Where to sleep - in our room or in own baby room? Cradle or cot?

[Nix76]

Hi All,

I'm a first time Mum and still got a while to go til I meet our little bubs, but I was wondering what do people do in terms of sleeping locations with their babies when they first come home from hospital?

Do you have bubs sleep in your room with you? What about when bubs cries in the night and dad has to work next day? What about when we get up in the morning and don't want to make too much noise to wake bubs? What about changing in the middle of the night - I am going to have to go to bubs room anyhow?

Or do you have bubs sleep in their room straight away? For our house that is so far away! I know I can get a monitor but it would be hard I would imagine to not have them right there with you?

Also - do you choose cradle / bassinet or go straight into a cot?

Interested in anyone's experience's.

Cheers

[Purple Penguin]

Both DD's slept in a bassinet in our room when they came home from hospital, DD#1 went into her own room at 2 months old, she slept better and so did we. DD#2 is still in our room at 4 1/2 months old, she doesn't wake DH up at all when she wakes for her feed during the night.

I'm sure when bubs arrives that you will soon discover what works for you.

[Winter]

I'm sure when bubs arrives that you will soon discover what works for you.

That's the truth of it! We could all tell you what we did and what works for us, but they'd be a hundred different things and may not fit with how you feel, your circumstances and your baby's sleeping pattern.

You'll work out where you feel most comfy having bubs!

[onthefly]

I think it's generally recommended that you keep baby close to you to begin with at least - the closer they are to you the safer (from a SIDs perspective). I think it would be really hard to be separated from a newborn too - couldn't imagine doing it myself.

They can be noisy breathers and make all sorts of noises during the night, in addition to crying when they wake up. But, you'd be surprised what you partner can sleep through. In any case, baby comes first, so if he's not getting up to help and doesn't want to be woken up then he should find somewhere else to sleep.

And, the closer they are to you the easier the night wakeups are. Having them in bed with you = least possible disruption. It's not for everyone, but something to consider. You can keep nappy supplies by the bed and just do it there. You only need to change them if they're poohy (unless soaked through obviously), and may find it's not too long at all before you can leave them all or most of the night without changing.

Many little babies prefer smaller spaces to sleep at first, to mimic their containment in the womb, so you may find a bassinet or something like that works better.

Above all - you will find through trial and error exactly what works for you and your baby. You can't really know for sure till you're actually doing it. All the best~~

[Party-of-five]

DD1 was in our room in a bassinette until she slept thru at 4 months and out grew the bassinette and DD2 is currently in our room ...I have a wonderful DH who gets up to make her bottles and then he goes and sleeps on the lounge until he goes to work at 3am.

[Laiceysmummy]

I had DD1 in a cradle with me for about a week then put her into her own room, she was just to noisy and i had to wander around the house anyway to get her bottles.

DD2 was in my room for a few weeks in a bassinet then went into her own room, bassinet came off the stand and i put it into her cot. I put her into her own room when we got a rocking chair so i could feed her (booby) in her own room and then pop her straight back into bed, she was much more settled with not having to move from room to room at night.

Saying that, I was single having my DD1 so i had no one else to wake up and now DD2s daddy works nights so i could have her in with me and not have to worry about waking him up in the first few weeks while i fed her.

[Life is Good]

I kept our boy with me in the same room until 8 weeks. We slept in a separate room to DH because he really needs his sleep for the crazy stressful long hours he works. We would all be in the same room over weekends.

We had the same issue with his bedroom being on the other side of the house. For the first two weeks I slept in the spare room near his because I was so scared to be so far away. I then bit the bullet and used the monitor (volume turned right up! haha) and since then it has been pretty easy.

I think I will do the same thing again with the next bub, though I may move them into their own room sooner as DS slept so much better in his own room!

Making sure that you always have fresh back-up batteries in both your remote and base monitor units really helps!

