Talk to me about a glider/rocker

[gumshoegirl007]

Despite the fact that we're purchasing everything used for the baby, a glider/rocker is one of the most expensive items on our list!  I've done a bit of reading and I think we'd like a glider (I've read that babies like the motion better and our floors are hardwood in a mid-century house which I think would loudly creak under the weight of a rocker). 

Aesthetically speaking, the really nice modern gliders we like are out of our price range and I really don't see them being long-term pieces of furniture in our home.  We don't like the looks of dutalier/shermag gliders, and I don't think they're nearly as comfortable, and we definitely wouldn't use them outside of the nursery. 

When we spend money on furniture, we're really trying to invest in long-term pieces. I don't think a glider will get much use beyond a year.

So, for all you breastfeeding moms out there, what worked for you:  glider?  rocker?  comfy chair?  other?

[Jayray]

As far as breastfeeding, I mostly breastfed on the couch with a nursing pillow.  At night I just sat up in bed or nursed side-lying (the babe was in our room until 6ish months).  However, the glider was so wonderful for rocking the baby to sleep when he didn't nurse to sleep.  We used an exercise ball to comfort him for a while, but it was such a relief to get the glider.  We still use it and he is 18 months old.  We read books in it before naps or if he's sick and grumpy we'll rock him to sleep or just rock for comfort.

Just my two cents! :)  You can often find them for cheap on Craigslist.  Or try Freecycle in your area.

[Bebe's Mom]

Glider. I also live in a house with hardwood floors. If you get a glider, plan to put a rug under it, or it will travel. I didn't use my glider much at first, but now I use it several times a day, it really helps with getting DD down for naps.

[swell_mel]

With dd1 and dd2 we had a plush rocking recliner that I used. We have since given that away. I would breastfeed wherever. I didn't have one spot. I just wanted something that rocked for soothing or rocking our baby to sleep. Now we have a glider that some friends gave to us that I plan on using with #3. Honestly though our recliner was way more comfy than the glider is and a bit more versatile as far as furniture goes. So my first suggestion is if you don't want to spend an arm and a leg on a glider you can probably find a recliner that could be a long term piece. Ours was a big oversized chenille thing that was great. My inlaws prefer modern furniture and have a set of really comfy recliners that are modern looking. So there's always that. If you don't want to invest in an expensive glider (and I totally get that!) there's always Craigslist, Goodwill, thrift stores to get a cheaper one to last you a short while- and then you could just resell it. Recovering the cushions would be a sipmle way to make it more your style- even if the overall shape of the chair isn't.

[Jenne]

I've not btdt but the advice I got on looking at furniture was to avoid wooden arms. I hadn't thought about it just sitting in a glider because I was fine and comfy. But my friend said her biggest waste of money was her glider because after holding a baby for any length of time the pressure of the wood on her arms became very uncomfortable. We wound up going to the LazyBoy store and getting a rocker?glider? that is a recliner. It was less money then the gliders we looked at and definitely less money then the BabysRUs type pieces that are similar. Right now it is in our bedroom (it is so comfy to rock in or if the bed is uncomfortable to sleep in!) but could easily move into the family room later if we wanted. We wanted a real piece of furniture and I am so pleased with our decision! I can't wait to snuggle a baby in it!


Jenne

[ibusymomto5]

My .02... We've been through 2 different gliders and 2 different rocking recliners over the years. In my opinion, a rocking recliner is so much more comfy. It's nice to have the option to throw your feet up and recline back at times. The 2 gliders we've owned were good at first, but after several months to a year they both started squeaking making it really annoying to try to rock a baby to sleep. They also were never as comfy to really relax in while nursing. I'm planning on throwing out our squeaky glider and replacing it with a new, cushy rocking recliner before this baby comes.

