lol. Too Cute!

Well to hear that happening, but likely not for you!

Heh. L. just learned to climb out of his crib too, but I can't put him in a bed bed just yet. I seem to have won this battle for now, as he hasn't done it since the first day where he climbed out a bunch of times (and I put him back in. lol).

He learned doorknobs a long time ago (which is why the bedroom door no longer has a locking mechanism in it... I'd do it to the other rooms too, but I do need a lock on the bathroom door, I do!).

We got a bunkbed about a week or two before he was born, my oldest was not yet 5 (was 4 years, 8 months, I guess), for space issues [which I went into in the other forum]. HE is okay in it--for the most part. Our biggest issue has been that if we forget to put the ladder up during the day, L. will climb it. (It's a ladder that leans on to it like this / not one that is straight like this | )

That said, I remember falling off of my older brothers bunk bed when I was about 4 (their metal bunk beds. ouch!)

Jewels said:

lol. Too Cute!

Well to hear that happening, but likely not for you!

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Actually, it was pretty cute, even after the umpteenth time.

How she perambulated was even funnier. One morning, DH was getting up and just happened to open our bedroom door just as came out of hers. Basically, she pulled open her door quickly, tucked her head down into her chest with her eyes closed, and RAN FAST! She didn't even know he was standing in front of the doorway before she collided with him. Ooof!
High speed in an area less than 6 feet long. This went on for about 3 months until we changed into temp housing before our move. EBF came about as a practical method for us both to get longer quality sleep since I'd tuck her in next to me and snoozed while she nursed.