Newborn sleeping arrangements

[Maisey281]

Hi.
I'm a first time mum (18 weeks) and could really do with some advice from any experienced parents out there!

We have a room that will be a nursery so do we put a cot in there for when the baby reaches 6 months and buy a Moses basket or crib for our room initially?

(We plan to have a second baby so will hopefully be re using whatever we buy)

How do I choose a cot?!

Is a Moses basket a waste of money as they grow out of them so fast? But this has the benefit of being portable to go downstairs in the day

A crib will last longer (until they go in a cot) but is not portable

Am I missing something or do I need all 3?!?!

If I buy a crib then where will the baby sleep downstairs?!

As you can tell I'm overwhelmed by the options

Thanks in advance x

We have a cot that converts to a toddler bed and then bed for baby's room. Will go in there from 9 to 12 months as it's on a different floor of the house and I don't fancy getting up to go up and down in the night plus I don't like the distance. Until then we have a sturdy folding travel crib that can be used as a cot as well. We needed something we could move around as we're going on a big adventure when baby is 6 weeks. If baby grows out of it we will have the proper cot in our room until old enough to move out. For downstairs we'll use the carry cot from the pushchair (approved for overnight) and later we have a Phil and Ted's older model travel cot which I'll also use for naps out in the garden. It has been our biggest debate - probably even more than whether we should have a baby. Hahaha.

We had (and will have again for DC2), a next2me crib for our bedroom for night time sleep. DS was in that for about 8 months, then he went into an ikea cot which turned into a toddler bed when he went into his own room. At 2.5, He’s only just come out of that in preparation for his baby brother or sister to use it in 6-8 months time. Day time naps were either on me or in the toddler pod (like a sleepyhead but half the price). I agree with PP though, I wouldn’t have used it at night due to SIDS, but was happy to in the day as I could watch him. Day time naps as he got older we’re in his cot.

I think a next to bed and carrycot downstairs. I never found either Moses baskets or carrycots that easy to carry around-the baby slips in them as you walk, and usually wakes up.

We had a sidecar crib which is really invaluable if you end up having a c-section. Trying to get a baby out of a moses basket when you struggle to sit up is awful.

We then used the same travel cot shown above. We bought a cot mattress which fits it and it is brilliant. So many of us have a travel cot which we barely use.

I had a moses basket downstairs which converted into a baby seat. Or used the bassinet bit from the pram

Try and think of things which double up if you are strapped for space.

Thanks once again for this invaluable input!

The bedside crib is definitely the popular choice but this raises a further question In my mind now...

Does this mean you always do night feeds from your bed and just slide them back in to the crib?

One person advised me against feeding in bed as if they throw up everywhere then you have to change your bed sheets

But I can't imagine the reality of being able to get up every time and go to the nursery either!!

This is possibly a silly question but do newborns require a nappy change around every feed time? As this would mean you need to get out of bed regardless and negate the benefit of bedside cribs

Does having a bedside crib mean I need to scoot down the bed to get out-I notice that it gets strapped to the bed so you can't just push it away to get in and out of bed?

Argh now I'm really overthinking

@Maisey281 Do you have an Aldi near you? They have the Moses basket from their baby event up for £20 now including stand. We've got one for downstairs sleeping. Unfortunately, our pram carry cot is not suitable for sleeping.

If we hadn't got that, we'd have just used the crib that we've purchased for the bedroom. We purposely got a foldable one so it's easy to transport up and down. I'm not sure if the Chicco fold too, we saved some money and went for a cheaper version - www.amazon.co.uk/Baby-Elegance-Kangu-Foldable-Crib/dp/B07DLM13LV

I've practised walking up and downstairs with it and it's really easy.

Hi, we did the same as lots of other pps. Pram downstairs for naps but we also had a sleepyhead initially. I wouldn’t personally bother with the sleepyhead as ds never really liked it! But all babies are different so you might find otherwise. We had the tutti bambini bedside crib which I loved until he was about 7 months and then bought a cot.

With first baby we bought:

• a Moses basket with a rocking stand, for daytime naps
• a crib to go next to the bed in our room
• planned to get a full-size cot for later.

Baby hated Moses basket from the start so we ended up giving it away (to friends who used it loads so this very much depends on the baby).

Crib lasted a bit longer but the baby always slept best when in contact with me, and when her sleep got really rough around 4 months I couldn’t cope any more with sitting up and feeding her in the night - I was falling asleep with her in my arms and dangerously sleep-deprived during the day too. By then it seemed a bit pointlesss to get a bedside crib she’d grow of in a few weeks so we got a full-size cot, took one of the long sides off and strapped it to the bed. Then that went in her own room once she was bigger.

With baby 2 we will be strapping the cot to the bed again right from the start. The little crib is still around so we can use that for daytime naps if the baby’s amenable. There is no chance I’ll be getting out of bed every time to feed this one, I could not cope with trying that again.

Having a cot attached to the bed is a bit of a faff, you do have to scoot down the bed to get out, but it was an absolute lifesaver for me because I got so much more sleep.

Nappy changes - depends, when they’re teeny tiny they tend to poo with every feed so that needs changing. Nappies that are just wet you can leave if the baby’s ok with it. I got good at changing the baby in the cot though!

I had a bedside crib for DD and will use it again for number 2. I always did feeds in my bed. Lying down breastfeeding is pretty great! I often lay DD on a muslin, and always had one to hand. DD was quite a sicky baby but never threw up everywhere to the extent that we had to change bed sheets. Just sometimes would spit out some milk, effectively. I can't imagine getting up and going somewhere else to feed. Too much hassle!

Very tiny babies do require a nappy change each time. DH would do the nappy change then I would feed. You can have a mat on the bed, or beside the bed so you don't have to go too far. And that stage is much shorter than the night feed stage!

Ours was strapped to the bed - the safest way - and yes, getting out is a little tricky but you get used to it.

Thanks once again for all this wonderful advice... these small practical things have been bothering me the most for some reason!

I guess I just want to feel as informed as possible because everyone tells me nothing can prepare you for the first bit...I must have been told this 100 times