How many beds does a bub need?
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Category: Product Reviews
Forum Name: Product Reviews
Forum Description: Cot or bassinette? Which pram is best for you? How about nappies? Check out our Product Reviews board to find out what other Mums and Dads think and share your thoughts!
URL: https://www.ohbaby.co.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=25273
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Topic: How many beds does a bub need?
Posted By: RuthyH
Subject: How many beds does a bub need?
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 3:52pm
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Hi all, I'd love some advice on what type of bed my new bub will really need - we have decided to get a hammock for the majority of sleeps but also want to get the little fella used to sleeping flat. Would the carry cot from the pram be sufficient, or do we really need a bassinet as well? Or how about a moses basket? We are keen to keep it as cheap as possible because the hammock will already be costly but also want to do the right thing. Or I guess another option is to buy the cot already and put the bub in there occasionally...? They sure do need a lot of beds don't they!
Also a really dumb question but I'm a bit clueless - do I have to buy sheets specifically for each type of bed or is it possible to buy a few flat sheets and make them work for everything? So many questions... Thanks a milion. ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
http://lilypie.com"> 
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Replies:
Posted By: LeeG
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 4:03pm
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Great question to ask ... I look forward to the responses! My DH asked this exact question the other day - how many beds does a baby need?! ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
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Posted By: first
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 4:34pm
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We had a hammock and a cot. It is a good idea to sleep them in both flat and hammock as it makes the transition much much easier. If you were going to use hammock and something flat then I think that either your carrycot or a cot as the others you would just have the same problem of transitioning the little guy when he gets bigger.
The hammocks really need the spefic fitted sheet as it is more like a pillow slip but longer. We didn't worry about top sheet as we wrapped our little guy. I reckon you could use normal cot sheets for everything else though. At least that's what we did. ------------- http://lilypie.com"> 
http://pregnancy.baby-gaga.com/"> 
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Posted By: grrrgrrrr
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 6:17pm
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I woudn't worry about anythign other than a cot, a hammock sounds great.
My little guy went straight from the hospital to his cot and we had no issues. I plan to do the same with baby number 2. No transition issues, I just wrapped my little boy for the first few weeks and then he wanted to spread out  ------------- Mattias 2yo Henrik almost 1 |
Posted By: lilfatty
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 6:32pm
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We had a hammock (daysleeps), bassinette (night sleeps .. and a cot (for when she outgrew the hammock).
The hammock has specific sheets. We used bassinette sheets and we have cot sheets. You can probably use cot sheets in a bassinette but we didnt. Our bassinette also could be hung in the cot .. so it got her used to the cot, while still being in her bassinette. Weve kept the bassinette and the hammock for number two .. so we just needed a new cot (so much cheaper second time round lol) ------------- Mummy to Issy (3) and Elias (18 months) I did it .. 41 kgs gone! From flab to fab in under a year  http://www.femininefitness.co.nz/category/blog - LFs weight blog
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Posted By: busymum
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 7:29pm
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I haven't used a hammock before but I'd be inclined to go with hammock and cot.... we have a two-storey house and I use a mix of bassinette and cot with a newborn anyway (one upstairs and one down). -------------  |
Posted By: jaycee
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 7:30pm
We just had a moses basket and a cot for both our girls. They were both in the cot for night sleeps by 6 weeks. When we did use the basket we had it in the cot so that baby was used to the location. I found that both Amy and Sophie slept better when they went into the cot but they were well wrapped to keep those crazy baby arms under control  .
