Where Do Babies Sleep? About This Page:

[Teresa]

All 3 of my girls have been co-sleepers. They also had their own cribs/rooms for daytime or when DH or I were way too tired to have a baby in the bed. I always slept on my side, facing the middle of the bed with my arm stretched out and touching DH's body. That way neither of us were able to "roll" onto the baby. Not that I think it was really a possibility, but just to be safe....

They all slept through the night early on (Samantha was 5 days old, Kathryn was 2 weeks, and Lauren - poor colicky "if we had her first, she'd have been an only" kid slept through the night at 4 months)
They all also made the transition to their own beds in their own rooms very easily. I think it's because we always had that up and ready, and sometimes we put them in their beds from the start.
They're all still really good sleepers, just come on over when it's time to get up for school!!

[lynbarsim]

My 3 slept in a bassinet in my room until about three months, then in a crib in their own room.

[krisk11]

I had dd in a bassinet next to my bed while I was breastfeeding which didn't last long. Then she moved to a crib but I was in a one bedroom so her crib and my bed were in the same room. When she would wake up she would cry because she could see me and to save my sanity I would put her in bed with me. She was there way too long but finally moved into her own bed in her own room (we had moved into a 2 bedroom). Now at 11 yrs old and 5'6" she is too big and kicks and elbows too much that her father and I fight over who has to sleep with her when we are in hotel rooms with 2 double beds.

[disney_duke]

All 3 of mine slept in a bassinet in our room at first, then to their cribs. I waited until they each had their own kind of schedule first. DD1 started sleeping 6+ hours at 5 weeks old, went to the crib and has been a great sleeper ever since. DD2 started sleeping 5+ hours at 4 weeks old, but continued to wake up for 1 night feeding till 11 mos. old. Now DS finally went to his crib at 7 weeks old with only sleeping 4-5 hours. Yuck. He's now 3 mos. old and starting to do 6 hours every few days or so. His schedule seems to be taking longer to find. We took DD2 to WDW at 11 weeks and she did great, better than her older sister!
Best of luck!!

[Jennifer2003]

I think the Pack N Play is the greatest invention and it's what I will use if I ever become a Mommy. You can use them a lot longer than a traditional bassinette.

I hope Henway is a great little sleeper for you!!! Do whatever you, Wally and Henway are most comfortable with. Have a plan now and fiddle with it as needed once he's here.

Jennifer

[wheatenwalker]

Both slept in a bassinet in our room- for a couple of months. (I confess that older DS slept in the bed alot while I was pregnant with DS#2- it was the easiest way for us all to sleep.)

[Jillybean]

Both of our girls slept in our bed for the first couple of months before they moved to their cribs. I just found it so much easier to nurse at night with them right there. You have to do whatever you feel is best for you!

Jill

[wdwlovers]

Both kids slept in a bassinet next to our bed for their first months. Ariana was easy to get into the crib, Phoenix not so much since they are sharing a room. I liked having them nearby those early months. We actually have the Pack & Play set up for Phoenix since he is having issues sleeping due to colds, so this way he won't wake up Ariana. We have it set up in the living room next to our bedroom. It's just a bit easier that way.

[momtolexi]

Lexi slept in a bassinet for the first three months and then went into a crib and did very well. Unfortunately, at about 9 months she developed horrible ear infections and it was a nightmare trying to get her to sleep with all the pressure. She woke up constantly. It took three months for the doctor to decide that she needed tubes and the waiting time. Once the tubes were in place, she decided that she liked our bed better than the crib. Almost three years later we now have a king size bed and it is getting mighty crowded with the three of us and our yellow lab puppy who is bigger than all of us! We need to work on moving everybody out of our room soon!

[Chrissi]

We were broke (can't buy cribs with good looks, unfortunately ) and I was sleep-deprived as it was. Having to get out of bed to nurse DS two or three times a night might have been the straw that broke the camel's back. DS co-slept until he was fully weaned at 2 1/2 years old. When he weaned, he no longer had a reason to sleep in the family bed. He got his own big boy bed and he does sleep in it most of the time.

Co-sleeping for us - was a way to get more sleep and spend less time up and out of bed at night. It was cheaper than buying a crib, more convenient, and a great way to sleep in on weekends. All three of us would lay in bed late and watch cartoons until hunger forced DH or I to go get some cereal and milk.

Someone told me when I was pregnant that there is only one rule new parents must follow: you sleep when the baby sleeps or you don't sleep. I would lay down every afternoon to nurse DS in bed and we'd both fall asleep for several hours. My sleep deprivation was much shorter-lived than my friends who used cribs and had to wander around the house several times every night for months.

If you're planning to nurse, nothing is easier than nursing in bed. And I never once rolled over on DJ. (Even if you doze off, your natural tendency is to roll away from each other when the baby unlatches.) We kept a pack-and-play nearby for those times when we needed some privacy.

