Napping in swing...

[sea island mama]

How bad is it really : I never had one with dd, but having had one handed down to me a few days ago & ds sleeping in it for quite some time now, I can't really see the problem. What's the difference between that & putting him down anywhere else to nap? When it stopped swinging he just stayed asleep & seems quite happy & comfortable. I keep thinking I should take him out, but why, if he's not bothered? Of course I'll take him out when he wakes up; I won't just wind him up & try to get him to go back to sleep. It's sure nice to have a bit of time to get a few things done, like sweep the kitchen floor that hasn't been done in a few weeks, cuddle with dd & feed her lunch undisturbed.
Anyway, what do you think?

[asherah]

I think that if I hadn't had one for my colicky ds, NO one would have slept, ever.. for three months.

I think if you do not just warehouse a child in them, but use them consciously.. they are fine.

[*Erin*]

do away with the swing guilt, mama. they are awesome things.


i cried when my maya outgrew hers. she loved it. i miss those naptimes. seriously, as long as you dont leave the baby in it alllll the time, they're great. lots of comfort for baby, and you can /shower (i would put mine in the bathroom with me, and i had a see-thru shower curtain), make yourself some real food, clean up, paint your toenails, pee...lol.

[lisabc311]

I agree- get rid of the swing guilt! If your little one is happy, why disturb her?!

:bf

[famousmockngbrd]

I had the exact same feelings. "Poor kid, he looks so forlorn in that thing." "But he's sleeping so peacefully, he must be OK...?" "I'm going to gently take him out and put him somewhere more comfortable." <pause> "WAAAAHHHHH!!!"

He outgrew the swing on his own. I'd say he was done with it by 5 or 6 months. But it was a real help while it lasted. :thunb

[cinnamonamon]

<<gasp>> Swings bad?!! Errrr... Ian has been asleep in his for an hour and a half! It is my savior as his newest naptime favorite is to insist on not only my (very close) presence -- but to also be latched on for the occasional suck... I am working to remedy this, but some days the swing is the only way to get a good (& happy for me) nap in!

[mosaicmama]

I agree with all the swingin' mamas. Mine loves hers. If I try her crib she is up in like 5 min. There is nothing wrong with getting some time to ones self. It is important. I use to feel the same way about the swing. I felt like a bad mom if I wasn't constantly holding her or wearing her. Let's face it wearing a baby around all day is a bit much for a body to take. I find now that I enjoy that physical distance from her because when she wakes up I feel this fresh bond with her. What ever works for you and your baby is a good thing.

[sea island mama]

Thanks for the support, everyone . I feel so much better now. I think it's going to be a life-saver when I really need it. Unfortunately, I can't use it to shower as it won't fit in the bathroom & dd likes to push him or put dolls in with him when I'm not looking : .

[cinnamonamon]

Originally posted by mosaicmama
I enjoy that physical distance from her because when she wakes up I feel this fresh bond with her.

Wow -- that's it exactly.

[liam's mom]

I have the same guilt! I didn't even want to buy a swing initially, but we had a bit of trouble getting DS to fall asleep sometimes, so we bought one. And he *loves* it. I felt bad for awhile, but now I am kind of resigned to the fact that as long as we don't use it as a battery operated mom replacement all day every day, it's OK. He still spends a great deal of time on our laps, so I'm not going to worry about it anymore.

What's the difference between that & putting him down anywhere else to nap?

As far as I can tell...Nothing.

[becca29]

I was just going to put up the same post! :LOL

DS loves his swing, and I know that I should be thankful that he likes it so much but sometiems I feel bad about it. The thing is, he gets incredible cranky when he's tired but a lot of times, he'll only go to sleep in the swing. The funny thing is, I'll be walking with him, rocking him, holding him, wishing he'd go to sleep in my arms but does that work? nope! He'll keep fussing and won't fall asleep. A soon as I put him in his swing he gets this little grin on his face and falls right to sleep!

This morning I was ready to have him fall asleep on my lap in the rocker, hoping he'd take a long nap with me while I read a book. Didn't work, now he's in his swing and I guess I should go get some housework done. (maybe it's his little baby way of saying, "mama, the house is a mess!")