Leaving children with a babysitter when you co-sleep. What to do?

[suiledonn]

I have a dd1 who is 3 and dd2 who is 8 months. DD1 has always been a terrible sleeper due to eczema, allergies etc and although she sometimes starts the night in her own room always ends up in our bed at some stage. DD2 is co-sleeping too from when she first wakes in the night.

This summer we have been invited to several weddings. We went to one a few months ago and MIL babysat the girls at her house. We drove back and stayed overnight as the girls were asleep. DD2 was still sleeping in the pram at that stage and dd1 slept in with MIL.

We have 3 more to go to in the next couple of months. We are going to drive back from 2 and will have to stay over for another but with dd2 no longer sleeping in the pram I am not sure how we can arrange things.

MIL has offered to babysit again but she only wants to mind them at her house. I can't work out how we will manage.

If you are a co-sleeper do you ever leave your children for a night? If so, how do you arrange things?

I had PND after dd1 and never went on a night out. Leaving her until 1 or 2am would not even have been considered so this is all new.

Thanks

[suiledonn]

Any ideas anyone

(shameless bump)