What's the Best Product for Co-sleeping?

We used the arm's reach mini co-sleeper and loved it. She stayed in it until about 3 months then went to her own crib in her room.

I had a hard time with my registry too - how was I supposed to know what I'd need?!! My strategy was to read the "lowest" reviews on babiesrus.com first and see if those concerns rang true for me.
My baby is 5 weeks old now and we're using the Arm's Reach Mini Co-Sleeper, but I don't like it. It's super-inconvenient!
Baby usually ends up sleeping on my chest for half the night and sleeps in between us some nights. We do have a sleep positioner (the cheapest one BrU had available, which works just fine) so he can't roll over.

i like the arm's reach co-sleeper, my son has been using it since birth until he was 5 months old. He transitioned into his own crib in his room with no problem. And as for the co-sleeper, we are using it as a changing table.

We co-slept with all four of ours and never used a "product".... never had a problem. Try going natural!

with any sleeping arrangements you choose for your family, the key thing to keep in mind is safety.

i found a bed rail or arms reach bassinet were best for our family. (if you have the room and it's the right height, sometimes you can take off one of the sides of the crib you have. it's one less thing to purchase.)

here's some helpful sights about safe co-sleeping and then transitioning from the family bed.

http://drjaygordon.com/development/ap/cosleeping.asp

http://drjaygordon.com/development/ap/sleep.asp

I wish I had this with my first pregnancy, since I could use it as a roll for top leg, when lying on the side, but I recieved it with #2 and it was AMAZING. We are still using it with #3. Every body I was recommended it to has loved it.

http://www.familysleeper.com/

(Click on the picture, since they changed the website.)

You put the roll on the very edge of your bed and the baby stays right next to it, so you never have to actually get up and get the baby and both of you get more sleep. Not to mention, when the diaper leaks or breastmilk leaks, all you do is wash this instead of all of your bedding.

My friend had the co-sleeper and she hated the hard edge on it and it never fit next her bed just right, due to her bed frame. FYI.

Jen

We used the Snuggle Nest with my son until he was about 3 months old, because he started kicking during the night. Somehow his kicks were always directed at me and not my hubby :) It was a little tight in a queen bed but it was great for feedings. As to the other registry items... I'd recommend the most compact stroller, we registered for one with all the bells and whistles and hardly ever used it because it was such a pain to get in and out of the car. Same with the pack-and-play, we never used any of the accessories, just the pack-and-play itself. Good luck and congrats!

I used the Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper and then put the Close and Secure Sleeper inside the top part of the Co-Sleeper. The Co-Sleeper alone seemed to have to room for my daughter when she was very young so putting the Close and Secure Sleeper in there worked really well for her. Also, if you are thinking of putting the Close and Secure Sleeper in your bed I would suggest checking out the size of it, it took up too much space in our queen size bed. Hope this helps!
Best of luck with all of the registering!

S.
Co-sleeping is wonderful! There are a lot of STRONG opinions out there. I just didn't discuss it with those whom I knew couldn't handle doing things differently. When I had my son 4 years ago I never knew I would co-sleep it just happened I didn't even know it had a name. IT just felt right for me and made me feel secure-IT took a lot to have him and I worried. I had a crib I only used to run the mobile so I could take a quick shower-we had a pack n play I used a few times for naps-but don't buy the crib in case you decide to do something else save the money and hassle etc!! That's just my advice-you are the Mama and you will know what is best for YOU and your FAMILY
Congrats! Yes, the registry is overwhelming!

I didn't have a close and secure sleeper but I have a cosleeper and theyr'e great. I also had an "inclined to sleep" wedge that I used in the early days in my bed when you want them really close and it keeps them in their own little spot but close for feedings. the close and secure sleeper looks too cumbersome. My girl is 5.5 months and still in her cosleeper but a smaller baby so just know you don't have to have a crib set up right away. I'd skip the other two and keep it simple with the co-sleeper which you'll get more bang for the buck and won't be repeating yourselfb (they can be in it til they start to sit up basically)....that's my opinion and experience with two babies. Try not to get overwhelmed. Get a good carrier on your registry like the moby wrap and the ergo carrier, and a play mat (sorry I know you didn't ask for this request, just what I've used the most). Enjoy the rest of your pregnancy! Congrads and birthing blessings! Remember we've all gone thru it and will be there with you in sprit!...
xoxox
:-)

I have been using the Arms Reach co-sleeper& love it! It goes right next to the bed and our bed is even abnormally tall, so we bought lifts for it that the company makes. We also bought a "sleep positioner" for baby, to ensure he stays on his back or side. It also has the mommy's heartbeat vibrating on the positioner. We have been really happy with both. I love being able to look at him right in his little eyes when we are going to sleep for the night, and know I can just reach over to feed him in the middle of the night.

Good luck with the registry, it is definitely overwhelming! I had all my mommy friends email me a list of the 10 items they felt they could not live without the first 6 months of baby's life. That helped me to get a start!! Many of the moms said generally the same 10 items, which made me feel that these were probably good choices. Also, I read reviews on Babies R Us of the items I thought I would want. Good Luck!!

