Saturday, August 15, 2009

What do babies sleep in?

On our Babies R Us trip, Kdubs and I discovered something disheartening...

Bedding Arrangement-Plan A won't work.
What is plan A, you ask?
Since we have no idea when we are going anywhere, where we will be going, or what our arrangements will be, we wanted to get something that could travel well (since we might be traveling a lot and hotel cribs ook me out) and would be sturdy...

So after much research I thought an Arm's Reach Co-sleeper would be best. Great for breastfeeding, keep the baby close but not in the actual bed. I also thought it could be used as a play pen later. I had read a lot of reviews and was pumped.

Until I went into B-R-Us and played with the one on display!
It was unruly, hard to fold up, the play pen area looked flimsy and awful. It was small and there was warning labels printed on all the fabric...SO NOT CUTE!!!! Kdubs played around with it for awhile, and he was even more fed up than me!

So we looked around and brainstormed:

Do we get a Moses basket, a bassinet, a playpen, and a a traveltime bed? We'd like to wait to get a full crib until we move...less furniture to move, etc.

What do/did you all use for the first few months? Did you try something and hate it? Please advise me!!!

15 comments:

The Mrs. said...

flyboy wanted to get a bassinett for this kiddo this time around. I however dont understand spending 150 bucks on a bassinett for a few months when a. we have a pack n play that works. and b. we have a four hundred crib that is delightful. So we have settled on the packnplay to save 150 bucks. I say go for a crib and a pack n play. The pack n play worked just fine. but then again you could get the bassinett and use it for other kids too... shoot...its a tough one!

Krystyn @ Really, Are You Serious? said...

We used a pack n play that had a bassinet attachment for the inside. It also had a built in changing table.

We are actually using it tonight for a friend's son who is staying over. We've definitely gotten our use out of it.

GranolaGirl said...

My vote if for the pack-n-play too! Ruth slept in the bassinet part in our room when she was an infant, you can pop on the changing table in the middle of the night, and when they are older they can sleep in the lower part. We've been using our for 4 years-- for Elijah and now for Ruth. She slept in it all week at the beach.

They really are easy to fold up, have a carrying case and a handle.

amanda said...

totally go for the pack n play. although we did get a moses basket too (bc i was obsessed with them). she actually slept in that for the first few weeks in between hubby and i. then we moved her over to the pack n play - she slept on the "top" part for the first three months. the changing table part was awesome. now it goes with us on vaca. it's totally worth every penny.

Vanessa said...

We use our pack n play still today when we go on trips - and the ones with the top bassinet are great for when they are newborns! We kept our pack n play downstairs for naps and had a small bassinet in our bedroom for nights, but you could definitely use just the pack n play to cut down on gear needed! Added plus - they have so many cute patterns now to choose from!

Anonymous said...

Okay, I have been the proud owner/borrower of a crib, a cradle, an Arm's Reach co-sleeper, a Moses Basket, AND a pack-n-play. Whew! It pays to have friends and family to hand-me-down/loan you stuff :)

A crib is a must-have once you get settled some place, but it isn't something you need up-front in my opinion. Our kiddos didn't routinely sleep there until they were around 3 or 4 months old. You are wise not to buy one initially :)

The cradle was a waste for us. Joshua almost tipped the thing over as a newborn, and it made him startle like crazy whenever it rocked.

My mom had an Arm's Reach co-sleeper stashed at her house for us. I too found it difficult to collapse and set-up . . . a general pain in the tush as far as I'm concerned (and who needs that with a new baby?). Plus, my kids outgrew it by 4 months or so. Not worth it!

The Moses Basket was a great thing for us. All three kids slept in that as newborns. Something about the cozy space seemed to replicate mom's embrace for them, but my kids outgrew it by 4 months or so. Unless you plan to use it with multiple children, it's sort of a waste of $$.

If I could only buy one thing, like the others, I would have to choose the pack-n-play. We bought one at a consignment sale before Joshua was born, and it was a life-saver! He used it on all the trips we took from birth through big boy bed. We've also used it for Jaden and Judah when we travel, and we use it to provide a convenient napping spot for friends when they come over with little ones. Our master bedroom isn't really big, and it fits in the corner with no problem at all. Plus, it's really sturdy. Ours was used when we bought it, and it has still held up for 3 of our kiddos with no problems.

Hope that helps :)

Grace {Formerly Gracie} said...

My son used a Pack n' Play, and now my daughter sleeps in it.

I've never used anything else since we've been really satisfied with it.

I think it's a great investment, especially if you use it with multiple kids.

laugheveryday said...

pack n play - i concur!

Jenny said...

Both of my girls spent their first few weeks (at least - Little Girl much longer than that) in the same antique cradle that I slept in when I was a baby. :) My mother-in-law refinished it for me when I was pregnant, my brother-in-law rewired the part where the little mattress rested, and I got some sweet eyelet bedding. We didn't have any problem with the rocking/tipping thing like Huckaby Fam mentioned, but my cradle was on plush carpet both times and I swaddled my girls tightly every night and for every nap. I loved having them right beside my bed at night and got really good at lightly rocking the cradle in my sleep! :) We graduated to a pack and play when Little Girl got too big (she's never been good at sleeping alone) or when either one was sick/travel/etc. Whatever you decide, I'm sure your baby will benefit from being close to you at night. Good luck!

McMommy said...

Trust me on this...go for the pack and play....

.jimaie.marie. said...

I used a basinette like this for my 2nd son http://www.kolcraft.com/product.aspx?id=138&shopby=category and with Isaiah we used a hadnmade wooden cradle that we borrowed from a friend.
We also had a pack n play that we used when we went up to my moms or visited ANYWHERE the baby might have to sleep, those things are LIFESAVERS, must buys.

BUT, I recommend something you can rock in the middle of the night. I found that with both of my babies they would wake up in the middle of the night fussing a bit (not hungry) and I could just reach out (in my sleep!) and rock the cradle/bassinette just so and in a couple of minutes they were asleep again. Especially helpful when they wake 30 mins after you feed them and you KNOW they're not hungry but just need a little help falling asleep.
Both our boys slept next to us for 3 mos and then I moved them to their cribs.

Liz said...

We had a cheapo Walmart or Target bassinette in our bedroom at night when the kids were babies. It had wheels on it, so we rolled it into the living room during the day so baby was always near us & we could keep an eye on them.

With our 2nd baby, someone loaned us a Pack & Play for a trip & we loved it. I probably wouldn't have replaced the bassinette w/ it in the early months, but if I had been traveling or moving around a lot, we definately would've used a P&P. Very handy!

Anonymous said...

We used the Graco pack-n-play with bassinet insert for our first born, because we didn't want to buy a crib and then have to ship it back to the States. When we traveled, we actually slept him in the bassinet of his stroller. He preferred that anyways. That of course only worked the first 3-4 months. Travel cots/pack-n-plays are really the best option for travel, unless you co-sleep which can get tricky in European hotels. Double & larger beds are usually two mattresses pushed together. The baby would be sleeping in the crack. Also, as a heads up, Europe doesn't have the same options as the States in baby cribs. IKEA gives you the best ideas of the kind of cribs you are going to be looking at. We bought our crib in the States and moved it back here with us.

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erwicker said...

My vote if for the pack-n-play too! They really are easy to fold up, have a carrying case and a handle.

travel cot mattress