Some babies are bigger/longer than others and only last a few weeks it the smaller options. -------------   
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Posted By: tishy
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 10:18pm
We went straight to cots. Couldn't justify spending the extra money 
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Posted By: hannibal
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 10:25pm
| Hi we went straight to a cot as well with no problems (they look so tiny in a huge cot it is so cute). Saves on a lot of extra sheets for bassinette, sheets for cot .... The only thing that I did buy was a Safety Sleep T (brand new of TradeMe) and I started using this when she was two and a half months old in the cot (as I wanted to use in a single bed when we went away. I still swaddle her, wrap safety T, sheet, and a blanket. |
Posted By: RuthyH
Date Posted: 17 March 2009 at 10:40pm
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Thanks for all the great advice everyone, it's started a bit debate with the hubby - do we really need a hammock? Can we fit both a hammock and a cot in the baby's room? etc etc... I'll let you know where we net out! ------------- http://lilypie.com">
http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: AandCsmum
Date Posted: 22 March 2009 at 9:29pm
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I'd say that you could use the carry cot from the pram as your basinette. One way of getting more use out of it. ------------- Kel http://lilypie.com"> 
A = 01.02.04 & C = 16.01.09 & G = 30.03.12 |
Posted By: LeahandJoel
Date Posted: 23 March 2009 at 10:47am
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We had a bassinet in our room, but it had wheels so could go anywhere very easily, and a cot in babies room. They were both in the cot full time at 8 weeks and from 6 weeks for day sleeps....we never had a hammock but others in our coffee group did. -------------  
 
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Posted By: Maya
Date Posted: 23 March 2009 at 1:09pm
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All of mine went straight into cots - I figured I'd rather spend the $$$ I would spend on a bassinette on getting a better quality cot.
Lil miss had a hammock, that was a rush-out purchase when she decided at 3 weeks that she wouldn't sleep in the cot due to reflux. She was in the hammock for day and night sleeps until 3 1/2 mths then we transitioned her into the cot with a safety sleep for day sleeps, and eventually for all her sleeps. ------------- Maya Grace (28/02/03)
 (02/01/06)
The Gremlins:Sienna Marie & Mercedes Kailah (14/10/06)
Lil miss:Chiara Louise Chloe (09/07/08)
Her ladyship:Rosalia Sophie Anais (18/06/12)
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Posted By: peanut butter
Date Posted: 23 March 2009 at 1:53pm
| I think you would be best with hammock and cot. hammock is nice and handy to have in the lounge. We have hammock and bassinet (Tom had bassinet and then into cot). James is outgrowing bassient and has decided he doesnt like hammock anymore so we are needing a cot now....Tom still in the first one. |
Posted By: Natalie_G
Date Posted: 23 March 2009 at 8:41pm
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I had a bassinet and a cot, we have only moved Arianne to the cot in the past few weeks, if I did it again I wouldn't get a bassinet. ------------- http://lilypie.com">  
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Posted By: fattartsrock
Date Posted: 23 March 2009 at 9:44pm
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Personally, I think hammocks are a bit of a have, and maybe even bassinettes, although we had a bassinette cos someone loaned it to us.
You can mimick the closed in and wrapped feeling of the hammock with swaddeling. A couple of friends who havehad hammocks said they struggled putting baby into a different bed etc as baby expected the gentle rocking. I did find the bassinette good, tho, in terms of movign it round, and I could take the bed part out and cart baby round, or push the whole bed round if need be. I had both sleep in the lounge etc during the daytime with noise and light and in dark rooms at bedtime to help them get used to day/night. Still, I wouldn't have bought one if we hadn't been loaned it. I figue they can sleep in a cot well swaddled and safety sleep wrapped to keep them secure. There are so many ways you can spend your money on non essentials whan having a baby!!!! We also decided that when the time came for #1 to go into a big bed, we spent about $1200 for a king single with a trundler, a decent bed, and figured that cash outlay would ensure we ahd a good bed that lasted till he left home. Will do the same with #2 as well. IMHO the bassinette for the pram will be plenty enough!!!! ------------- The Honest Un PC Parent of 2, usually stuck in the naughty corner! :P |
Posted By: Ella1
Date Posted: 25 March 2009 at 11:41am
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We were gonna go with just a hammock, which is in our bedroom (for nights). For the 1st week I used the bassinette of the pram for her daysleeps in the living room, but then someone gave us a bassinette, so we use that now (but really the idea is pretty much the same as the pram).
