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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

At what age can toddler/baby safely sleep in same room?

30 replies

uwila · 10/08/2005 11:24

I have a 2 1/2 year old DD and 3 month old DS. They will be sharing a room, but I'm worried about leaving toddler and baby in a room together all night unsupervised. We all know that you shouldn't leave a toddler with a baby. But at what point is this ok? Currently DS sleeps in a moses basket in our office. But this won't last too much longer as he will need to get into his cot, which does not fit in the office. But, said toddler is perfectly capable of climbing into that cot in the middle of the night to join him.

Has anyone else had two syblings in one room at ayoung age? If so, how young? And what precaustions did you take if any?

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

suzywong · 10/08/2005 11:26

From your description of your toddler's capabilities I'd say certainly not before you baby can roll over or sit up, so that's 6 months

elliott · 10/08/2005 11:29

I didn't try it until around 7 moths, and it didn't actually work until around 16 months (but that was due to them waking each other in the early morning). Ds1 never tried to climb in the cot but he did once pile in a load of cushions on top of ds2 when he was crying once I was so angry with him though that I think he got the message.
Do you have grounds to think that dd is likely to climb in with him?

starlover · 10/08/2005 11:31

does your toddler wake in the night? if not i think you;d be ok.
if he's fast asleep he won't be climbing in the cot.

use a baby monitor too, so that you can hear what they're up to! is your room close enough that if you heard a kerfuffle you could get in there quick?

Original poster

uwila · 10/08/2005 11:34

Yes, she likes to tend to him when he cries. Sometimes it's cute but sometimes it's dangerous. For example, yesterday she was playing with her tea set and decided to stick the spoon into baby;s bouth to pretend feed him. She of course doesn't realise that baby might choke on the spoon. She also hasn't grasped that babies don't eat carrots. She is not intetionally mean to him, but she just doesn't understand that babies can't have and do what toddlers can have and do.

So, yes, I'm a bit worried that she would climb into his cot and try to rectify the situation if her were to cry in the middle of the night.

OP posts:

Original poster

uwila · 10/08/2005 11:35

Oh yes. I forgot to mention that I am the deepest sleeper in the world and all of this could take place and I would sleep right through it.

OP posts:

starlover · 10/08/2005 11:39

ahh well in that case i certainly wouldn't leave them together alone

Original poster

uwila · 10/08/2005 12:01

ok then, does anyone recall how long I can use a moses basket?

OP posts:

Dophus · 10/08/2005 12:03

Mine looked a little like a sardine at about four months

elliott · 10/08/2005 12:06

depends a lot on their size - I think mine were out by about 10 weeks.
Would a travel cot fit in the office?

CarolinaMoon · 10/08/2005 12:11

how about in your bedroom?

Original poster

uwila · 10/08/2005 12:41

The whole idea was to get him out of our room before I go back to work, which is happening on Monday. He's been fine in the office sleeping on his own. He hasn't ourtgrown the moses basket yet so this arrangement is fine. But, as I recall, a moses basket shouldn't beused after they can sit up? Or is when they can roll over?

If he has to leave the moses basket before he can share a room with big sister, then I have a bit of a problem. But, he is okay in there until he can sit up then perhaps I'll stick him in her room then (and into the cot).

Or, possibly, I wonder if there is any way to keepp big sis out of the cot... but I do't know what. I guess I would have to build some kinf or wall tha she couldn't climb but that I could still reach over to pick him up. Don't know though that sounds like a lot of work.

OP posts:

KiwiKate · 11/08/2005 06:38

uwila - why not put him in a porta-cot (you can put the moses basket inside the porta-cot if you think the porta-cot is too big for him). Porta-cots are very difficult to climb into (or out of). If you don't have a porta-cot, it might be worth borrowing one to see if it would work for you (save you from building a wall etc). If it does work, it might be worth investing in one.

Our DS stayed in his moses basket until about 9 months (but it was a fairly big basket).

wheresmyfroggy · 11/08/2005 06:47

Our dds are 4 months and 22 months and share a room and have done since dd2 was 9 weeks. DD1 has a bed and dd2 a cot. We have had no problems.

chocolatequeen · 15/08/2005 10:38

Bumping it - am following this one too!

Original poster

uwila · 15/08/2005 20:14

anyone know how long I can use the moses basket safely?

OP posts:

stacijc · 15/08/2005 20:23

i thought it was 4 months but not sure.....ds1 was 12 weeks b4 he outgrew it, ds2 was in a cot (in our room) at 10 weeks.
is there enough room in a basket for them to roll? guess it depends on which u got loL!!

we also need to put them in together soon but a tidgy second bedroom is giving us probs!!

dabihp · 15/08/2005 20:55

Why isnt baby in your room? Isnt it recommended until they are a year old?

tortoiseshell · 15/08/2005 20:58

Recommended to have baby in room till 6 months. My two started sharing when dd was 8 months and ds was 2.9

purpleturtle · 15/08/2005 21:01

We had both children in a box room - 10' by 6'6" when ds was about 4 months IIRC. Cot one side, bunk beds the other, narrow passage in between. I have to say it never occurred to me that putting the two of them together could be problematic - there's 22 months between them. They've always been fine.

motherinferior · 15/08/2005 21:02

I am not alone on MN in finding the constant snuffling-farting-grunting noise of a baby completely impossible to sleep through - and heaven knows you're not exactly luxuriating in vast expanses of torpor at that stage, are you - so hard-heartedly put DD2 in with her sister at about four months, I think. Thus purchasing a minimum amount of sleep for myself - enough to take me from zombie to psycho.

But although DD1 used to go in and wake her sister up 'to play' she couldn't actually climb into the cot with her, of course.

lockets · 15/08/2005 21:05

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

CarolinaMoon · 15/08/2005 21:17

Uwila, I think until they can sit themselves up in it - and therefore fall out of the side of it. But most babies would have outgrown the basket well before then.

Original poster

uwila · 15/08/2005 21:27

dabihp,
Uh... sometimes I think it's best to throw the recommendations out the window and make up my own mind. I go for single jabs, and my kiddies sleep in someone elses room when I go back to work (Which I did today). No way no how is mr. snuffly snorty sleeping in my room for a year while I have to be up at 5:30 to get to work on time.

OP posts:

henshake · 15/08/2005 22:19

I am in the throws of tidying up the attic floor from general crap so that we can move upstairs & let our DD & DS sleep together. I hadn't considered the possibility of her putting cushions (or anything else for that matter) on to him. Urrmmmm, now worries in the back of my mind.

motherinferior - lol

henshake · 15/08/2005 22:21

Sorry uwila, the bumph I had with my moses basket was 'until they can sit up on their own'. But my DD & DS got to big for the basket & started to wake themselves up, so transferred to cot.

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