Joshua walking inside (2) 4/17/11

Joshua walking outside 4/17/11

Traveling with a toddler

Joshua is a great traveler. He does great being in the car. Every monday we drive over an hour each way to OT and he does great. That's not my problem, he does fine and adjusts pretty well to new places. Last year we went on 2 vacations and he did fine both times but he was able to sleep in a pack'n'play (portacrib). Now I'm not so sure. He hasn't slept in one in over 6 months and he has grown since then, he's now 3ft tall and over 30lbs, I'm pretty sure that's over the limit for the pack'n'play. I don't want him to try to climb out if it and get hurt, he has never tried to do this in the past but he is so much more mobile now and is always trying to climb up on the coffee table and couch. He has never tried to climb out of his crib either but he probably will one day, I dread that and trying to get him to sleep in a bed (that's for another post). So here is my dilema, what do we do when we're on vacation? The place we go to at the beach I was able to reserve a pack'n'play but not where we'll be going in October and do I really want him sleeping in one anyway since he's so big? So I found the PeaPod Plus. It's a tent with an air mattress inside, it unzips one on side and on the other has mesh like the pack'n'play. It's a bigger version of the regular PeaPod, this one's mattress is the size of a regular crib so ideal for up to age 6, (the original I would imagine would be the size of the pack'n'play mattress). But I'm concerned, it's a tent, he's never slept in one. It can be hot in there I've read and he is very warm natured, I do not want him to overheat. Will he like it and sleep in it? That's probably my biggest concern. He's never slept in a regular bed either so my other option of an air mattress on the floor I'm equally worried about. Please, I really am looking for input. Joshua is the size of a 2 year old but is not cognitively a 2 year old, he's a baby or 1 year old, hence my dilema.