Moving bad sleeping 7 month old in with sibling.

[KW89]

My DS2 (7 months) is currently in a crib in our bedroom, however he is quickly running out of space, and it is not going to be long until we need to move him in with his big brother who is 2 and a half. We live in a small two bedroom house and cannot fit a cot in our room (can't move having the crib in there!) My eldest has always been a great sleeper, he goes to bed at 7.30, and we rarely hear from him before 6.30, his baby brother however has been the complete opposite and can still be up multiple times a night. He goes to bed about 7.15 and was sleeping until about 10.30, though the last week he has woken numerous times between 7.15 and 10.30, not wanting a feed, just to be comforted back to sleep. He has a feed at 10.30, and then on a good night will wake sometime between 2-4 for an hour, have a feed (though sometimes only takes 2-3 ounces, so not sure he actually needs it?!) then go back to bed til 7. On a bad night he can be up every half an hour. When he wakes he screams blue murder! I don't know how we are going to manage it without really disturbing DS1 thoughout the night. My husband is helpful when here, but works some nightshifts so isn't always around for back up! Just looking for advice really from anyone who has been in a similar situation?!

I would consider it unacceptable to disturb DS1's sleep to that extent. Not only that it would be unfair on DS1, but it will also make your own days nightmares with two over-tired children to cope with. Personally, I'd see that as a recipe for complete disaster and so I would do anything possible to avoid it.

Do you have any furniture in your bedroom aside from your bed and the crib? Do you have a chest of drawers, a dressing table, a wardrobe? If it was me I would find a way to have a cot in my bedroom by removing other furniture into another room in the short-term. So for now I might move a chest of drawers into the children's bedroom or the landing. Anywhere to make room to fit a full sized cot in the bedroom.

Then wait until DS2 is sleeping through and sleeping well, then move them together into a shared bedroom.

We've moved our wardrobes out so that a cot fits in the bedroom. If that's not an option and you don't want to cosleep, I'd swap beds.

Move your DS into your bed, and you & DH take turns sleeping in the other room with DS(2). I'd see that as preferable to him being woken up by his brother.

I also don't think that it's right to disturb my eldest through the night, hence why I've asked for advice on here.
Being so sleep deprived it hadn't even crossed my mind to switch furniture between the rooms, but I think that might work, we already have his cot up in his brothers room, but I think it may just about fit in ours if we move our chest of drawers into his room instead! :) Thanks.

Yes I would move your clothes into eldest room for now to make space for cot. ( jeans are far quieter than 7 month olds!)

You can review in a few months time once sleeping is better. Waking once or twice for just milk is ok, but screaming every half hour potentially with knacker eldest.

Our DC1 is an excellent sleeper and DC2 is bad but not to that extent, however DC sometimes cries multiple times in the night. DC1 initially would be noisy (cross noises) and grumpy when DC2 was crying instead of going to sleep but has never woken in the night when DC2 cries. However more recently DC1 just falls asleep even though DC2 is still crying.
So you may be able to put your DC1 down first and DC2 in your bed and transfer at 10.30?

If he's not waking with his crying already then I think you should give it a try! I am still amazed that ds1 sleeps so soundly even when ds2 is waking for dummy throughout the night! I was scared to try it but glad I did

We moved dd in with ds when she was 6 months old and still woke several times a night. Ds sleeps like a log and she very rarely disturbed him. Even when she did he just went straight back to sleep. I would say if your eldest is a deep sleeper then give it a try. Maybe keep the crib in your room for a few nights just in case.

We have moved the baby in with the toddler. Baby still wakes a couple of times in the night but is extracted, fed, and then put back in where they shout before going back to sleep. Toddler just sleeps through. You're going too have to do it at some point I would just bite the bullet.