[ibusymomto5]

Originally Posted by Jenne 

I've not btdt but the advice I got on looking at furniture was to avoid wooden arms. I hadn't thought about it just sitting in a glider because I was fine and comfy. But my friend said her biggest waste of money was her glider because after holding a baby for any length of time the pressure of the wood on her arms became very uncomfortable. We wound up going to the LazyBoy store and getting a rocker?glider? that is a recliner. It was less money then the gliders we looked at and definitely less money then the BabysRUs type pieces that are similar. Right now it is in our bedroom (it is so comfy to rock in or if the bed is uncomfortable to sleep in!) but could easily move into the family room later if we wanted. We wanted a real piece of furniture and I am so pleased with our decision! I can't wait to snuggle a baby in it!


Jenne

This is so true about the wooden arms! Definitely stay away from those if you can. And, yes, I've noticed the same thing about the price. You can pick up a recliner for about half of what most gliders are at BabiesRUs.

[m0xxie]

Don't know if I just got lucky, but I got two glider rockers with ottomans for free (one from freecycle, and one from Craig's List). Both are in very nice shape and quite comfortable. One is downstairs in the family room and gets a lot of use even now, before the baby has arrived. The other is in the baby's room upstairs. Based on my experience, I think your chances of finding a free or very low cost glider are pretty good (and if you get one that way, no real guilt about passing it on once the immediate need is gone in a year or so). Good luck!

[~Adorkable~]

i can really see wanting a glider, i love the motion more than a rocker and i can also see the smarts in a recliner. i was really hoping for one that was both and i know they aer out there.  the issue i have have is the needed width for tandem nursing of twins, so if anyone ever sees a glider/recliner that is extra wide like one termed "seat and a half" or "loveseat" please let me know im pulling my hair out about this and i kinda like me hair.

[kittywitty]

I love our Dutailier glider I bought on sale at Burlington Coat Factory. On sale it cost just as much as the cheap ones from Walmart that fall apart quickly.

[dakotablue]

I got a Shermag off craigslist for $100. It was almost brand new the mom was pregnant again and was changing the colors of her nursery. 

I think its this one http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3909961

We really loved this, until  my grandmother moved and gave us a two rocking armchairs (kinda like a lazy boy but doesn't recline just spins and rocks) Now we're in that more, but I think I'll move back to rocker when baby comes for foot stool comfort.

I second the exercise ball though. I lived on it for the first few months until DS go so big I had to lean on something. The bouncing with rocking was fantastic. This I'm actually looking forward too again.

[PrincessWinnie]

We bought a glider secondhand from a friend and put MANY many miles on it. The movement was sooo soothing and always calmed down.

I've seen many on my local Freecycle list and on Craigslist.

[Jenne]

Originally Posted by ~Adorkable~ 

i can really see wanting a glider, i love the motion more than a rocker and i can also see the smarts in a recliner. i was really hoping for one that was both and i know they aer out there.  the issue i have have is the needed width for tandem nursing of twins, so if anyone ever sees a glider/recliner that is extra wide like one termed "seat and a half" or "loveseat" please let me know im pulling my hair out about this and i kinda like me hair.

We got the "maverick" from LazyBoy and while it is not called a seat and a half...I'm not little and I fit with super comfy with a medium sized (30lb) dog on either side of me. We have even slept that way semi-reclined... I'd definitely recommend looking at it or really we just visited our local lazy boy gallery and tried out *all* of the rocker/glider recliners until we found the perfect one. Evidently, the "maverick" though is there best selling/most popular model. Good luck!

Jenne

[finnegansmom]

When I was pregnant with #1, I was determined to NOT buy a glider because I thought they were ugly and I was(am still) in a big "form over function" mind set.

I bought this upholstered rocking chair from ikea, which was horrible.  We ended up getting a shermag from Target and I made covered for the cushions so that they were white instead of the tweedy natural.  There are snap on cushions on the wooden arms.  While it's not going to win any chic design awards, I worship it.  I have rocked 2 babies to sleep for 4 years in that chair and will use it again for #3 coming in Feb.

My kids now LOVE it.  They fight over sitting in it.  I have a big pottery barn comfy chair in our room and the kids will literally pull each other out of the glider to "claim" the best spot on it.

