Where do you put your child during naptimes? - Page 2

[streetkitty]

Originally Posted by Birth Junky

Great ideas, all of them!

DH and I have a California King bed, so it is HUGE . . . perhaps it would be okay for a baby if we removed the bed frame and dropped it down lower to the floor. And, of course, closed the bedroom door to keep curious cats (we have four!) from curling up next to the little one! And of course, a monitor is a great idea. We will also probably end up with a pack & play type of setup for camping, so we could use that.

It probably seems silly of me to be thinking about all this SO far in advance, but what can I say--I've got baby fever on the brain!

We have a western king- it is on a platform very close to the ground. When 19 month old dd is napping- she sleeps where she always sleeps- in that bed. I have a horseshoe shaped body pillow from when I was pregnant that I use to block one side and the bottom of the bed and on the other side I put two pillows. She is a very active sleeper- rolling all over and has NEVER fallen off the bed- but it is a short fall even if she does. When she was smaller- we did let her nap in the crib (if I could remove her from the sling) but only until 4 months or so. She never seemed very comfortable in there- it was for my own 'new mama' peace of mind and when I had to do something that I couldn't wear her while doing. New baby who is on the way will nap in co-sleeper attached to the bed next to his/her sister for naps or in the sling. Once he/she is 4 months or so- baby will be moved to the bed as well. FYI- we have 5 cats and at first we really tried to keep them away from her while sleeping- they were very curious. Once she was napping on the bed- they would all nap with her- she loved having their warm bodies around her and tended to sleep longer with them! I have posted a pic- don't worry- your cats know how important the baby is and will NOT do anything to her him/her. dd is 5 weeks in this photo with her favorite cat (the smartest of our cats because he latched on to her from the beginning and puts up with her carrying him around at this point- he knows she'll have her own bed at some point!:

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y69...y/IMG_2466.jpg


Good Luck!

[MamaHippo]

So far we just put DS in our bed to nap. DS is a frequent night waker, so by naptime i am usually dying for a nap myself and just curl up with him for a nurse and we both sleep. Thats the only way i get any rest! If i HAVE to be up and around while he naps I put him in the crib.
When he was smaller, we got him a little bouncy seat called a Baby Papasan. it has gentle vibrations and soft polyphonic lullabies, and keeps the babe at a semi-upright position. He is too big for it now but he used to nap in it for hours.
You can get them at Target stores for about $50.
Lisa

[Birth Junky]

What an adorable pic!

I must admit, I had a little bit of trepidation with the idea of having the cats anywhere near where a baby would be sleeping (the cat I grew up with liked to sleep ON my face, which never even woke me up, but I was six or seven at the time). I worry about a cat like that smothering a babe.

Our cats are all pretty content to sleep at the foot of the bed or curled up in the crook of your knees when you are sleeping on your side, so they would be safe with a babe . . .

[catnip]

My cats often step on dd through the blankets when we first get into the bed and they want petting, and two of them like to curl up and sleep against my belly right at dd's feet. One of the others prefers the body pillow blocking the gap between headboard and bed, one won't come near the bed any more, and the last has never set foot in the bedroom. She stays in the kitchen and living room only. (she's a rescue kitty with some emotional issues) Dd is a side sleeper who sleeps at breast level facing me.

[TurtleMom]

Hi. Our daughter slept in a sling a lot as a baby and I also used a Moses basket that I would keep in whatever room I was in. She didn't sleep as long when she was in the basket, but it gave me a little time at least to tend to some things that were difficult with her in the sling.

Once she got older (maybe after the first three months), she generally slept on a bed or on the floor with me nearby after I nursed her down. I would add to the list of other posters who mentioned that you can teach them to get off the bed themselves pretty early. I work from home a few days a week and I generally can hear her waking up and just go in to get her.

We wasted (or our friends did in some cases : ) money on some equipment we haven't used. The only use the bouncy got was as a seat in the shower while I showered when she was really little and we could have used a car seat for that. Haven't gotten a swing or a cradle. I would just suggest to try things one at a time and not assume you need them all. Seems like each baby is different.

[Birth Junky]

Thanks to all the mamas who responded to this thread; you have certainly given me plenty of food for thought. Can't wait until I can start figuring all this stuff out with a babe of my own . . . until then I will just keep asking you all questions!

[justpickles]

I wondered about this too!

My 9mo ds sleeps in the recliner, with the foot rest out. We have a very small house, so there's usually 1-4 people in the room with him, or in the kitchen, which is an open room right beside the chair!
I did just buy bedrails for my bed, but I can't do it just yet. I keep having these visions of him getting stuck trying to get down. I think my paranoia keeps my kids a little safer.

Tammi

[emmaegbert]

Well, I have the same question, what do other cosleeping parents do for naps? I guess the answer is whatever works. My baby (almost 5 months) sleeps with us at night, and I haven't gotten a crib... it seems so wasteful to get a crib just for naps... which only last about 15 minutes unless I hold him/wear him (and this guy is pushing if not exceeding 20lbs already so I just get tired after a while) or take him out on walks in the stroller. I am a full-time student so I really NEED those naps to last long enough for me to get some work done.

Our Dr. is totally supportive of bedsharing but warns me that the baby will be "flipping over and all over the place" any day now so not to ever leave him on the bed alone, and she has me a little nervous even after reading all these posts about how your babies never fell out of bed. Well, I have put pillows on either side to take bathroom breaks, etc but was wondering if maybe I should look into cylindrical bolster pillows or something that I could use he ever actually starts napping. I am also thinking about trying a mat on the floor that we can roll up or store under our bed when we aren't using it. A baby can't fall off the floor, right? Mommas out there- have either of these things worked for you?

We're both grad students, so taste and parenting style aside, the budget is super limited and we don't want to buy anything we can avoid. FYI for the future mom- we haven't had a baby seat, baby swing, bouncer, exersaucer, or any of that, and the little guy is very calm and happy, growing like blazes and doing all his developmental stuff, and I really haven't missed it, and he's so darn big he's have grown out of a lot of it so fast. Baby is happy to play on the floor, and I use various (cheap, simple) slings and wraps all the time.

[Alkenny]

When he was littler, in the sling or across my lap. Now that he's older, he usually crawls up on my lap and sits his rump on the desk in front of my keyboard and leans into my chest and falls asleep. Sometimes I can successfully move him to the couch beside me. Over the past week, he's climbed up on the couch himself and leaned back into the pillows and conked out and I have to say I kind of miss the cuddling.

[mama*peanut]

My DD has her naps in our bed. She went through a period when she was 9 months where she only napped on me & even with a sling, it wasn't very fun. We've never had a problem with her napping in the bed. We have a small house, so the minute I hear her say something I just go in there & see if she's ready to get up.

[CallieA]

My DD naps in her crib. We bought a crib and got her whole nursery set up way before I considered co-sleeping! During the day, she sleeps in her crib - then at night, she sleeps with us in bed. This set-up works great for us. She feels comfortable in her crib and is used to it, so she doesn't mind napping in there. That way, I can actually get stuff done while she's napping! At night time, she feels equally comfortable in bed with us.

[AugustineM]

Birth Junky -- I live in Bothell too! We're probably just around the corner from each other.

You'll figure out where your baby naps best as you get to know him/her. Some are great sleepers and will nap anywhere, even falling asleep on their own. Others, like mine, need lots of rocking and nursing to fall asleep, and then are hard to lie down. He naps on our king size bed on the floor, or sometimes I can get him to nap in his carseat which is next to our fishtank that makes bubbling noise. He's there right now actually.

You'll love your life with a babe!