When to ditch baby monitor for DC1 with imminent arrival of DC2

[sharond101]

DS is 3 in May. He has his own room and is in a big bed. He will happily come to get me when he wakes in the morning but not if he wakes in the night for the toilet or is upset/unwell etc. I sleep with earplugs and don't hear him cry or shout. OH says he does but since he has slept through various cries on the monitor I truly doubt this. We are expecting DC2 in 4 weeks time. DS1 has had a flu virus and a cough for nearly 3 weeks and has kept us up every night coughing which we hear through the monitor. Maybe 5 times in this time frame he has needed me, been sick or really upset. I don't feel comfortable dropping his monitor, DH believes we should? What have others done?

We still use ours (big thick walls) DD is 2.5 and DS is now 5 months. We've been keeping DS with us so don't need a monitor for him just yet but I'll be trying to get him to nap in his room in a month or so and we're going to try to get a monitor with 2 receiver bits and one handheld bit so we can listen to them both at the same time - DD is the same as your DS and doesn't get up to find us if she needs us at night.
not done too much research. Found a Motorola one for twins but it's a camera one and ideally we just want audio.
Hope that helps!

I never used a monitor with any of them I did buy 1 for ds2 but it broke after a week & I never replaced it. I am a fairly light sleeper though so always shot out of bed at the slightest sound

I wasn't sure what to do about this either. My daughter was 3 in Feb but he's room is on the floor below so I don't think I'd hear her without a monitor & she's only recently toilet trained during the day so I'm assuming we'll need it for a awhile to come when she starts that. My son is now 5 months & we'll be getting him another monitor for when he moves into his own room next month

We still use a monitor for our 4 year old. Layout of house means we wouldn't hear her otherwise, and she tends to shout rather than get out of bed.

Our old monitor was on the way out when dc2 came so got a new one. Still use the monitor for three year old but in practice it's so unreliable we'd be as well not.

But a new monitor as there is no way you'll get another 2-3 years out of current onr

Buy one - oops.

I actually hear my 3 year old a lot in the night now. I assume she was always awake mumbling to herself but it never woke me up (with baby I'm awake anyway). Having the monitor means I don't need to go in and check as I can be sure she is just muttering and has gone back to sleep.

Something we're having to think about too, and i can see us buying a second monitor. Boo.

If the monitor is the only way you can hear your child, then get a new one for the baby.

Children long past 3yo may have nightmares, or be sick in the night, or wake up with a wet bed, and need you.

Keep that monitor for dc1 and Buy a new one for new baby. They're handy even when dc are a little older to hear are they out of bed running around. Wouldn't hear them if tv was on. And I wouldn't be able to watch it comfortably wondering are they asleep or not.

I have been wondering this as we are expecting DC2 shortly. I think we will keep the monitor and buy a new one for baby number 2. I'd worry I wouldn't hear him when he's ill etc (he'll be 2 1/2 when baby arrives).

I stopped using the monitor overnight as soon as he started STTN at 8 months - his coughing and stirring all night kept me awake and I would have heard any cries across the hall anyway, we leave the doors open a bit.
I say ditch it!

If you don't hear him at night otherwise, you need a second monitor.

I have never used one after we are in bed, but my girls share a room and I still use it to listen in on them when they are chatting and should be going to sleep, or when they are playing a game that leads to fights. eldest is 6.