Every parent reaches the point eventually where she decides it’s time to move their toddler from the crib to a big boy (or girl) bed. There’s not really a set age to do so, but in most cases, babies are ready to try out a toddler bed somewhere between the age of 18 months and 3 years old.

In any case, if your toddler has started to try to climb out of the crib (or worse, has already managed to get over the top), it’s a good idea to go ahead and switch to a bed. If baby sleeps peacefully in the crib and doesn’t try to climb out, it’s really your call as to when you should move her over to a bed.

If your baby’s crib is still in your room, you might want to move the crib to a different room for a week or two before switching over to the toddler bed. Generally speaking, you shouldn’t change your baby’s bed and the room in which he sleeps at the same time, as too much change can be a bit overwhelming for a baby.

Of course, by the time your toddler is ready to switch to a bed, she will be speaking a few words, and will understand a lot of what you say to her. This is helpful because you can talk her through the changes. We recommend starting to talk to her about changing t a bed a week or so before you are ready to make the switch.

Many parents find that a birthday, usually the second birthday, is a good time to switch to a toddler bed. That way, the toddler bed can even be presented as part of your toddler’s birthday present.

Some babies take to the idea of sleeping in a big bed right away, but in case yours isn’t one of them, it’s a good idea not to disassemble and store the crib just yet. Some toddlers will resist the change, and if they do, there’s really no harm in letting them sleep in their crib for a few more nights. In most cases, if you present the bed as an option for “big boys” or “big girls”, they will eventually choose to sleep in the bed. After all, how many teenagers have you even seen sleeping in a crib?

Unfortunately, it is not at all uncommon for children to act out, and to hit other children or adults. Hitting is a relatively common problem. When trying to figure out how to go about disciplining a child who is hitting, it is important to first understand why it is that the child is hitting.

For a toddler, hitting might just be a sign that they toddler is developing at a normal pace. Toddlers have a difficult time trying to understand, for example, how hitting will harm another person. They might not have any aggression, for example, when they are hitting. Often a toddler will hit just in an effort to try to make a point. For other toddlers, hitting might represent an experiment with cause and effect. If a toddler punches his sister, for example, he gets to hear her scream.

When you are disciplining a child who is hitting, there are some things that you might try. First of all, your child is probably not trying to actually hurt their playmate. You need to explain that his hitting hurts his playmate. You need to assume the best, that your child is probably not trying to misbehave, but rather express herself. If he is hitting because he is frustrated, learn to recognize the signs that he is getting frustrated. Help him learn problem-solving skills to deal with that frustration, and then keep an eye out for when he is getting frustrated. In addition, don’t reward the child who is hitting with attention; instead, give more attention to the child who has been hit.

If your child is hitting regularly, won’t stop, and is hurting other children, you may consider seeking the help of a child psychologist, psychotherapist, or even your family physician. Each of these people can help you explore other possible causes for the hitting, and help to find the right remedy for your child.

Just about the time you think you have this whole baby thing figured out, your little one hits that milestone that most babies reach somewhere between five and ten months of age. She becomes mobile. Up until now, your baby has pretty much stayed wherever you put her. Or, at the very least, she wasn’t able to go very far or very fast. But now, look out. Get that kid a pair of goggles, because she’s off to the races.

Once a baby figures out that he can move around all by himself, it doesn’t take long before he figures out how to do make those arms and legs go fast. What’s more, he’s likely to think that trying to outrun you is great fun. Of course, he has no way of understanding that this also poses certain dangers to him, and chances are you have no real way of explaining it to him.

All of this means that we have to adjust some things in our households, if we haven’t done so already, to make sure that all of the places where baby can get to are baby-proofed and safe. This means making sure that all electrical sockets have covers. What it is that appeals to babies about outlets is something we’re not likely to ever figure out. Maybe it’s just the fact that it’s something different, and conveniently placed at eye level with a crawling baby (who ever came up with that brilliant design concept, anyway?).

We also need to make sure that floors are picked up so that baby can’t get a hold of anything that could be harmful. At this age, babies still tend to feel that anything that can go in the mouth should go in the mouth, so we want to be extra careful about what we drop on the floor.

Another change you’ll want to make if you haven’t yet is installing baby gates to keep baby into areas where you want her to be and out of area where you don’t want her to be. Baby gates are available commercially, and are generally inexpensive.

You’ll also want to lower the crib down to the bottom setting if you haven’t yet. If baby isn’t standing already, she will be soon, and you don’t want her practicing her high dive just yet.

The bottom line when adjusting to a new baby milestone is to look around, and try to find anything that could produce a hazard from a baby’s eye view. Then, do what you can to remove or reduce the risks. And, don’t worry. About the time you get used to a crawling baby, she’ll start walking. And running. And climbing.