Bassinets

[burritosateverymeal]

Hey mamas! I know we have a lot of BTDT mamas here so I thought I would ask for bassinet reccomendations.

For DS1, we borrowed a cradle for a few weeks but then put DD right into his crib. This time, we are thinking about bassinets.

I am looking for something safe and not super expensive. We have a Rock N Play but I'm a nervous Nelly and won't let DS2 sleep in it overnight. We also have a Pack N Play but I'm not sure if that would be comfy long term (6 months) for a baby?

Experiences and recommendations por favor. Go!

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[arimaythea]

We got the Pack N Play for our bedroom that has the newborn sleeper attachment on the top and used that for DS right after he was born. Then once he got a little bigger, we switched the Pack N Play to the raised setting and used that until he outgrew it.

The nervous nelly in me wouldn't buy one of the non-standard mattresses that fits into the Pack N Play, so I used the standard "mattress" that comes with it, but bought a quilted sheet to make it a little more comfy.

[mkrupar]

Just curious, what is it about the RNP that makes you nervous? DD slept in one until she was about 4 months old, then went to her crib.

We'll probably do the same with DS, but I haven't decided yet.

[versed]

Love love love the Arm's Reach co-sleeper and how it's right there and at bed level.

I really didn't like having to reach so far down to get DS from the RNP. But I'm lazy like that


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[cougarette]

We have a Pack N Play with a newborn sleeper too. For some reason we didn't use it though. I may try it this time. I did get a PNP mattress and used that with the raised bed part. The mattress is tight like in the crib, so I didn't feel worried about it. And I felt that the sheets fit the actual mattress better than the thin mattress that comes with the PNP.

[booklover811]

We used a rock n play for about 2 months with ds and plan to again with #2.

Can I ask why you are too nervous to use it overnight?

[thatgirlrachel]

I'm following this thread because we used a borrowed bassinet for DD but plan to buy a decently priced one this time. I considered the Graco Travel Lite as the bassinet for our room but I haven't convinced myself yet. Others I've looked at include the Chicco travel bassinet and Ingenuity rocking bassinet. Mostly, I'm going for safe but inexpensive since he'll only be in it a few months.


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[trinitrotoluene]

We used a pack n play. In fact, DS is still still uses it as his bed now, although he is a peanut- 21 pounds at his 21 month weight check. We did buy a mattress for it at about 6 months to make it more comfortable.

[seventythree]

DD slept in the RnP for maybe 2 months, then we switched to the raised setting on the PnP. I seem to recall that the weight limit on that setting is around 15lbs, and she stayed there until she moved into her own room and crib at 6-7 months. I'm guessing she was comfy enough at that size! I've toyed with the idea of a bassinet this time around, but I suspect we'll end up doing the same thing.

[Taitai]

Add us to the RnP fan club. It was the only thing DS would sleep in until he was 6 mos. I think he must have had silent reflux, because laying him flat in anything else never worked.

Graco Travel Lite was a miss for both myself and my sister. Neither of our babies would tolerate it ☹️

If you are looking for a pack and play type solution, highly recommend the baby bjorn travel crib. It's kind of pricey, and it doesn't have a raised setting, but DS is super picky and it's the only pack and play type thing he would sleep in. Plus - super light and portable for travel!

www.amazon.com/BABYBJORN-Travel-Crib-Light-Silver/dp/B00IM8G038

[thatgirlrachel]

Taitai, I remember you mentioning in a previous thread that neither you nor your sister had luck with the Graco Travel Lite. Do you know what the issue may have been? Is it really small/confined? As a mom, how did you like it?

[Taitai]

Jul 18, 2017 6:03:38 GMT -6 thatgirlrachel said:

Taitai, I remember you mentioning in a previous thread that neither you nor your sister had luck with the Graco Travel Lite. Do you know what the issue may have been? Is it really small/confined? As a mom, how did you like it?

I think the issue is two-fold. First, the mattress is really really hard and thin. Because it is a travel crib, it also folds three ways, and I wonder if the folding creases make it more uncomfortable? Once DS was old enough to use the bassinet on the "lower" setting, my MIL bought a thicker/more comfy mattress (which fit really tight and had no gap between the sides), but by that point, DS was already becoming too big for the pack and play setting. DS isn't very tall either - only 20th percentile.

So I think the hard/thin/foldable mattress was the culprit...plus the bassinet/crib being too small once DS was using the lower setting with the more comfortable mattress that MIL purchased.

My sister's baby has the same issues I think. He prefers being in the crib or the rock and play - refuses to nap or sleep in the Graco Travel Lite. Maybe it is just weird babies in our family!

