Crib Sidecar Recommendations?

[macandcheese]

DH and I are expecting our first in early January, and we plan to co-sleep with the babe.

We have a queen bed and a very squishy mattress. I don't feel comfortable having a tiny infant in the bed with us, especially not in the winter when we pull the blankets up to our eyeballs to get warm.

DH's mom is all about buying us a crib, so I was hoping to steer her towards some that can easily be sidecar-ed up with our bed. Can anyone recommend cribs that are particularly good for this, or warn me about cribs to stay away from? We are totally fine with Ikea (and I've heard that some of their cribs are great for this), but I have a feeling that MIL will want to get something "nicer."

Any advice at all would be super! TIA!

[Sfcmama]

If i were to buy one new, i'd get a convertible crib. My MIL insisted we use the drop side crib she'd bought from a friend. Because of safety concerns with drop sides, I will only use it as a sidecar but I imagine there maybe a day when we would want a 4 sided crib. Also, convertibles are designed to be uses 3 sided and are a bit sturdier because of that. Good luck and happy cosleeping!!

[rhiOrion]

I also suggest a convertible crib.

And if you do go with a drop side (if you can still buy them? not sure), then make sure the mattress raises, or that your bed is really really low. We have a crib with a drop side and the mattress doesn't raise (taht I can figure out, at least), so it's useless with our tall bed.

[kJad29]

I third the convertible crib. DH and I were given one from his brother and wife for our toddler, but he only sleeps there partially through the night so we're going to use it for our new baby and keep the bigger kid in bed since that would be a safer arrangement. Good luck!

[macandcheese]

Thanks, ladies. It sounds like a convertible crib is the way to go. I appreciate your help!