Co-sleepers

I have a sweet bassinet available for sale that I used with my little guys. I found that having that pulled up next to my bed was perfect and that having a small amount of space was nice. Having the baby sleep in bed with me was distracting because I was afraid to roll on him and every time he moved I woke up! The bassinet gave me the perfect chance to sleep right next to him and have easy access for comforting and breastfeeding him. If you're intersted in my bassinet email me at ____@____.com! It looks nearly perfect! I also have some other baby items you may be interested in.

J.

We did the family bed....the baby slept in between us both. There is a book out by the same name. We did this actually with both sons for 2 years each. It was the BEST thing we did besides nursing until they self weaned (which was about the same age!). At that point, they are ready for their "big-boy beds" and never had trouble with sleeping issues in our house. Boys are now 9 and 13 and very, very well-balanced kids!

The Tres Tria product looks nice, but pretty expensive for what is, essentially, a glorified pillow. Also, you may not want something that takes up so much room in your bed as your baby gets bigger.
I haven't used such an anti-roll-off pillow, but I have years of experience using a Co-Sleeper and recommend it highly.
I have three sons and have used the Arms' Reach Co-Sleeper with all of them. With my first baby, I borrowed my sister-in-law's Co-Sleeper since it seemed like another expensive novelty baby-care item and I wasn't sure how long it would be useful. We then purchased the nicest crib we could afford and had custom bedding made because that's where we thought our baby would sleep after the initial newborn period was over. It seems so funny now. . . .
We used the Co-Sleeper until my first son was over a year old, and we joked about how the beautiful crib in the other room was part of the "Baby Museum," since it was virtually untouched. We finally gave it away because it was all just taking up space.
When I became pregnant with our second baby, my sister-in-law was using her Co-Sleeper for her own baby, so we bought one of our own, knowing how useful it is. It is an essential, sanity-saving piece of baby gear, in my mind. I would say a Co-Sleeper and a sling or mei tai-type carrier are my top two pieces of baby gear--everything else is incidental. . . except maybe a couple good nursing bras and Lanisnoh nursing pads. That's it for my must-have list. ;) Breastfeeding is so much easier and more convenient when Baby is right nearby, and it's lovely to be able to nurse the baby to sleep and then scoot him over to the Co-Sleeper once he's asleep. I also feel secure in having my baby on either side of me at night while nursing, because even if he rolled a bit, he'd only roll into my husband one direction, and into the Co-Sleeper the other direction. It's a brilliant bed-extender. I value my sleep, and the Co-Sleeper has really simplified nighttime parenting and kept everyone happy and comfortable.
I know the manufacturer says the Co-Sleeper is intended for babies who cannot climb out of it, but its weight capacity is 40 pounds. A Co-Sleeper is shallow, compared to a crib, so it would be easy for an active baby to fall out. But my babies are never in the Co-Sleeper when I'm not right next to them, so we do not feel reckless about adapting its use beyond the manufacturer's suggestion. It has been a great investment for our family.
Our Co-Sleeper is the original full-sized model; I know they make a "mini" model if your room is small, but if it's an option, I highly recommend the Original size. I can keep a book, a bottle of water for myself, a folded extra baby blanket or burp cloth, and my glasses case at the foot of the Co-Sleeper as a little nightstand while Baby is still little and it's so convenient. We have the model that has a long liner/skirt and it looks nice in our bedroom, more like pretty furniture than baby gear.
I know families who use a Pack 'n Play type play yard as a co-sleeper bassinet and it works fine. I also know families who drop the side of their crib and make it a "side car" against their bed. There are lots of options, but as a breastfeeding mother, I think you'll always be glad to have your baby right nearby. My older two sons sleep happily in their own beds in their own room with no issues beyond a normal adjustment period and neither my husband nor I regret the time they spent sleeping near us.
Congrats on your growing family and best wishes!

I used a pack-n-play that had a bassinet. There are several sizes of pack-n plays. we didn't get the smallest but it was not one of the big ones either. We kept it in our room next to our bed, well we kept it a little bit away because my husband had to be able to walk through to get to his dresser but anyway, and it was GREAT for nursing at night. I loved it. We used it until my daughter was two or three months old and ready for her crib. But it was great because it can double as a travel bed and you can also use it as a portable play pen. It had a great diaper changing station too. I have number two on the way and i am going to use it for him as well.

Hi Helaine,
Some friends that co-slept with their little ones recommended this: http://www.humanityorganics.com/humanity-family-sleeper.html. It's pretty similar to the Tres Tria but looks like it could be safer (i.e. wouldn't roll off the bed). That said, another option for a "sidecar" sleeper (other than the Arm's Reach Co-sleeper) that won't take up a lot of room is the mini Delta portable crib. (See: http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3245392) They're made of wood, and I figured out that the "bassinette" level was just about level with our mattress (with the added safety of a little bit of railing between the crib and the mattress top). It's less expensive than the Arm's Reach, and they can use it until 2 or so.

i have no experience with that product but I have a ton of bedsharing experience. I would say to wait to purchase these things until you need them. When your child is first born they are not going to roll off the bed so put a pillow or something so they cant fall out of the bed. once they get to the point of rolling they are sturdy enough to put them in between you and dad as if dad goes near baby you will sense it and baby will scream if anything is on it. Obviously no one intoxicated or on meds should be in bed with baby . you are not going to roll onto baby. after that they crawl and can crawl over that thing and the pillows..all cosleeping and non cosleeping kids fall off the bed, they survive. A lot of products are sold out there to scam you new moms, just wait and see and if you decide you need one immediately Be By baby sells them in the city

We LOVE our cosleeper. It is the best investment we made in baby gear, bar none! That being said, are you only going to have this one baby? In that case, I would recommend trying to borrow one from a friend. Another option is to buy a cosleeper mini instead of the full-sized one. If you are going to have more than one baby, definitely go for the full sized cosleeper. You won't regret it for a moment. I like the full-sized one, because there is plenty of room to keep a couple baskets with wipes, diapers, change of clothes, drink of water, etc. in the cosleeper and I can still fit baby in comfortably.

Best of luck,
S. L

We bought the Arms Reach co-sleeper and after about the first week (when I learned to nurse sidelying) it was only used as a bed rail since we would both fall asleep nursing and my son wouldn't make it back into the co-sleeper. I've never seen that pillow, but it looks like it might take up a lot of room on the bed (we have a queen and it's a little tight). You could get a bed rail instead. It would take up less space on the bed and you could put it on your child's big-kid bed down the road. As another alternative, you could push your bed against the wall and have your husband sleep by the edge.

We didn't bed share but we did co-sleep with our son in the room so that it would be easy for me to nurse. We just had him set up in the pack and play bassinet until he was about 4 months. At that time he was sleeping through most of the night - maybe waking once or twice only. It was great having him near by and I could dose while he nursed in bed with us during those early months. I have night terrors so bed sharing isn't really an option for us, but rather then spending big money on a co-sleeper bassinet, I would just use a pack and play - they come in handy for so many things down the line!

I've never heard of the product you mentioned, but as some one with latex allergies I would be hesitant to use a rubber product (even though it is covered) for such an intimate use since repeated exposure to rubber can create the allergy - I got mine from working at a party store that specialized in latex balloon sculptures!

Best of luck and remember to follow your own instincts for what works for you and your family :)