Chicco next to me question

[MummyOfBoyAndGirl]

After another dreadful night of sleep I've ordered the above!

Stupid question but given DD will be next to me what bedding can I use on our bed? Do I follow the co-sleeping guidelines of. I loose blankets as all the marketing looks like the adult bed is made up normally

Also are there any hints and tips to using it successfully such as which part of the side of the bed it's next to be parallel to (baby at same eye level as me?)

DD does not settle well in the crib we have bought her. She settles beat being cuddles to sleep ideally cuddled into our chest or right next to me. However I really don't feel safe co-sleeping with her even though she likes it which is why I've bought this. Now that I've ordered it I have potential buyer's remorse that she will feel too far away from me! Does it work best to try to cuddle up as close as possible to her side? Or hold her hand while sleeping? She's only 4 weeks so can't roll yet though she is getting close to rolling over

I use the chicco next to me but I have a sleepyhead in it. I know I know, some people are against it but I think she likes the smugness. I also have her in a love to dream swaddle with a blanket up to her waist tucked underneath the sleepyhead.
If your baby likes being close and cuddled could it be the warmth she likes and then waking up when she's colder? I've realised some of our worst nights are when the temp has changed. Have you warmed her bed with a hot water bottle/is she wearing enough clothes?

I had a next2me but my baby decided I was too far away and we co-slept! I know lots of other people have success, and ours did go in it from 4 months onwards which helped with slowly transitioning to the big cot.

We made up our bed as normal and he slept in a sleep bag. For the nights we did try to put him in his crib and he was too small for sleep bags, we swaddled him in a blanket. He used to sleep as close as possible to the edge to be close to me.

Which model did you buy? I got the one where you zip down the side, I took the bar out of that side and kept it permanently unzipped so that we didn't bash ourselves on the bar in the middle of the night.

I used to put mine in and to settle them keep as close as possible then inch away. Just used normal bedding in my bed but ensured there wasn’t much ‘spare’ on the side of the bedside cot.

We had one and really liked it. Didn't attach it to the bed so kept the zipped side up. It meant the baby was a couple of inches from me and could see and smell me - she used to sleep along one side of it as close to me as she could get!
I have a chest of drawers my side of the bed so the Next2Me was probably about level with my stomach when I was lying down.
We raised one end slightly which helped her, I think.

You can use your pillow and duvet but I'd also get a thinner blanket like a cellular blanket for over the baby and your tummy. Put the duvet behind your back or over your legs. You'll want to wear a thicker top. As you get used to it you'll find ways to keep the duvet away from them. It can go over their legs as long as it's well away from their face and they're not overheating.

I have a different bedside crib and level with the bottom of my pillow seems to work best. With DC1 I had it at the head of the bed but he had a full sized cot, 120cm long. DC2 has a 90cm long one and this is how I've got the use of it as he's over 80cm tall now and it's a squeeze.

As PPs you might find it is more use as a bed guard! That's mainly what mine have been used for.

The wheels on it are useful - occasionally pushed it into spare room so DH could sleep next to her and I had a break (she was combi-fed).

We used to lie on the bed next to her when she went to bed so we were right by her and could see and talk to her.

Thank you everyone that's great advice!

I am worried that I'll still be too far away from her but I really don't want to do-sleep. I know how to do it safely and we have xo-slept a few times in desperation to get her to sleep but it's not ideal. I'm so tired I'm sleeping heavier than usual and we don't have a spare bed so I don't feel there's enough space to be safe it that makes sense.

She is warm enough, she sleeps in a grow bag and on extra cold nights I've set our Hive or popped a thing blanket over her. She just loves being held and cuddles all the time. Her things smell of me, she gets cuddled/fed to sleep, I've encouraged a dummy but she's not that into it. She has an Eddie the Elephant skep toy and she also likes brown noise. I'm hoping as she gets bigger plus with the next to me she'll start to settle better as I'm so tired I'm struggling.

Thank you all for the hints and tips I think I'll leave DH to haven the duvet on his side and I can sleep in warm PJs with a blanket, I'll tick it around me to be safe

Sorry I got the Chicco Next2me Side Sleeping Crib, Chick to Chick

I had a Snuzpod and it wasn’t close enough for my son - he needed to be on the same sleeping surface. However it did increase the amount of bed space available in the sense that he could be placed closer to the edge of the bed without risking falling off, and it was a handy storage shelf