Anyone with experience using a "co-sleeper" bed?

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supersarah77

We have an arms reach co-sleeper and love it! We used it with DD until she was 6 months old and will with this one, too. It straps firmly up against the side of your bed with a strap that goes between your mattress and box spring and has a removable fourth wall so all you have to do is roll over for MOTN feedings. It also collapses like a PNP for easy travel. The only downside is its limited use. It's strictly a bassinet.

NeonNoon

We received the Euro Mini Arc model as a present a few days ago.  I'm a FTM too, so I don't have any experience to share but would be happy to answer any specific questions about it.

You may have read conflicting reviews about the mattress?  Ours did indeed turn out to be lumpy.  It doesn't really lay flat.  We will be buying another mattress.

Also, I missed this point while researching it to put on my registry.  The manufacturer requires the adult mattress and box spring/bed frame to be flush on the sides for the attachment mechanism to work properly (and for there to be a minimal gap between the adult bed and bassinet).  If you have a mattress and a separate topper, that might work too. Our frame protrudes about an inch and half to the side of the mattress, so we're going to have to improvise the attachment part.

Our bed is also slightly lower than 18 inches.  So, we'll either use a mattress topper to lift the adult side, or remove the wheels and feet off the bassinet to lower it (I'm sure the latter is not recommended use).

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NeonNoon

It's pretty easy to assemble but you do need to muscle it a bit.  I also didn't figure out how the release mechanism worked first try, and couldn't find these tabs.  But the instructions are very clear and once you figure it out, it's a piece of cake.

I could see myself using it on road trips, if I were brave enough to travel with a baby that young.  It's quite heavy though, so I would not use it for air travel.  I do like that it collapses because it'll make storage a breeze once LO grows out of it.

The mesh sides are very breathable with the exception of the side attached to the adult bed in co-sleeper mode.  Lowering that wall reduces the mesh area to just a few inches and your mattress would reduce the breathability.  But you're more likely to be aware if your LO is struggling if you're right next to them.

If you have a multi-level house, it's pretty heavy to move between levels.  My friend moves her co-sleeper between the bedroom and living room in her single story house.

ETA: the attachment side also has pockets to cover buckles and velcro that further obscures the mesh.  The opposite side has some minimal strapping.  I wouldn't worry about it.

supersarah77

The mesh sides are totally breathable and safe. I wouldn't recommend moving it once you strap it to your bed, that would be a pain. Get a $15-20 bouncy seat for that (or cheaper at consignment stores). I also recommend wearing your baby for some of your chores (DD liked the Moby wrap for the first couple months - $20 at a consignment store). Babies pretty much stay where you put them for the first few months until they learn to roll over. They just kind of lay there looking cute for a while. Or snuggled into you when you wear them.

The mattress/pad in ours isn't lumpy. Maybe they're made differently now? It's like the pad in a PNP but smaller. We have a couple soft sheets for ours.

As for the single use - I meant just to sleep in. A PNP often has a bassinet insert and a changing table insert, along with the deep "play yard" area. And you can use it without those attachments as a place to sleep into the toddler years (like while traveling or at someone's house during nap time).

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