When to introduce the cot?

[woodmill100]

DS is currently just coming up to 5 weeks old. He's in a moses basket at the moment in our room but I have been reading stories where mums and dads have found it hard transferring babies from basket to cot. When did you move your baby from basket to cot?

Is it something we should think about sooner rather than later? Plenty of room in bedroom for cot so that is not an issue but thinking when he gets to about 8 weeks or so putting him upstairs for his sleep at night (with monitors) so we can have some parents time!

Any thoughts/comments?

[whoisdoingthedishes]

my DD slept well on the moses basket until about 3 months old. Then she became very mobile so we moved her into a crib. She slept very badly in her crib. However, when we moved her into a cot at 7 months she took it quite well. The first night she seemed very confused but she liked it. I'm sure she would have enjoyed the cot at an earlier age, say 4 months.

[MatNanPlus]

Sometimes babies get used to the tighter confines of a moses basket and have a few unsettled nights in a bigger space, you could move baby to cot and place at the foot end of the cot so the sides of the cot are at head and foot and then one side of the baby is next to the end railing, they are often comforted by this for some reason - don't use cot bumpers tho.

[woodmill100]

Took cot bumpers back to mothercare - they were a gift

[MatNanPlus]

[mckenzie]

we put the moses basket inside the cot first to try and make the transition easier.

[ten10]

Mine went into the cot at about 6 weeks, he just hated the moses basket, so tried the cot and he was much happier immediately

[poppy34]

woodmill-hows it going ? dd same age and we've got same issue...

also why remove the cot bumpers out of interest...

[finallypregnant]

Cot bumpers can cause suffocation apparently as baby can wriggle under them.

We're not doing too bad. He's up 2-3 times a night depending on his evening feeds and when he falls asleep. He doesn't really sleep much during the day and is awake from around 5 am every day so I am looking forward to the bit when he starts to find his own routine and settle more with longer sleeps!

Been harder since DH went back to work after a month off on Monday.

How are you doing?

[finallypregnant]

oooh sorry! replying to someone elses thread!

[pudding25]

Well, DD is 12 wks and has been in moses basket in our room at night (from about 11pm) and in moses basket in cot bed in her room for day and evening feeds since she was about 1wk.
She is starting to get a bit big for moses basket so we started letting her play in cotbed (it is huge) to get her used to it and 2 days ago, we put her in the cotbed for day and evening naps (looking to move her at nighttime too after her next injections). She has been much more unsettled at her naps and it has been stressful! yesterday evening, she would not fall asleep until 9.30pm (usually falls asleep about 6.45pm easily), She cried and cried and I nearly did too!
Today, she would not sleep for her morning nap at all (which has always been great, nor her lunch nap - which hasnt been great but today, she wouldnt sleep at all) but thankfully, went down well around 7.20pm so fingers crossed it is improving.
Although I think we still have a while of unsettled naps to go (especially when we move her out of our room shortly), I am glad that she has been in our room in her basket for the past few wks.
Some friends of mine had their babies in their cots after a few days (not recommended for SIDS - not meant to move until 6 mths but we have no room whatsoever for a cot, especially a cotbed in our room) but they all had really positive experiences.
Saying all that, I wish we had bought a cot and not a cotbed as it is huge.

[MatNanPlus]

Pudding25 would you have room for a travel cotin your room?

[MatNanPlus]

You could also put her in at the foot end so the huge space is to one side of her not all around.

[MatNanPlus]

Or place rolled up hand towels under the sheet like train track rails and lie her between them so she feels more secure.

[thumbwitch]

I dont think my post is going to be particularly helpful as I co-slept with DS and didn't use a moses basket at all - but I moved him into his cot at about 5 1/2 months. Started off with him going to bed in cot and then when he woke up I brought him back to bed because he wouldn't settle back in cot; but by 6 1/2 months he was dreamfeeding and going back to sleep in the cot, or going the whole night through.