I see you have a lot of responses & I didn't read them so this could be a duplicate but I recommend buying the book Baby Bargains! I used it so much. I took it with me to Babies R Us & everything. It rates & tells you the pros & cons of every product. It doesn't tell you which one to buy it simply tells you about the products. I loved it. It was even on Oprah I guess. It's a tall skinny book. It shouldn't be hard to find at the book store.

Dear S.,

Your head will be swimming even more if you go through with this co sleeping. You and your husband need , need, yes need, closeness and privacy especially in the first year of your baby's life. Your baby will be better off and gain confidence in life if he or she is allowed to be his or her own person, in his own bed and so forth and so on. You will be sorry, and it is harder to stop than it is to start. In a large part of the world families co sleep out of necessity. But, really, you and your husband face a lot of stress and struggles that you need to figure out together. The quietness and peace that you will find together in bed at night will be very helpful in staying close and working together. Amen. C. N.

guess what, I KNOW how nice it is to sleep with a darling, precious baby, they are so wondrous. So I am not just being a prude, I am being realistic.

We co-slept for pretty much the first year and never needed anything special. I got real used to sleeping with one arm up and over my son's head so that we wouldn't roll over on him. It also made nursing easier as I didn't have to actually wake up to feed him.

ok, first forgot about all the co-sleeping stuff. If you plan on getting a crib, just get one that can change into a toddler bed, where the front comes off. Then assemble and keep the front off like the toddler bed. Find the height that fits your bed and wedge it up against your bed. I did this for both my girls and it was awesome. I got the benefit of co-sleeping while still keeping some space for myself. Plus if i wanted i could just scoot her into my bed whenever i needed to or go to her crib for feeding and such. Good luck

Hi S.,
A co-sleeper next to the bed is always safest. Check out www.guardiansleeper.com too for safe bedding. May your new arrival be a total blessing.
C. :-)

NOT WEIRD that registering is blowing your mind! Babies R Us leaves us under the impression that we need one of each! Not at all true!!! Take it from a mommy of 2 boys under two with an apartment full of things that got tried once or twice.
With that having been said, having your wants met without spend all of you own money sure is nice! :) Try to think about where everything will go and if it's just a waste of space waiting to happen.

I currently co-sleep with my 5 month old and did (kind of still do) with my 2 year old, au natural. As long as you're a fairly light sleeper and don't think you'll bulldoze your newborn while you sleep, that's what I recommend! I love Michelle's suggestion of pushing the open side of the converted crib against the side of your bed. That's where my two year old sleeps currently, but I wish I'd have thought of it a lot sooner. It's nice! I like having my little loves right there next to me!

We used the small arm's reach co-sleeper and LOVED it. The smaller one was nice because it was easier take with us on trips. Our son was old enough for our bed or his own crib long before he out grew the co-sleeper.

Hi S.,

I found that a simple bassinet worked best as I was not worried about rolling over my child.

The best advice I can give is that you are going to be a mom, you have wonderful instincts -- just learn to trust them. Remember "mother knows best."

Good luck and try to enjoy the first few months as they do fly by

we co-sleep with our son who is 2 years old now and have since he was born.
we got the co-sleeper, but he's always just slept in between my husband and i. he wants to be close to me, and it's so much easier to breast feed during the the night!
we ended up using the co-sleeper as a sort of play pen occassionally.

Hi there, I co-slept with my baby until she was 15 months old. It was wonderful to have her in bed with us. But I didn't get a single nights sleep unitl she was in her crib in her room. I guess I turned into a very light sleeper because she was in bed with us and I didn't want to roll over on her, plus I was breastfeeding at the time. But this time around I got an Arm's Reach co-sleeper off of Craigslist for about 70 dollars. But I do love the other suggestions about pushing the crib up to the side of your bed. My bedroom is small, so the crib won't fit in our room.

I didn't use any special product with any of my three kids they all just slept in our bed. I would suggest checking out consignment shops they get great things in great condition for good prices. Newborns often have a mind of their own and people buy lots of things that never get used for one reason or another and you could get something never used to try out. My kids also went from sleeping in our bed to sleeping in their own bed we hardly ever used the crib for any of the kids except for storage. They are now 17,14,& 5 years old and are very secure well adjusted kids. The five year old often will sleep in one of the other two rooms (on his fold out wiggles couch) & they love that closeness too. Good luck!!

I don't know about the "close and secure sleeper" but I loved (LOVED!) our Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper (what I assume you mean by "original"). So much good luck to you!

We have and like the Arm's Reach Original Co-sleeper, we ordered from an online web site to get the color we wanted and the leg extensions. We have the big one, the size of a pack n play. My DD is 8 mos, still in it, but rail is up now that she rolls around everywhere, and as soon as she begins to sit up on her own we will have to drop the mattress down. I like the portability and how it adjusts to her growing needs. My sister has the small one and her 5 mo old has outgrown it already...had to transition to a crib. Good luck!