If you're a very heavy sleeper, you enjoy a cocktail or glass of wine before bed, or you take sleeping aids - co-sleeping is not for you. Co-sleeping or the family bed is not for everyone. You need to do what is best for you. However, before you drop some big bucks on a crib or bassinet, try co-sleeping first. You'll know within one or two weeks if it's going to work for your family. There are also some great side-car co-sleepers out there if you want the baby near you and within reach, but not necessarily in another room.

BTW - we do have a bassinet. It was a nightmare trying to get DJ down to sleep in it though. The second I put him down, he'd wake up. If I nursed him to sleep and just left him in bed, he'd sleep for hours. I have a bassinet that DJ slept in for a grand total of 20 minutes when he was three weeks old. It's sitting in storage taking up space.

[JoanW]

Grace went right to the crib from the hospital, I think. Rachel was in a basinette for six weeks till we moved to this house, then she was in a nursery off the master bedroom. At 3 months old, she moved to a crib. She was my best sleeper till she turned 10 years old!

[Cheriemek]

I was blessed with 4 good sleepers! Each of them spent their first 2 months in a cradle in our bedroom, then went to their own cribs. One problem, though, was that Kitten Caboodle also liked the cradle. When there was no baby in it, Caboodle would jump in and take a nap. Please don't mention this to my mother.

[Tink and co.]

I had a bassinet that had a removeable base. We kept the base in the bedroom upstairs with the girls and it sat securely on the couch or floor when we were downstairs. When Jack was born we lived in a one story house and the base was on wheels, and I just wheeled him wherever I wanted him. I kept the bassinet touching my side of the bed and DH swears to this day that I could scoop a baby up nurse, diaper and tuck baby back in without waking up. I kept a basket of diapering supplies within reach as well. They all slept in the bassinet until they were so big that they could swing their legs over the side. Truth be told, I'd love them all to still be snoozing there so I could roll over and check on their breathing in the night. Lots easier than trekking to everyone's rooms. They probably wouldn't care for it at all.
DH worked graveyard shift 11pm-9am when the girls were little, so when Zoie moved out of the bassinet she went into bed with me. When Hallie was ready to move out of the bassinet (at about 4 months old), they went into their room, Zoie in a twin bed, and Hallie in the crib. They still share a room and up until last year they often shared a twin bed.
When Jack was ready to move on from the bassinet, DH worked swing shift 2pm-12am so Jack went to bed with me, and Dad moved him into his crib in his own room when he came home. He never woke up and still sleeps like a rock. We kept that arrangement up until Dad got a day job, and Jack was about 6 years old.
All three of my kids are great sleepers. Just do works best for you and your schedules and be sure to sleep whenever the baby sleeps. Dust bunnies and dinner will wait...now if someone could help with my co-sleeping, bed hog of a dog.

[Luv4My4]

Erin slept in my room until she was 7 years old but I was a teen/single mother still living with my parents. She did not sleep in my bed though she always had her own bassinet, crib, bed until her Dad & I got married when she was 7, moved into our own house and she got her own room finally !!

Shannon slept in a cradle in my room for all of about a minute because she was a grunter (she sounded like a little pig) and I couldn't sleep while she was in the room, honestly I probably put up with it about a month but I couldn't stand it anymore after that and moved her into her crib in her own room.

Katie slept in a cradle and then crib in my room until she was six months old mainly because we had to move Erin into the smaller room and Shannon into the bigger room to share with Katie and we were too tired and lazy to do it She moved into the room with Shannon with no problem.

Molly slept in my room in the cradle or the crib until she was almost 3 because she choked on a toy, turned blue and I had to perform baby CPR and then rush her to the hospital when she was about a year old (she was still there until then because of the room situation and her having to share with Shannon & Katie) and my biggest fear after that was her being in a room with her sisters climbing out of her crib or bed and choking on something while we were all sleeping so I kept her safely with me until she finally outgrew putting things in her mouth

My girls rarely slept with me in my bed when they were babies my DH & I know someone personally who rolled over on and suffocated their baby when he was sleeping and after that I have never been able to comfortably sleep with them in my bed. There were times when I would wake up in panic looking for a baby who was safely in her crib under the blankets or under DH because I was sure that I fell asleep with her in the bed. Co-sleeping just wasn't for us :, DH is an extremely deep sleeper and I was always terrified that he would roll over on them. The girls still rarely sleep in my room, usually only when one of them is sick enough that I feel I have to keep an eye on them through the night or if DH is away for some reason on a weekend I will let one, two or three of them sleep with me as a treat (my oldest DD Erin wouldn't be caught dead sleeping in my bed )

Good luck with your decision! Ultimately you have to do what is best for your child and your family and your sanity!!!

Edited to add: that all four of my girls were and are wonderful sleepers and they were all sleeping through the night by 8 weeks (3 of them by no later than 6 weeks).

[poohmaine]

A cradle beside our bed until they slept through the night, then in their own crib in their own room (with a baby monitor, of course).