[burritosateverymeal]

Hmm maybe I will try out the Pack N Play. I don't think we have that newborn part so I will look into that for sure.

I don't really know why I'm so nervous about the RNP. I think it's just that it's elevated, which I realize sounds silly. I also think that once the kiddo is able to wiggle and roll, I wouldn't want him in it overnight, even though he is strapped in. I think I want a bigger surface area so DS can use it til he's six months or so. Although maybe I just forget how tiny babies are

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[burritosateverymeal]

Jul 17, 2017 17:18:28 GMT -6 versed said:

Love love love the Arm's Reach co-sleeper and how it's right there and at bed level.

I really didn't like having to reach so far down to get DS from the RNP. But I'm lazy like that


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I'm lazy like that too and want him to be at eye level so I can see him when we wake up a million times a night. I will have to look into this one. It attaches to a bed right?

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[burritosateverymeal]

Thanks for all the ideas ladies! I feel like it's the one thing we may actually buy. We saved so much from last kiddo.

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[thatgirlrachel]

Jul 18, 2017 6:21:11 GMT -6 Taitai said:

Jul 18, 2017 6:03:38 GMT -6 thatgirlrachel said:

Taitai , I remember you mentioning in a previous thread that neither you nor your sister had luck with the Graco Travel Lite. Do you know what the issue may have been? Is it really small/confined? As a mom, how did you like it?

I think the issue is two-fold. First, the mattress is really really hard and thin. Because it is a travel crib, it also folds three ways, and I wonder if the folding creases make it more uncomfortable? Once DS was old enough to use the bassinet on the "lower" setting, my MIL bought a thicker/more comfy mattress (which fit really tight and had no gap between the sides), but by that point, DS was already becoming too big for the pack and play setting. DS isn't very tall either - only 20th percentile.

So I think the hard/thin/foldable mattress was the culprit...plus the bassinet/crib being too small once DS was using the lower setting with the more comfortable mattress that MIL purchased.

My sister's baby has the same issues I think. He prefers being in the crib or the rock and play - refuses to nap or sleep in the Graco Travel Lite. Maybe it is just weird babies in our family!

Thanks for the info! One of my concerns was it being too small and him outgrowing it quickly. Our PNP is a hand-me-down from SIL that is an Eddie Bauer model. It's great and nice, but the sides curve out, making it too big to go through our door frames. So I can't just take it from room to room. Maybe I'll invest in a regular PNP to use in our room. That would last us longer, plus it would be easier to hand-down or sell when we are done. 

[versed]

burritosateverymeal - yes, it attaches to the side of the bed, and baby's just about at eye level. We borrowed one for babies 1&2, and then we bought one secondhand for this one for $75. They're all over the yardsale sites.




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[seventythree]

Jul 18, 2017 6:46:02 GMT -6 burritosateverymeal said:

Hmm maybe I will try out the Pack N Play. I don't think we have that newborn part so I will look into that for sure.

I don't really know why I'm so nervous about the RNP. I think it's just that it's elevated, which I realize sounds silly. I also think that once the kiddo is able to wiggle and roll, I wouldn't want him in it overnight, even though he is strapped in. I think I want a bigger surface area so DS can use it til he's six months or so. Although maybe I just forget how tiny babies are

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I was uneasy about sleep in the RnP too, but I loved it for a tiny baby! The way it kinda cradles them, I didn't really worry about DD wiggling around very much. Once she was able to roll over for real, I was like "ok this is no longer safe" and we switched over to the PnP with a bigger/flat surface area.

[Taitai]

Jul 18, 2017 7:44:41 GMT -6 seventythree said:

Jul 18, 2017 6:46:02 GMT -6 burritosateverymeal said:

Hmm maybe I will try out the Pack N Play. I don't think we have that newborn part so I will look into that for sure.

I don't really know why I'm so nervous about the RNP. I think it's just that it's elevated, which I realize sounds silly. I also think that once the kiddo is able to wiggle and roll, I wouldn't want him in it overnight, even though he is strapped in. I think I want a bigger surface area so DS can use it til he's six months or so. Although maybe I just forget how tiny babies are

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I was uneasy about sleep in the RnP too, but I loved it for a tiny baby! The way it kinda cradles them, I didn't really worry about DD wiggling around very much. Once she was able to roll over for real, I was like "ok this is no longer safe" and we switched over to the PnP with a bigger/flat surface area.

+1 I also always had the RnP next to my side of the bed, and I am an extremely light sleeper who would wake up constantly to check on DS...never noticed wiggling to be a problem. DS was also the laziest baby in the world and didn't turn over on his own until 6 or 7 months. Once that happened though, we moved him to the lowest setting on his IKEA crib and he eventually was okay being in there...at least for the first few hours of the night before I'd have to go breast feed again.