I too heard that sleeping in a hammock could lead to transition problems to a cot, but since she sleeps flat during the day, I imagine there won't be a problem. She also likes to sleep in our bed, or on the couch, but I only let her do that if I'm watching her. I use the same sheets for bassinet, pram and hammock. Woolworths/countdown sell a 3-pack of snugglerugs, with are 100% cotton and fit perfectly in all 3. (The hammock came with a bottom sheet which I use for the futon) |
Posted By: GingerBaby
Date Posted: 25 March 2009 at 1:00pm
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I'm going cot and moses basket, as I like the idea of the baby being able to travel either with us or stay at grandparents in the same bed (well, for the first few months anyway) and want them to be used to the flat surface straight away. I've also got a moses basket stand with a rocking base so I can rock if needed, and plan to move it round the house with me so it can get used to noise, light, movement etc. Then can put basket into cot if needed after a few months, hopefully will help the transition.
I have heard only good things about hammocks and must admit I thought about getting one too, but the idea that they get used to the rocking and this makes it harder to transition to cot puts me off! -------------  |
Posted By: GingerBaby
Date Posted: 25 March 2009 at 1:02pm
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By the way, such a good question Ruth!!! ------------- |
Posted By: lilfatty
Date Posted: 25 March 2009 at 1:37pm
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Kind of off topic, but we never had a problem transitioning Issy from her hammock to her bassinette to a cot.
Probably because she only day slept in the hammock .. however it was awesome when she was tiny, as the hammock was in the lounge .. and I could just jiggle her a bit to settle her down. In saying that we had a bassinette that could rock (cariboo) .. so at night we could just wiggle that if she woke .. so its probably the same motion anyway. ------------- Mummy to Issy (3) and Elias (18 months) I did it .. 41 kgs gone! From flab to fab in under a year http://www.femininefitness.co.nz/category/blog - LFs weight blog
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Posted By: stefany3
Date Posted: 07 April 2009 at 9:38pm
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We have a bassinet, but we are thinking of doing the co sleeping thing. so when baby is born, it will sleep with us in the nights and then the day sleeps will be in the bassinet. if i had known about and researched co sleeping earlier, i might have just bought the cot and not the bassinet.
http://www.storknet.com/cubbies/attachmentparenting/mckenna-faq.htm ------------- 
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Posted By: Nutella
Date Posted: 18 April 2009 at 2:38am
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stefany, why do you want to do the co sleeping thing? I have never heard of it and it sounds strange to me. ------------- 
Oct 11
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Posted By: lilfatty
Date Posted: 18 April 2009 at 8:15am
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We co slept with Issy for almost her first three months at night (she was a terrible sleeper) .. although DH ended up sleeping on the floor as his girls took up so much room lol.
I personally loved it .. great for night feeds etc .. and who can resist waking up to this cherub of a baby smiling at you.  ------------- Mummy to Issy (3) and Elias (18 months) I did it .. 41 kgs gone! From flab to fab in under a year http://www.femininefitness.co.nz/category/blog - LFs weight blog
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Posted By: Nutella
Date Posted: 18 April 2009 at 1:29pm
Lucky DH haha
Not sure I would be keen on the idea, we are gonna get a bassinet when we actually get pregnant, I love how they look. Just hope I don't have a huge baby who grows out of is in two secs. -------------
Oct 11
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lilfatty wrote:Posted By: lilfatty
Date Posted: 18 April 2009 at 3:28pm
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We had a cariboo bassinette and Issy lasted in it for ages (well when we could get her to sleep in it), so they are definately a good investment.
We still have it for number two (we also still have the hammock, im not sure which one he will prefer. ------------- Mummy to Issy (3) and Elias (18 months) I did it .. 41 kgs gone! From flab to fab in under a year http://www.femininefitness.co.nz/category/blog - LFs weight blog
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