You can have a cute cover made for the cushions, or make them yourself.  I might not put it in the living room but in a nursery or a bedroom, it works.

Oh and we have the gliding ottoman as well with it. 

[gumshoegirl007]

Thank you so much for all of your input thus far.  I was thinking that I would scrap the whole thing, but I'm really encouraged by how many of you used gliders to help put the baby to sleep - I don't know why, but I just didn't think of it to do that.  So, I'm going to keep on online shopping and see what we're able to come up with!

[arihillfarm]

We bought this same glider rocker and gliding ottoman (but in a different color) before my son was born in 2008.  I LOVE it and we still use it every day.  He stopped nursing at 21 months, but we still snuggle and rock to sleep each night (he's 31 months now) and we read stories in it before nap and bedtime.  I love the reclining feature too.

-Astrid
 

Originally Posted by dakotablue 

I got a Shermag off craigslist for $100. It was almost brand new the mom was pregnant again and was changing the colors of her nursery. 

I think its this one http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3909961

We really loved this, until  my grandmother moved and gave us a two rocking armchairs (kinda like a lazy boy but doesn't recline just spins and rocks) Now we're in that more, but I think I'll move back to rocker when baby comes for foot stool comfort.

I second the exercise ball though. I lived on it for the first few months until DS go so big I had to lean on something. The bouncing with rocking was fantastic. This I'm actually looking forward too again.

[tzs]

i am jonesing for a glider this time around. 

for what it's worth i HATE the look of traditional baby gliders. which is why i didn;t get one the first time around. i also just thought it was another waste of money and a uni-tasker type piece of furniture to get in the way. but then i had the pleasure of sitting in one at a friend's house watching a football game. that thing just moves so smoothly with such little efffort and my sleep-fighting babe fell asleep without me even trying. i had a rocker at home and it's so uncomfortable and is practically a work-out to rock in. 

this time around i'm getting me a glider and it's going to be a dutalier that reclines. they are just really the smoothest and most durable....i've tried them all. i'd love a glider that doesn't look like a g;ider but more like a modern armchair but the truth is they just aren't the same. i've been checkiong craigslist and it seems you can get them for around $200 here.

[bella99]

I have a Shermag glider that I've been using for more than two years and will continue using it with the baby coming next month.  It's still in great shape, even with a two year old using it as a climbing tool and occasionally banging it backwards.  It has padded arms too, which I do agree are nice. It doesn't squeak or anything, and the microfiber fabric cleans up sooo easily.

Not sure what it is about the look you don't like, since most gliders seem to look alike to me.

[crayfishgirl]

Love. Our. Glider.

Our sleep-fighting daughter still needs rocking to sleep (she's almost 21mo).  We started out with an old rocker that was okay, but when one of the rockers cracked we panicked and ordered a Dutaillier with expedited shipping.  It cost a fortune, and I was sick over the price, but was more concerned with the how-are-we-ever-going-to-get-this-baby-to-sleep freak out I was having.  The fact that we had almost all hand-me-downs for all other baby stuff softened the cost hit, but I can honestly say it was money well spent....we love it, and its the most used peice of furniture in our house.  We'll use it for baby number two as well, although we actually taking a wait and see approach on buying a second when the second baby comes given that we use this one so much.  I'll be in one chair with one baby, my husband in the other with another child....and when we're both in our 80s, we'll each have a rocker on the front porch!

[KD's Momma]

I hate my glider!!!!!  It is terribly uncomfortable to sit in.  I hate the wooden arms that have these flimsy "padded" coverings, the thin flimsy padded back and seat covering - the ONLY think that I like about it was the ottoman.  But my husband LOVES it, he would rather sit in it than any othe chair - go figure.  I usually nurse on he couch or sitting up/ or laying in bed.  I have an old chair that rocks and lays back and you can put your feet up.  I love it!!!  If i am hving to rock my little one I can lay back and rest some, if I need extra padding there is room for a pillow uder my arm and I am not squished in the seat