Baby bedding confusion - HELP!

[fluffyslippers]

I'm seeking advice again!

Expecting baby in May and am trying to get myself sorted.
Got a bassinet for the bedroom (it's from the USA so doesn't take standard sized sheets) and also a Moses Basket.
I'm getting very confused regarding bedding - I intend to use baby sleeping bags in the long run, but realise these might be too big when baby is newborn so need to know what sheets to use and how.

I know I need a fitted sheet for the mattress, a top sheet and then a blanket or two, however how do you put the baby to bed? Do you put top sheet over baby and tuck it under the mattress or just leave it loose over baby?
I just bought a Moses Basket bedding bale from Babies R Us and the fitted sheet is WAY too big for the Moses Basket, it's really baggy over the mattress - would this be a problem or is it ok to have the excess sheet underneath?.
With my bassinet, I don't know whether to get cot bed sheets (which are bigger than I need) - I'm paranoid about smothering baby with loose sheets.
I know there are lots of guidelines about how many layers you need, but there's no straightforward guide about how to make up the bed for baby and I know nothing!
Also, do you follow the same principles in a pram? If baby has clothes on and you go out, do you need to cover them up like they are in bed with sheets/blankets etc....

Sorry for the silly questions, but I'm finding it all really confusing and am paranoid about SIDS.

Thanks!

When dd1 was in a moses basket I used to fold a cot sheet in half and then wrap it around the mattress (so securely tucked in) as a bottom layer and then swaddled dd in a smallish crochet type blanket, I think it might have been a pram blanket, wasn't full size.

DD2 is bigger so she's gone straight into sleeping bags.

Outside depends on the weather i think. The weather was quite hot when dd1 was born so I was more concerned about keeping her cool. DD2 is usually in a vest, sleepsuit and snow suit with pram apron over the top or vest, sleepsuit, cardi and pram blanket. I find the blanket more flexible so you can take it off if in a hot shop for example

thank god you asked this, fluffy - I'm due in 2 weeks and I'm wondering the same thing!

I worried about this too! I spent weeks before DS was bor trying to work out from a book how you were supposed to make up a cot with sheets etc. Gave up in the end!

As long as the bottom sheet is tucked in and smooth for bub to lie on it doesn't really matter if its fitted or not. I used to swaddle ds when he was newborn (with a sheet folded to a triangle, lie bub in the middle, head on long edge annd wrap around tucking the loose corners underneath) and then lossely drape a folded sheet and sometimes a blanket over him through the night (he was a winter baby). No need to worry about smoothering when they're really tiny so long as you swaddle properly they don't move that much. You'll be surprised how quick they get big enough for their sleep suits, ds was in his by 5 weeks. I'd definitely invest in a room thermometer and sneak in to mothercare or somewhere, all the bedding bundles tell you how many sheet n blankets bub will need depending on the room temp during the night. Bu which time, making the bed up involves changing the bottom sheet...simple

As for in the pram, if they have all their clothes on and a coat they don't really need much else, specially in the summer, though tis nice to have a pretty blanket on for neatness and to keep the chill off in the shade.

Hope this helps...o the hours I spent pouring over line diagrams of folded sheets...thank god for grobags

pillow cases make good baby mattress covers, just tuck loose material under. and you can get newborn sleeping bags now.

if you want to do the sheets though, you'll just have to see how your baby likes it. some like to be tucked up very snug, others like a bit more freedom. the idea of tucking them in helps prevent them kicking the covers off or over their head. both are not a problem if you go with the sleeping bags instead.

I wouldn't worry too much. I was just like you before DD1 was born (practising on teddies even ) When we got her home form the hospital though, she screamed if we put her in the moses basket, so most of the nights for the first 2 weeks were spent asleep on our chests, in our bed! After that, she kind of got the hang of being on her own a bit more, so we put her in a sleeping bag. You'll know what is right for you when baby arrives. Good luck!

As long as the sheet is very flat underneath the baby, it shouldn't be a problem. For the top, I used one layer of cotton sheet and a Cellular blanket on top, until we felt that a sleeping bag was right (about one month old I suppose). Cellular blankets are great because they 'breath', you can fold them and have two layers if needed, or four if you go out in the pram, or just one layer if it's warmer. We used to tuck them in on the side of the blanket, quite tightly, because our son had this reflex thingy and kept on kicking his legs up in the air and the blanket would just slip down. If you tuck it in well it keeps the baby nice and secure.

If you go out in the cot when it's cold, it's important to take some layers off the baby when you get back inside even if he/she is asleep and take the hat off and make sure there's nothing too close to the baby's head (like a blanket or teddy). Hope I'm not making things more complicated for you! But I'd say that two cellular blankets were an 'essential' for us.