Putting baby in an open bed? Not a cot?

[CacenDiolch]

My 9 month old is still breastfed and still feeds at night. He currently sleeps in a cot next to my bed, but he no longer stays asleep when lifted into the cot so I've had to start climbing in and feeding him and then climbing out. It's a squish and I worry it'll break to be honest but it's so tiring trying to settle him otherwise. We don't co-sleep all night because we end up waking him up more and he will feed relentlessly.

He's started stirring a lot if we make any noise, coughing, using the loo or anything and he's awake and wants fed, so I think it's time he goes in his own room. We are thinking of buying an IKEA Kura bed like our eldest has and setting it up like this. I'm just feeling unsure as our eldest slept in a cot until he was nearly three and was contained when he woke up until we went to get him so I don't know how I feel about my youngest waking and just being free?! 😂 But my eldest wasn't breastfed at this point and was happy to be laid down in his cot with his bottle and it's all gone to pot trying to introduce a bottle with my 9 month old.

I'm thinking the pros are I can settle him easily, it be comfier in the process and if I ever need to co sleep there's plenty of room? and we'll be avoiding the stage we had at 3 with my eldest where he suddenly had a bed he could get of and decided to do so 60 times a night?

Has anyone done this? How did it work out?

Why don’t you just put a single mattress on the floor ( a double would be even better) with a roll out bar ?

DS was in a bed with sides at 8 months old because he climbed out of the cot 🫣
Never had any problems with him getting out during the night luckily!

I really hate the whole mattress on the floor look. It looks a bit crack den 😂 but it's the same principle I guess. The same question still applies on how it works when they are just free.

No room for a double in his room so it's a single bed regardless and this bed will last him years, his brother has it but set up differently with the bed as a mid sleeper and it's got years left in it so happy to invest in another.

and we'll be avoiding the stage we had at 3 with my eldest where he suddenly had a bed he could get of and decided to do so 60 times a night?

I don't think you will, it will just happen much sooner.

If the cots big enough for you to climb in to, why not just move it to his own room and keep him in it for a little while.

In a bed like that, I'd be concerned about him pulling up on the side but then going headfirst over the edge, or crawling headfirst of of the entrance.

Like with anything I think there would be pros and cons to be honest. On the one hand, you have more space to lie with baby And it means you don’t then have another bed transition in a year or two but on the other hand, you definitely won’t miss out on the getting out of bed stage, it just might happen when you can’t reason with him at all!

Climbing in and out of the cot will be a lot harder when it's not next to my very high bed 🙈 and it's so uncomfortable and squished. Ah I don't know what to do!

Google floorbeds and set up. Same advice applies. It's absolutely fine. Loads of people do it and makes sense if breastfeeding. If you have room i find a double floorbed better personally.

Main rules are safety in the room they're in. So any furniture they may climb or pull on is secured to the wall. Nothing unsafe left in the room. No strangulation risks. Totally risk assess the room. Also once they get old enough to open door make sure everything else is safe too for areas they'd have access to.

I had a Velcro baby and the tear between safe sleep guidelines and what my baby would tolerate did me in.

Eventually we got a mesh bed guard (probably from Amazon) that tucks under the mattress of your adult bed.

I’d be worried the wood sides you show in the picture wouldn’t be breathable if baby got stuck next to them.

The bed guard probably wasn’t as ideal as baby sleeping alone, but mine wouldn’t. So I booted out h, removed excess pillows and covers and put myself on the open side of the bed and baby on the mesh guard side. I’d be more reluctant under 9mo as they get better at rolling etc.

Fair warning: mine is now nearly 4 and still sleeping in with mummy, despite climbing up and jumping off the top of the bed guard nightly 😏

We did this although not until 18 months. We built a small double as already had a small double mattress. Before then she’d been in with me in our king size (and dh was in the spare bed).

Worked brilliantly for us. She wakes up, calls for me, I go in, cuddle her and she goes back to sleep. I either fall asleep too and still get a decent sleep or I go back to our bed. She’s 2 now and 90% of the time sleeps through and I don’t go in at all.

A mattress directly on the floor can get mouldy with lack of circulation around it.

I moved my youngest into a toddler bed at a similar age - half barrier and cushions on the floor at first if they rolled out - it worked fine (but we had a flat, so no stress about them getting out and reaching the stairs) and I wish I had used a full single bed like my SIL did though - so much comfier if you’re popping in to feed/settle them or read bedtime stories!

Oh also ours doesn’t have the solid sides like that but bannister style

My eldest is four and is a good sleeper. Goes to bed happily in his own room, when he wakes up he stays in bed and just shouts for us to go in. This is usually between 4-6am but either me or his dad just cuddle him and go back to sleep. I'm scared to do things too differently with my second as I don't want an awful sleeper for years 🙈

I bought a low bed for my 9 month old, used bed guards, and it's been brilliant (nearly 3 now). No transition to a big bed, lots of room for me to get in comfortably. He can get out but he didn't til he was over 2 and it doesn't bother me. We had a double, which I know you can't fit in but I'd definitely go for this or just a normal single bed if you can find a low one.

Both mine had climbed out of their cots either just before or just after 1. Eldest moved to a toddler bed (converted cot) for a short while and is now in a mid sleeper. Youngest went in on a floor bed under the mid sleeper at 1! They are now 3&2 and it works for us. Yes they can explore their room (and climb to each other) but it’s well within their abilities. We added higher rails to the mid sleeper and it’s in an alcove in a box room so feels safe. They love it. We’d a few days of emptying toy boxes and the entire room…but given mine were climbing out of cots, that was happening anyway. BUT when it was cots they couldn’t get themselves back in!! At least this way they can.

Ok that's reassuring.. I'll give it a go!

Jeepers you must be agile and light @CacenDiolch, lepping in and out of the cot.
I'm in awe.