Cot Beds - what else do I need ??

[mumtosp]

Hi all,

DS is 8.5 mo and has always co-slept with me. Now we are thinking of moving him to a cot-bed and then eventually to his own room.

• What else do I need to buy apart from the cot-bed, mattress and sheets?

• What about sleeping bags ? DS has never been in a sleeping bag and was always swaddled up until a few weeks back...

• Also, do I need a sensory mat or a baby monitor? The move to a cot-bed will be coinciding with us moving to a new house. Till now we were in a flat so checking on DS when he was asleep was easy as all rooms were on the same level... I have no idea where DS should sleep during the day when we move to the new house... can I leave him to sleep upstairs in his room? I just imagine myself running up and down 10 times checking on him..

• And finally, should I be worrying about SIDS ?? I've never been worried before as DS was right next to me and felt safe...

Thanks in advance :)

YY to the sleeping bags. Brilliant, especially for active babies. 1tog for summer, 2.5 for winter. 2 of each to cope with leaky nappies. Gro bags are always on sale somewhere, or if funds allow merino bags are superb.

Definite no to sensor mat, causes far too much worry and 8.5mo is really past where you should be concerned re SIDS. Monitor depends on how big your house is. We used a monitor until DS was out of his cot bed and could come to find us if he needed us, so age 2. But even at full scream I can't hear him downstairs so it would have been cruel not to use one. If you can hear him cry then don't bother. If you're feeling worried then I'm told a video monitor can be v reassuring, may also be of help if you need to do a bit of sleep training.

Also, tbh I wouldn't move him to a cotbed at the same ime as a house move, that's a lt of change or a little baby. I'd move him to the cotbed first if you can, or if not then cosleep for a few weeks in the new house and use cotbed for naps in the day to get him used to his room and cot.

Good luck with both moves!

Thanks HP :)

I think I'll get a video monitor.

Do I need a sleeping bag - I mean can I get away with the blankets I currently have? Also, do I need to get bumpers for the cot bed?
Quilts are a no - right ?

Plenty of people use blankets - I can't remember the exact advice but essentially have the blankets tucked in well around the foot of the mattress to prevent your baby from pulling them up or wriggling under. If you fold the blanket so that it doubles up then it counts as two blankets.

It's up to you and how your baby is, but personally I only ever use sleeping bags. DS just wriggles so very much, turns onto his tummy during sleep, turns back again, lies horizontal, as well as liking to pull on various things... a blanket simply wouldn't stay put and I know I'd be every-so-slightly paranoid that he'd cover his face with it. Quilts are the same plus extra possibility for overheating.

As for bumpers they're definitely not necessary. They're a suffocation risk also. Most children are fine, but if your baby is very active and regularly bumps or gets a hand or foot stuck between the bars you can buy safer alternative products, such as an Airwrap. It's essentially a lightly padded mesh thing, it's similar to a bumper but a child can breathe through it.

*I'd like to add that this is all from memory when I first looked into this a year ago when pg with DS, my apologies if it's not 100% up to date but we decided to bypass all of this and just use a travel cot! It has mesh sides so no bumping or suffocation risks, nothing to climb on to get out, and it's quite roomy. He will be in there until he's ready for a toddler bed. Plus it's light and will collapse away when we're done

Sleeping bags are fab. They can't kick them off.

Thanks delasi :) I almost spent a load of money on the pretty bumpers from Mammas and Papas !
Travel cot will not suit us as DS has taken after DH and is very tall for his age (DH is 6'4") ....

Actually... can someone tell me how long does a cot-bed last? How old was your lo when you moved them to a toddler bed ? DS might outgrow the cot-bed pretty quickly

Also, any recommendations on where to the good sleeping bags from? What's the difference between a gro-bag and a sleeping bag ?

Thanks all :)

TK Maxx for all your sleeping bag needs. They'll have Gro-bags and other brands for £10-15.

The trouble with using blankets is they kick them off, get cold and wake up! So sleeping bags every time for me. Gro bags are just the original brand of sleeping bags, others are fine but gro bags are good. Kiddicare always have some discounted, tk max often have them and you can buy other own makes at John Lewis or M&S.

I did use these bumpsters as DS was v active and often woke himself banging his head on the bars. Agree, stay away from traditional bumpers, v unsafe.

I moved DS (98th centile for height) to a single bed at 2.5y having taken the sides off around his 2nd birthday. Moved to single bed as he really was started to look too big for the cotbed and also needed it a few months later for dc2. Most people leave dc in with sides up until they are climbing out, which can vary from 18m to 3y or more. Our cotbed said suitable til age 5 but I have a ridiculously large boy!

HTH

And really do not buy a toddler bed, huge con IMO! Just find a low single bed, it'll last much longer. We used these to stop DS falling out of both the cotbed with sides off and the single bed. Now at nearly 3yrs he doesn't need anything and hasn't for a couple of months.