Cosleeping Logistics Questions

DD sleeps between dh an me and usually snuggles up against me. If she's having one of her roll-y nights, I drape an arm over her. I know there are bed rails and the like--we haven't gotten any yet, but I think we'll need them soon for nap time. Right now we just use pillow barricades--but I know crawling and climbing are coming

How is your bed set up?

Queen mattress on top of box spring on the floor - about 18 inches high.

Who sleeps where - baby in middle or by wall or...?

Baby in the middle, since he became old enough to "hold his own" in our bed (about 4 or 5 months old). Before that, he was in a co-sleeper on my side of the bed, or in our bed between me and the co-sleeper (I figured if he rolled, he would just roll into the co-sleeper).

Where does baby nap?

Now he's older, he naps in the middle of our bed by himself - he doesn't move much in his sleep, and when he wakes up, he can get on and off of the bed himself safely. When he was younger, though, he would have just crawled off the edge of the bed and landed on his head if I had let him, so for naps, I put a twin-size foam mattress on the floor. It was thin (about 4 inches) and folded up into thirds, so I could put it away when not in use. I also baby-proofed the room, so he wouldn't get into any trouble before I heard that he was awake and went to get him.

Any advice from those with active sleepers?

DS used to thrash around a lot and disturb all of us, until I realized that he needed to pee and started trying night-time EC (elimination communication) with him. Helping him pee once or twice during the night greatly reduced the activity level. Now that he's older, he sleeps pretty peacefully for long stretches without having to pee, sometimes for the entire night.

I have a VERY active sleeper - bed hog, feet in the back, sleeping across the bed! I have slept with my DD since day 1. I always put the bed against the wall and she sleeps between me and the wall. I did get a bed rail for the open side. I recommend one that you can flip down when not in use, like when child is napping or after you get out of bed. I got mine from One Step Ahead. It's also a very long one so not much room for sneaking out through the opening. I don't like pillow barricades for active sleepers as I found out that it didn't stop my DD from just rolling over it and onto the floor. The safest choice is a bed rail.

My 3 1/2 year old actually just spent her first night in her own bed last night. After years of my sleeping of the very edge of the bed with feet in my face or back, I moved her into her own bed which is right next to mine. Also, for future reference, when your child is sleeping with you and has a potty accident....not fun!! My DD has been sleeping in undies for quite some time, but she recently had a couple of accidents (my fault for not getting her on the potty before bed) and that was a pain to deal with at 3am! Something I never really thought about until it happened.

Anyway...bottom line is that with an active sleeper, it's important to keep the child safely in bed and only a bedrail will prevent falls. Well, mostly anyway-my DD did manage a couple of times to move around so much that she fell out of bed through the one little gap in the rail at the end of the bed!

I actually joined today to post the same questions.
My little girl is 10 months old today and she was in a co-sleeper and bed until she started sitting up and pulling herself up (about 8 months). She is crawling now and she is all over the bed. Sits up while still asleep or half asleep, crawls around on the bed etc. I am going out of my mind trying to let her take naps or put her to sleep before we go to bed without worrying about her rolling off of something. We just decided last night to put a twin matress on the floor of her room so if she falls off of it she won't go far but I have to tell you it seems like ther should be some better options. This has been a very stressful time. I work full time and we have two nannies that come to the house. I bought rails to go around the bed but then I did some research online and found that there are about 45 deaths per year of children under 2 years of age that get caught underneath the rails which really causes me concern given how active she is. I am fine with the co-sleeping but rather frustrated over the fact that I have not read any ideas by Dr. Sears or those that advocate for co-sleeping regarding the practical problems of what to do when you can't be there with them. If you read the restrictions on the co-sleepers you are not to use them once the baby can pull themselves up. I actually think this is an issue that deserves a full article in Mothering to help those of us that want to be with our babies, nurse them to sleep etc. and then be able to leave the room at times other than bedtime for all of us.

How is your bed set up?
King sized bed, on frame and boxspring (so it's quite high). I rolled up a good sized blanket and tucked it under the sheet on my side of the bed, to keep the baby from rolling off in the night.

Who sleeps where - baby in middle or by wall or...?
He's back and forth, depending on if he needs to eat in the night a couple of times. He's usually on my side of the bed, between me and my home-made "bumper." Sometimes he ends up between DH and I, though.

Where does baby nap?
In my arms. He's crawling, so I don't trust him in the bed alone. Sometimes I'll cuddle up with him in bed, and read while he naps. I'm hoping to get him napping in his crib soon.

Any good sites out there for equpment - like bed rails, etc?
No idea, sorry.

Any advice from those with active sleepers?
Don't cosleep! Ok just kidding. My son can be pretty rolly, so I sleep on my side with my arm draped over him when he's on the open side of the bed. He's 10 months old, and has never fallen off, despite his wiggliness.