Best of luck - just do what feels right for you

[~me~]

DS1 was in a bassinette in our room for a few weeks then straight into his own room in a cot.
DS2 was in a bassinette in our room for a little longer. I used to move the change table to the room nearest our bedroom, more for convenience. We also used a bassinette for convenience when they were NB as the bassinette was on wheels and could be moved from room to room during the day.
DD was pretty much the same as DS2 and is now in her own room in the cot.
My husband used to wake up in the morning with "how was your night dear?" when they were in our room
As people have mentioned, they are noisy little people as new borns and grunt, groan and make all sorts of funny noises.
Don't be concerned about how much noise you make around bubs. It's very handy to have them get used to normal house noises. If you normally have a radio or music on during the day, don't be afraid to keep doing it. I used to vacuum under DS1's cot while he slept. DH wakes up to the radio and neither of them ever woke up to that. Or for that matter when we went to bed and did the usual teeth and so on in our ensuite. You will be amazed at what babies will sleep through.
You will fall into your own pattern and comfort zone.

Congratulations on your pregnancy

[lindsaymaree]

As one of the girls mentioned above, you'd be amazed at what your partner will sleep though! My DS generally gives a bit of a warning cry before he hits full throttle and I would have him up and out of the room before he had a chance to wake DP.

I think you'll find what works for you as soon as you get home. I intended on have DS sleep in his room straight away as his room is right next door to ours. However I found I couldn't have him that far away from me and he's spent the first 6 weeks in our room. We purchased a pram with a bassinet attachment which he's currently sleeping in, we'll probably move him into his cot in the next week or so.

Since we've moved DS into his own room I've been getting a much better quality of sleep, I found I was waking to DS's every grunt during the night.

I don't think there's any right or wrong in terms of were they sleep, only what works best for you and your family. As long as bubs is happy and safe xx

[Nix76]

Hey Ladies,

Thank you to all of you for your replies. I'm sure it is interesting to read for other first time expectant mums too!

You are all so lovely and so right in what you say - that we will just figure it out when we get there. Its just nice to know what is done in other caring homes!

You have all given me some great advice - thanks very much for your time in replying!

Nix

[ktdancer]

I said through my whole pregnancy that bub would go straight inot her cot when we got home.
But my appendix burst 3 days after having Aaliyah and had to have emergency surgery, so was in hospital for 2 weeks. When I got home, hubby and my mum and mum in law had set up a cradel in our room, so that it would be easier for me through the nights, as I was still having a hard time getting around after the operation. I think bub stayed there for maybe a week. She was just so noisy that even when she was asleep, we were wide awake cause she was wriggling and breathing loud and making all sorts of noises.
We moved her into her room in her cot, and even she slept better. In our room, she was waking us up and we were waking her up.
My mum had bought us a snuggle bed, so she had a little bed within her cot, to help her feel secure, so thats an option if you want bub to go into the cot straight away.
It's just one of those things that only you will know what's best for you, and it might work out completely different once bub is home.

[GabberQueeN]

I said through my whole pregnancy that bub would go straight inot her cot when we got home.
But my appendix burst 3 days after having Aaliyah and had to have emergency surgery, so was in hospital for 2 weeks. When I got home, hubby and my mum and mum in law had set up a cradel in our room, so that it would be easier for me through the nights, as I was still having a hard time getting around after the operation. I think bub stayed there for maybe a week. She was just so noisy that even when she was asleep, we were wide awake cause she was wriggling and breathing loud and making all sorts of noises.
We moved her into her room in her cot, and even she slept better. In our room, she was waking us up and we were waking her up.
My mum had bought us a snuggle bed, so she had a little bed within her cot, to help her feel secure, so thats an option if you want bub to go into the cot straight away.
It's just one of those things that only you will know what's best for you, and it might work out completely different once bub is home.

I just sent my DH to get the snuggle bed! let's hope that helps my little one settle.

[Ellee05]

As others have said - best to make a decision when you get there. I had thought I would put DD in her own room when we were home. But she came early and after having her in the neonates I just wanted her beside me when we came home. Rather then buy a bassinet we just got a porta cot with the bassinet level and change table that attaches on the top. We knew we needed a portacot for our lifestyle anyway so this was best option for us. We slept her at the end of our bed.

Good luck, and don't stress to much over it. Wishing you a happy and healthy pregnancy.

[Pip82]

Hi

My DD is 9 months old now and is in a cot in our room. She was in a bassinette (borrowed one, maybe try to do that too as they are in one for such a short time really) until about 4 months, we were going to put her in a cot in her room after then but it didn't feel right, so we moved the cot into our room (and a few things out of our room to fit the cot in).

