Moses Basket vs Cot, Sleeping Bag vs Proper Bedding!

[LadyThompson]

Expecting PFB, pretty clueless about all this infernal equipment.

Is a moses basket the right thing for a newborn, or just more crap to discard when the baby grows out of it after 6 weeks?

I am worrying about bedding, because I don't want her to be too hot (risk of cot death) or too cold (err...pneumonia?!) and I honestly don't whether regular baby bedding is the best, or whether one of these newfangled gro-bags will solve all my problems.

Winter baby, end Nov. Thanks lovely experts.

I use a 0.5 tog Grobag for DD in our flat at the moment (currently with a short sleeved vest; if it gets any warmer I'll just have her in nappy and Grobag). I would be iffy about putting her in a heavier weight Grobag (although might try 1.0 tog with just a nappy).

Didn't have a moses basket, co-slept with DS until 5 1/2mo and now he is in cot, usually with sheet and a waffle blanket, with extra wool blanket if it gets cold.

Ds born early December and overheats at the drop of a hat so can't put him in grobags. He sleeps with just a sheet when it is warm like tonight.

You are probably best off trying not to get too much in advance and borrow what you can, rather than paying out for it and discovering that you don't use it.

So the moral of the story is buy everything 2nd hand!

Cot and grobag from Day 1 here. Day naps were in the buggy if out and about or on a sheepskin on the sofa or floor.....

Dec baby

do you recommend any particular brands for grobags? Someone mentioned that the ones with poppers at the shoulders and zip are the best? where can i get those?

also a book had recommended bodysuits for newborns should have poppers on the sides, as they are easier to put. Any recommendations on where I can find those - M&S, mothercare just seem to have regular vests with poppers at the bottom.

Vertbaudet does wrap vests for newborns, and Toys R Us sometimes have them too.

tbh DD just wore a sleepsuit (with or without a cardigan) for ages because she hated having things put over her head so much.

grobag themselves (grobag.com) are obviously great but there is a shop on ebay that sells them for half the price that grobag do.

Although i never used them, shops like matalan and asda sell their own version and just call them sleeping bags.

If I were doing it again. I would probably skip the Moses Basket and use travel cot with basinette level which fits in our room for 6 months. I'd also delay a cot-purchase until at least 6 months, then you've got more idea of what you want and have lost a bit of the wallet-hurting PFBness.

Grobags are great and where we live at the moment has quite fierce aircon, so DD sleeps in a 2.5 tog grobag, but I also have a very tasteless pink thin cotton zipper bag from TK Maxx if we go somewhere hotter

Hi, how exciting for you having your pfb.

Would not be without my grobags, ds has had one since moving into his own cot at 16 weeks and is now 23mo and still using one. He loves it too, likes to stay in it for half hour when he gets up

Moses basket great for the first few months but they soon grow out of them and my ds kept bashing the sides with his arms during the night which woke him up several times.

Travelcot is a must if you plan to go places or let him stay overnight with family. We have one here and my parents have one at theirs.

Good luck

btw, the White Company also does nice sleeping bags with the poppers at shoulders and zip all the way round. The cotton pique one is nice if you want to treat yourself. comes in two different tog sizes, i think, depending on weather.

And Zara does those kimono vests for newborns with poppers at the sides as well as at the bottom. Still quite a faff, but at least you're not having to get them over the head and then the arms in. I always used to get worried I'd, er, kind of snap the arms in the wrong direction by mistkae

Funny, the things I didn't want to buy and ended up being lent were some of the most useful. These include a moses basket: great for keep babe with you down stairs/in another room for the first 6-10 weeks. Newborns sleep everwhere and often and it's nice just to plop them down. My DS liked to be swaddled in his basket - I think a lot of babies do like the snugness. A thin, soft blanket is best for swaddling, I found. This one was my favourite.

BUT, from about 8-10 weeks, basket was getting a bit tight and we put him in his co-sleeper which is brilliant. He's still in it now at 4 months and it makes BFing at night so much easier. I found it on Ebay for £30, which is a total steal. I put him in a vest and 1.0 tog gro-bag when it's 20-24C. Otherwise, just a vest if it's warmer.

Friends have said they transitioned babe into cot by first putting moses basket into cot, so that could be useful if you intend to put them in their own room early on. Borrow one if you're not sure/don't want to buy too much and then you can use it if works for you. For us, the pram/travel cot wouldn't work b/c of space and logistics of having DS in our room at night.

Ebay is best place for kimono body suits!