Toddler Bed!

A few weeks ago, I was very angered to learn that Jonah's crib was one of the 2 million cribs recalled in the US and Canada. Storkcraft, who manufactures cribs under the names of Storkcraft as well as Fisherprice, was recalling all of the models that have a dropside rail.

This is the second time, within a matter of months, that Jonah's crib has been recalled. The first recall was because the metal parts that hold the mattress board to the frame were bending and eventually would break. We sent away for the new parts that would fix the problem. It wasn't a big deal, just replace the faulty parts (which were relatively easy to switch out.)

This time, I am furious. Honestly, the majority of my anger is directed at myself as a mother. I have felt for some time now that this crib is not safe. Jonah fell out of the crib a few weeks ago when he was jumping, and the dropside rail lowered on one side. My husband lowered the crib mattress to the lower setting (which we thought that it was already on, but there was one more notch lower than where it was at) and tightened the screws holding the frame together. This seemed to fix the problem.

We've had problems in the past with the rail coming off of it's track, when we were tightening screws or moving the board, or sometimes when I was changing sheets. I never thought of this happening when Jonah was in the crib though, because it seemed to only happen when we were doing something to the crib like moving it around etc.

This current recall is because of this problem. The rail seperates from it's lower track while the baby/toddler is in the bed, creating a gap between the crib and the rail. The baby slips down inside this gap, and the rail snaps back trapping the infant, and in some cases suffocating or strangling the child.

Here is a news article with pictures that gives more information about the recall. It includes pictures (using dolls for demonstration) showing how the rail can entrap a child.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34125890/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/
Please, if you do have one of these cribs stop using it immediately and contact Storkcraft. The company is offering a kit to make the drop down rail stationary, eliminating the problem of the rail coming off of the track.

We chose a different route. Because this is the SECOND time that the crib has been recalled in months, I was very upset to say the least. I was ready to dismantle the crib and toss it. Both pieces of furniture that I have bought from this company have been a total disappointment. Our changer/dresser combo is also a storkcraft product. The drawers have been falling apart since before Jonah was born (I know it was properly put together) so it is now being held together by gorilla glue. Just the drawers, not the frame. If we had issues with the frame, it would most definitely be not in use anymore as that would be a safety hazard.

Daryl decided that it would be more frugal to convert the crib into the toddler bed. I see his point- if we toss the crib, we will not only need to buy a crib for the baby on the way, but also a toddler bed for Jonah. The recalls were only for the bed being used as a crib, and really don't apply to the parts of the toddler bed since none of those parts are used. We converted the bed to a toddler bed last night. I inspected it thoroughly and am actually pretty pleased with how sturdy the bed is. The dangerous parts have been removed which makes me feel a million times better.

Jonah will not be using the toddler bed any time soon, however. He just isn't ready. Since we learned of the recall, he has been sleeping in his pack n play. I am glad that we have at least transitioned the bed to the toddler bed, because now we can introduce it to Jonah very gradually. Because he is so attached to his sleep routine, I know that this transition needs to be made very gently. For now, I am just letting him get used to it being in his room. Allowing him to sit on it for story time, and placing familiar bedtime objects in it. We'll see how long it takes us to get to the next step of transition, but I'm in no hurry. Jonah can take his time getting used to it!

Here is a picture of Jonah and our dog Paddington sitting in the "new" bed! It's the best that I could get, because Jonah was very eager to explore his new bed.