I really liked the mini co-sleeper

Someone gave us a little portable cloth bed from Target - it only comes in pale blue with yellow trim and costs about $40 I think. It folds up and looks like a little cloth briefcase. I don't know what it is called. It was the best gift ever! Our daughter slept in that between us until she didn't fit and then we put her straight in to the crib at 2 1/2 months. We loved having her right there so we could check her breathing, change her diaper, feed her and just gaze at her. It was really great for my husband to be able to be physically close for that many hours and great for me when he changed the diapers and I could sleep. We never used the bassinet except for naps a couple of times.

We used a "Snuggle Nest" for all of our kids, because the co-sleepers were to lmow to attach to our bed properly. We loved it. It was so nice to have them close for nursing in the middle of the night and it made it easier to sleep knowing they were right next to me. Good luck!

I have to say that the Arms Reach Full Size Co Sleeper in the Beige Color was my best friend... Our Daughter slept in it till she was 3... hmmmm... Yes still we loved it! She never really slept in her beautiful crib with her amazingly beautiful satin and chenille bedding... had I known... I would have saved a bundle :) Oh well ... Co Sleepers are still Awesome...

We never used our co-sleeper and she always slept between us. Now that she's 20 months, we have a queen and twin pushed together against a wall in our room. Dr. Sears has a lot of good info as well as the websites already referred to in this post. This arrangement has worked well for us; frankly, I love it. I would recommend not buying anything (borrow to test out) until you find what is comfortable for you. It will probably be an ongoing negotiation and discussion about what is best for you, your husband and new baby.

Best to you and your family.

Jen

Well, you shouldn't need both. We used the Arms Reach co-sleeper--the small one--then transitioned our daughter to a crib in our room when she outgrew it. If I had it to do again, I might read guidelines for safe co-sleeping available from Dr. Sears website/books and skip the Arms Reach...if I could get my husband to agree. However it works for you, I think you'll love co-sleeping and how much it simplifies nighttime parenting.

I would go with the Arm's Reach Original Co-Sleeper, which we have. We like the fact that it's portable and easy to fold away and store once baby outgrows it instead of being just another piece of furniture as a crib would.

We used it as a bassinet and changing table from birth up until our son was starting to sit up at 7 months, which we then lowered the "mattress" to the bottom and converted it to a playard (we now just change him on the bed).

He's able to pull himself to stand now so when he awakes in his sleep, the playard functions like a crib to keep him safe and secure in his own space, but has the added bonus of being next to the bed for night nursing convenience. It's VERY versatile!

I loved the Arms Reach Co-Sleeper.It's a little bit like a bassinet with a dropped side so you can push it up to the side of your bed so you won't need to get out of bed to get the baby at night. I don't like having a baby actually in the bed for safety reasons so this is the best alternative. The close and secure sleeper was a waste because our baby outgrew it quickly. You wouldn't be able to put it on a nightstand and I wouldn't suggest putting anything on a nightstand for fear it would fall off. I kept my first son in our room until he was almost five months old and our second was in his crib at three months old. You'll find out what's right for you, but for us the noises the babies made at night when they were sleeping kept me up checking on them too often. I needed my sleep so I could function. I also think that my 3 1/2 year old is so good at sleeping in his own room now because he had his own space early on.

I used the co sleeper (arm's reach) for my first two, and then for my next two, I used the Amby baby hammock, and I love it. It is not really attached to your bed, but I have mine right next to my bed so I can reach baby for night feedings. With all four kids, I ended up just leaving them in the bed after they came in the first time to nurse anyway, so I wouldn't choose more than one product. I recommend the Amby because my daughter slept through the night at 3 months in it, and my son is now 2.5 months and sleeping from 9 pm to about 5 am in the amby. My kids in the arm's reach/bed didn't sleep through the night until they were 6 months, and that was only because we moved them into a crib in their own room.

YEAH!
Good for you!
Co-sleeping is awesome.
My 3.5 year old is such a big girl now that she hardly ever cuddles with us, so when she wants to, we let her, then put her in her own bed once she is asleep.
Our little man, well he never wanted to sleep with us. We were hoping he'd be in bed with us for a year at least, but he prefers his crib.
So just know that your baby will let you know what he/she wants to do, so until later, I wouldn't waste money on things you may not need. We never used anything extra, other than a bassinette next to our bed for the first few weeks/months, but no extra, special stuff for the bed!
HAPPY PARENTING!
S.
www.MomsOnAMission.US

Hi S. -

Congratulations on your upcoming arrival & your decision to co-sleep! If your bed is big enough, unless one of you is likely to roll onto the baby, you don't really need to buy anything at all. A baby can't roll off the bed if it's between it's parents.

But if you want to buy something, just consider whether it has high enough rails all around so if baby is by itself it can't find a way over the edge. In the center of a bed, it's less likely at such a small age. As they get older, they do get pretty roll-y and can cover some territory.

Not sure what you mean by placing it on the nightstand, but something that would span from the bed to the wall sounds pretty safe to me (maybe have a rail at the foot?)

All the best to you & your family --- and rest easy; you'll be wonderful!

Colleen