On the whole noise business - newborns seem to sleep loudly, they make funny noises, fart in their sleep and it is hard to get used to having another person in the room. Also, don't be afraid of waking up Dad!! I'm probably going against the grain here but I think that the baby and the responsibility belongs to both of you, and even though Dad goes to work full time that isn't a reason to not do any of the baby caring while they are at home and that includes getting up at night. Obviously they can't breastfeed them but my DH got the baby up, changed her nappy and gave her to me to feed, then went back to sleep in the first few months when she was feeding three hourly around the clock. He still helps now. I think that trying to do everything and not expecting dad to help out (not just when it suits them either) it a bad way to start. Just my opinion anyway (and my DH works full time too, I now work part time but didn't in the beginning), just do what feels right for your family. Best wishes for your pregnancy.

Pip

[babymiracles]

Hi Niz
I am sure you will work out what is best for you, baby and hubby when bubs comes home.

My DD is still in our room and will be until she is at least one (which is a SIDs recommendation). Hubby generally sleeps through when she wakes and I find it easier with her right next to me to wake and attend to her before she gets to the stage of crying with hunger etc (I tend to hear her noises/signals and wake usually just at the right time). I also find it very comforting knowing she is next to me. Initially she had a bassinette but we ended up buying a cradle (boori country brand) The really wonderful thing with a cradle is that 1. it is longer and bigger than a bassinette (90 cm long compared to 60 cm for bassinette) which means baby can stay in it a lot longer - but it is smaller than cot (and newborn would be lost in a cot) 2. easy to rock when she needs a bit more help getting off to sleep. So highly recommend a cradle rather than a bassinette. DD is still in it and loves it.

Anyway best of luck with the rest of your pregnancy. Just do what feels right for you and your family - you will be fine

[Jen27]

Hi Nix

The best advice that I read was to keep night times as night times. Meaning as 'low-key' as possible. From day one in the hospital I turned on a very dim night light to change dd nappy and feed her. I never got up and turned the main lights on. I kept nice and quiet too. I did the same once we got home. We never had problems with DD up all night and asleep all day. Shes always slept very well of a night and I think because there was a key difference. We had dd in a bassinet in our room, which she grew out of by 3 months, shes now 5 months old and in a cot in our room. I'm thinking about putting her in her own room in a month or two, but its just so handy having her right next to me. Its easier for breastfeeds, no going to another room. Oh and once you have your baby you can just put a towel underneath them and change them on the bed. It might wake them more taking them to another room. Newborns can be quiet noisy sleepers but we soon got used to dd sleeping in the same room. We were able to get to her quickly before she woke too much and cried. So she always went back to sleep easily. this worked for us anyway. You will work out what is best for you once your bub is here. goodluck

[pash]

Hi Nix,

I'd always wanted to co-sleep, but when it came down to it, we were in a tiny one bed apartment with a really small double bed, and we were just slept badly when DD was in our bed. Though when she was a newborn, bad sleep (with her in our bed) was better than no sleep (trying to get her to stay alseep after we put her in her moses basket).

Her moses basket was in our room, right next to the alarm clock and DH never managed to wake her. Still doesn't wake and she's 4.5 months old and has trouble going down for a sleep. DH sleeps through most things though he does sleep-settle, like sleep walking only says things like "shh it;s ok shh" in his sleep when DD cries! Quite funny. But that depends on how your baby and DH sleep.

I'd read that if you didn't want your baby to sleep with you for years, then you should try to move them to their own cot by 3 months. She hated her cot at first, but by 2 months, she liked it better than her moses basket and spent most of the night in her cot. By 3 months, she spent all night in her cot (most nights).

Though if we had a bigger bed, I think I would bring her to our cot more often. There is nothing like waking up and getting a huge smile, a giggle and a squirm from your baby in the morning when they (and you) first wake up. Even if you don't co-sleep, if you can see her in her cot from your bed, this is lovely.

Anyhow, I'm sure you'll come up with the method(s) that work the best for you and your family. You're thinking about all the right things. ALl the best xoxo