[CoachTsWife]

We had a Graco Pack 'n Play with the bassinet/napper thing. Similar to this one. We had it in our room and DS slept there at night until he was about a month old. I think I thought we'd keep him in our room longer, but he was so loud with all the baby snorts, etc, we moved him.

We used the PNP for his bed when traveling and it worked ok. When he was about a year old we took a trip and bought a mattress for it - it was very snug fitting - and that worked much better at that age. The "mattresses" they come with are so hard/thin/rigid.

[mkrupar]

Once DD was rolling too much for the RNP we just moved her to her crib. I still used the RNP during the day for a containment device, but not overnight after that.

[bootsorhearts1]

We have the baby bjorn travel crib Taitai mentioned. We love it. We use it for travel mostly, but we also used it as a downstairs crib for naps so we didn't have to walk upstairs to DS's bedroom.

For bassinet, we have the Baby Bjorn one too and plan to use it again with this little one. I liked it because it was really light weight, I could pick it up and move it with one hand. We mostly kept it in our room when he was little, he grew out of it at about 3 months and then he was only waking up once per night so it wasn't necessary to keep him in our room anyway.

[duskymonkey]

DS slept in the PNP for about 4 months because we didn't put together his crib. We were trying to get his room ready etc.etc. During the day for the first month he napped in the Boba or on the couch next to me, in my arms, in hubs arms lol! we were paranoid and anxious FTP lol! He did "sleep" in the PNP at night. Gradually we got brave and put him in the PNP during the day and the swing whenever I wasn't wearing him. Then I decided to get a bouncer due to portability.
thatgirlrachel, our PNP also doesn't fit through our doors and collapsing it was just a PITA. We have a really old Graco - I got it used 7 yrs ago for my nephews when they visit so who knows how old that thing really is lol! I am excited to have a RNP this time and between the various rooms, we don't have to move anything! but place bubs in the various baby stations lol!

[thatgirlrachel]

duskymonkey, why do they make these things wider than door frames? Ugh. We have a RNP too but DD barely used it. She preferred to be flat instead of inclined. Part of me wants to wait and see if baby brother is the same but part of me wants to go with my gut and be prepared for that again. It will probably depend on whether I find a good deal on what I'm looking for.


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[duskymonkey]

thatgirlrachel, yeah...i know right! Hubs theory is that our doors aren't wide enough to which he has a good point! We tried moving our office desk down into the basement to get it out of the way for reno but the damn door frame was too small! which I believe is standard 28-30in.

[arimaythea]

duskymonkey, our PNP also won't fit through our bedroom door frame without being collapsed. We had a swing in the family room, the PNP in our bedroom, then the RNP as our portable baby spot for whenever we were in other rooms or traveling. RNP was great for visits to the grandparents as a portable nap option. Worked out nice for DS so hopefully the same for #2!

[blackmamba]

DS would only sleep in the RnP for the first 4 months. He had some reflux issues and needed the incline. We switched to the crib after that.

I want to get the Halo Bassinest Swivel Sleeper this time, but it's a want more than a need.

[moonandback141]

We had the Halo for DD so we are planning on busting that out again. It was well worth the money and gave me a lot of peace of mind even when she was like smushed up against the sides of it because I knew she was breathing thru the mesh. We used it until 5 months when she could sit up. That's when our crib struggles started and our bed sharing began. This time around I'm eyeing the Dock-a-cot for if that happens.

[danvers]

We have an Eddie Bauer "rocking" bassinet that my mother picked up at a garage sale before DD was born. The first week of her life she somehow rolled or it rocked or something but she was wedged in a corner when I found her so I quickly zip tied the legs so it is no longer rocks. DD didn't hate it exactly but she didn't love it either. The mattress is barely a piece of 1/2 inch foam BUT I found a place that has a baby mattress that would fit the odd dimensions so we're gonna try this again. I really prefer she sleep on a flat surface but DD did sleep in a RNP for a bit even though it made me nervous.

[rebeccabunch]

I get super anxious around transitions and try to get the baby in the crib as early as possible. DS1 was weird a did crib at night beginning at 3 weeks but would only nap in the swing until well past proper swing time. DS2 slept in the swing til 8 weeks then crib. Im going to see how early I can get this one into the crib but my trusty swing will be waiting in the wings I'm sure. I'll buy an RnP only if the baby won't sleep no matter what or reflux issues. I'm getting hives just thinking about an RnP to crib transition if the baby STTN in the RnP. I don't know what I'd do. I prioritize sleep over everything.