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D.C. Area Babies
when did you start using blankets in the crib?
Or pillows, for that matter?
J is still sleeping in sleep sacks, and lately I've been worried about him getting a little too cold with the A/C on. In the winter we have (well, had - not sure if they'll make them in his size for this winter) a fleece sleep sack.
But still - is he old enough for blankets now? I'm worried he would just a) play with it and then b) kick it off, so wanted to get some nestie opinions.
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Re: when did you start using blankets in the crib?
They boys have had a blanket in the crib since 11 months.
No pillow yet, but was wondering about when to give them one. The times they sleep/nap in my bed they like to put their head on my pillow.
We just started using a blanket within the last month or two. It wasn't really on purpose. I just happened to have an old receiving blanket out after sorting some clothes and blankets, and DS liked it because it had monkeys on it. He asked to take it into his crib with him, and it's been there ever since. I still put a SleepSack on him and just put the blanket on top if he asks for it. He often kicks the blanket off, and we're working on teaching him that he either has to keep it on or live without it.
I don't use a pillow in the crib and don't plan to introduce one for sleep until we switch him to a bed. There is a pillow in his room, but it's on the floor. We put our heads on it when we read stories. (This set up was also unintentional. We used to have a futon in his room where we read stories, but then we moved he futon and didn't have a place for stories. The pillow is our place for now until we figure out when we're getting a twin bed to add to the room.)
We started with the same somewhat loosely crocheted blanket for DD and DS somewhere around 14-16 months. Once we felt they were safe with the blanket, we moved on to lightweight crib-size quilts my mom made. We added a pillow for DD at 17 months and 20 for DS (tried earlier but he didn't accept it). It took a while for them to use the pillow properly...we find DS with his head on it about 50% of the time.
DD never stays under any blanket, and DS is hit or miss, despite having A/C running or it being winter. They don't like wearing socks at night, either. Their ears and noses aren't cold, and their heads and feet aren't sweaty, so I figure they're regulating themselves well year-round. They're in Carter's PJ sets with long pants and either a short- or long-sleeved shirt. Try your DS with a blanket, and if he constantly kicks one off, determine whether he seems cold to you. If he does, try one of the sleep sacks with leg openings, maybe?
When it got too warm for the fleece sleep sack, we added a blanket to his crib. He prefers to sleep on top of it, but we occasionally find him underneath. He also has no interest in a pillow.
Warner was still in a sleep sack until we transitioned him into his toddler bed last month, and he's 37" tall, so you should still be able to find sleep sacks for your LO :-)
And we started giving him a blanket and a pillow around the time he turned 2, but neither one got much use as intended. the pillow was a little toddler pillow that I ordered from One Step Ahead and it went flat as a pancake within a couple weeks--total waste of money. But Warner did like to play with it (and the blanket) before falling asleep. Now he does typically sleep with his head on the full size pillow we gave him but that's only been within the last couple of weeks. And he usually starts out under the covers, but kicks them all off at some point. I'm always worried about him being cold, but it hasn't been affecting his sleep, so I'm trying not to worry too much ;-)
my 34mo old likes to sleep on top of the blanket so last winter she slept in 3 PJs, cotton ones on her body and then 2 fleece ones over that to keep her warm.
We stopped using sleep sacks when DD could walk because she would try to walk in the crib with them and trip. I'm guessing that was around a year?
She has a plush blanket in her crib, which for the most part she piles up and sleeps on top of, so it provides no actual warmth. But she's grown very attached to it. I put her in summer pajamas and socks, and she seems warm enough in the morning. I think when we transition her to a bed, we'll introduce the pillow, though she seems to understand the concept when she's laying in our bed.
I think we gave T a pillow soon after her 1st birthday. It's really only recently that she'll lay her head on it at all, but not consistently. I want to say she started pulling her blanket into the crib (had been hanging over the edge) around 15 months. She regularly balls it up and sleeps on top of it (along with other animals and the occasional board book). It doesn't keep her warm all over, but she definitely gets sweaty on the side facing the blanket - so at least it might help J some.
I bought one of the sleep sacks with leg holes last year, but just like the comments on Amazon say it's WAY big for the 12-18 month size label (or whatever it's marked). T might be tall enough to use it this year if she seems cold enough, and I still expect it will be huge and baggy on her. You could always try layering on PJs a size bigger over his primary pair to keep him warm, or have fleece over cotton.