Some 2 year olds still sleep in a crib, some sleep in a toddler bed, some in a twin size bed, and a few even sleep in a full size bed. What size bed a child sleeps in can be determined by many factors, including space of the child's room, how they like to sleep (some children like to feel compressed in a tight space when asleep, while others like to have room to roll around), the child's siblings and if they share a room and/or bed, and many other things. A teenager may sleep in the same size twin bed that a toddler does, and another might even have a king size bed in their room. So, really there is no wrong answer when it comes to choosing a bed size for a child, even as they get older.
When choosing kids bedding, though, it is very important to consider what type of bed the child has, or to make a decision on what type they will be getting. There are cribs, and kids bedding for these, toddler beds, which usually have the same size mattress as a crib does, twin size beds, full size (also known as double beds), queen and king size, although it might be very difficult to find bedding for a child that fits a queen or king size bed. As they get older, and wouldn't want a cartoon theme anyway, it is not as hard to locate a type of bedding that a child would like for this large of a bed, but for the younger sect of children, it can be near impossible.
There are many different types of linens that qualify as kids bedding for a child, and these include sheets (fitted, or bottom, sheets, and top sheets), blankets (which can be comforters, quilts, fleece blankets, and more), pillow cases and shams, bed skirts, canopy curtains, throw pillows, regular pillows, and more. Many times the majority of bedding pieces will come in a set, usually called a bed-in-a-bag, and other times they will not. Purchasing them this way makes a lot of sense, for two reasons:
1. you save money
2. you don't have to worry about accidentally buying pieces that don't match
But, when they are in a set like this, it is important to pay attention to what pieces do come in the bag, because some come with pieces that others do not, such as the bed skirt or shams.
Also, it is good to know that these sets rarely have quilts in them, or other types of blankets other than a comforter. Fleece blankets are really good for kids because they are extremely warm during the wintertime. It is usually a good idea to also have a comforter or quilt though, because fleece blankets tend to come in different sizes than regular blankets, so when it comes to making the bed appear nicely, these don't usually do the job as well as a comforter or even a quilt. Many children don't care for quilts as much, simply because it is harder to find them in themes of their favorite characters or toys. But, if they like quilts, there are wide varieties of colors that they can be found in that can be made to match the rest of the child's bedding and room decorations. There are also many kids who don't care for comforters because during the wintertime, these blankets are cold to crawl into when trying to go to sleep. This is, again, a matter of preference for each child, because many children love climbing into a bed with a comforter, and love the fact that they feel cold when you get in (some even referring to them as a ‘cold' blanket), because during the summertime they are a lot cooler to climb into than a wool or fleece blanket, as well.
For most bed sizes, there are the same options on kids bedding choices, there are a few differences between buying for a twin or larger, and buying for a crib or toddler bed, and the options are different:
Twin, Full, Queen, King:
Fitted sheets
Top Sheets
Bed Skirt
Canopy Curtain
Quilt or Comforter
Pillow Cases
Pillow Shams
Throw Pillows
Cribs:
Fitted sheets
Mattress Pads
Thin Blanket
Bumper
Bed Skirt
So, the kids bedding options are slightly different here. Toddler beds fall right in the middle, and it just depends on what type of toddler bed you have as to what you will need to consider buying. For example, if it is a racecar bed in which the racecar takes up the space from the mattress to the floor, there will be no need to buy a bed skirt, although it is a choice in bedding. Many times a set for a crib will come with a little baby comforter in them, but these are too fluffy to use on them when they are newborns. It is best to either put these up until they are a little older, or one option is to hang them on the wall above the bed. This way you are still getting to use it as an entire set, and keep the theme going in the room, but not risking your child's safety for it. Mattress pads are usually something that you will need for cribs and many times toddler beds. When the diaper leaks at nighttime, these soak the leak up, preventing moisture from getting to the mattress. These work wonders, and many times they don't cover the entire mattress, so you might worry about leaks that get to a part the pad does not occupy. But this is OK with toddler and crib mattresses, because they are usually a plastic or vinyl on the outside of these mattresses for this very reason. Then, you can wash them off and dry them when you change sheets. Other larger mattresses are made of absorbent materials, so if a child is in diapers or is a bedwetter in a larger bed, it is definitely a good idea to make sure the mattress is completely covered by a pad under the sheet.
While there are so many kids bedding options, it may become difficult to choose which pieces to get for your child, it is best to figure in both what your child wants, and how you want their bed to appear.
