Bassinet, Crib, or Pack n' Play?

LizzyBlueEyes · October 2011

Hi Ladies! I wanted to see what you are using for the baby to sleep in after he/she is born. I wanted to have the baby in our room for the first couple of months, but don't know if it is worth to have a pack and play and then also get a bassinet. What is your experience with this or plans?

Thanks!

reneenearl · October 2011

I don't have experience with this yet, but we have a two story house so our plan is to have a bassinet in our bedroom, and a pack n' play downstairs. The crib will be in the babies room, which we won't be using for the first few months. If I didn't have a two story house, I would probably just use a bassinet. My SIL has a one story house and just moves the bassinet to the Living Room during the day when the baby naps, or the baby naps in their bedroom which is right next to the Living Room.

SassyRedhead · October 2011

We are definitely doing a convertible crib again. That worked PERFECT for us for DD and it was SO nice to already have half of what I needed when we transitioned her to a big girl bed. I only had to buy bedding and a mattress.

Secondly I'd still get a Pack N Play. It grows with them and will be invaluable to you when your LO is mobile and you need to "put" them somewhere safe so you can do something. Also great to have to bring to Grandma's if they don't have anything or other trips. The PNP was used downstairs during the day and we put her in the crib upstairs at night. We also used the PNP as a "time out" space once DD was old enough. The new ones pack up nicely and don't take up much space.

Bassinets have a very short life IMO.

AshliS422 · October 2011

First time mom, so not sure what help I will be. From what I hear from other moms, I should get all three. Bassinet for when it's in our room. Pack N Play for traveling. And crib for their room.

Sparks in training! · October 2011

I think I am going to get a bassinet for the bedroom use. With my first, that is what I used and it was great. I didnt get her crib set up until she was like 3 months.

For this baby at night i will use the bassinet and during the day his crib. I didnt really use the pack n play. But will get one this time ALSO.... lol i guess i just want to spend money...cause now you have me thinking about all these items... great Confused

jenskurn · October 2011

I have been hearing AWESOME things about this foldable Fisher Price thing called Rock and Play Sleeper (I think that is what it is called). It folds up like a lawn chair and keeps the baby at a bit of an incline. I have seen it at Target and BRU. Its around $50. I will be getting that instead of a bassinet. I will still get the Pack N Play for when the baby is older.

LilyPotter218 · October 2011

I am using my old bassinet for the beginning and then into a crib. Plans are for baby to be in the nursery from day one in the bassinet, but Ill have a pack and play on the first floor for naps and things.

Honestly if we didn't have the bassinet already baby would be going right into the crib.

countrygrl5533 · October 2011

From a money and storage point of view, if you are going to get a PNP, why would you spend money on a bassinet? If you have space in your bedroom for the PNP, just get that. They do make a bassinet accessory for the PNP if you want that. But imo, a bassinet is only used for a short period of time whereas a PNP can but used for awhile and for more than just sleeping.

books4brooke · October 2011

We have an Amby baby hammock for our room and a crib in the baby's room. I like the hammock because it can keep the baby elevated a little bit, which in the event of reflux can be tremendously helpful.

Here's the link https://www.babyhammocks.com/

SCSmithbride · October 2011

Thank you for reminding me. Baby brain I have no brain LOL. Being that our apartment currently is a roommate set up where the rooms are apart from each other and that's where the crib and our 2 little girls are currently.

I think I'm going to do a Pack and Play in our room until the baby is old enough and I trust the monitor enough for them to be in the crib in the room with the girls.

HaleyLady · October 2011

Our plan is to co-sleep the twins in a packn'play next to the bed for the first few months, then switch them to the nursery. I think everyone has a different plan, even if we were having one baby, I think a bassinet is the same as a pack'nplay and can be used later on as well saving you in the long run.

Mattel · October 2011

We're doing all 3. We will have a full size crib in the nursery, a bassinet that my dad is making Smile

and a Pack n Play for travel and use at our cabin. I doubt we'll use the Pack n Play a lot at home, but you never know!

DoraBride07 · October 2011

In our bedroom downstairs, we had a pack-n-play with the bassinet insert in it that we used...until we decided to cosleep exclusively. The baby rarely saw his crib.

With this pregnancy, I presume we'll just use the pack-n-play, without the bassinet insert, and probably try to use the cribs. (I don't know how cosleeping goes with twins.)

Lisichka · October 2011

With DD, we had her sleeping in the bassinet for the first 3 or so months. She slept in our room and since we live in an apartment it was easy to roll it to the living room or wherever we were going to be. We got a hand-me-down old pack-n-play, but we didn't use it with her when she was that little, mostly later, when she would play in it or for traveling.

This time around, I think we will either get an arms reach co-sleeper (I've been eying them for a while) or borrow my ILs' bassinet. We will also definitely be buying a new pack-n-play, if we don't buy an arms reach co-sleeper (both our bassinet and pack-n-play were hand-me-downs and in pretty icky shape). I think pack-n-plays are fine for occasional sleeping (visiting grandparents, going on vacation, etc.), but they don't look too comfortable for the baby to spend the whole night/long stretches of time, JMO. The new baby will get DD's crib when we move him/her to their own room.

CometsMom · October 2011

we used the bassinet that came as an attachment for the pack n' play in our room for the first month and then moved DS to the crib in his room. I still used the PnP bassinet for a few months after for naps...

shanad · October 2011

I borrowed a bassinet from my sister to have in our bedroom. The pack n play was in our living room downstairs (used for diaper changes and day time naps). At 3 months, we transfered DS to his crib when I went back to work.

So we used all three. It depends on your house layout etc. I had a c-section, so I wasn't allowed up and down the steps a lot, so we needed the pack n play and the bassinet.

We will have the same set up for LO#2

shanad · October 2011

jenskurnick:
I have been hearing AWESOME things about this foldable Fisher Price thing called Rock and Play Sleeper (I think that is what it is called). It folds up like a lawn chair and keeps the baby at a bit of an incline. I have seen it at Target and BRU. Its around $50. I will be getting that instead of a bassinet. I will still get the Pack N Play for when the baby is older.

I hear they are great too. Just a little warning though, my niece had one for their kid and he got so used to rocking and the inclined sleep that it was really rough transitioning LO to a regular flat crib with no motion. Their kid didn't sleep well until 6-8 months old. I hear this is common...difficult transition. Just something I thought I'd share.

bingham101 · October 2011

We are going to get a pack n' play that has the bassinet feature. We will use that in our room. I dont see a reason to get a pack n play and a bassinet, they are easily moved around. Plus baby can nap in a swing or in his crib.

LizzyBlueEyes · October 2011

CometsMom:
we used the bassinet that came as an attachment for the pack n' play in our room for the first month and then moved DS to the crib in his room. I still used the PnP bassinet for a few months after for naps...

This is what I was thinking too. The PnP that I was looking at had one attached at the top and the whole system would fit in our bedroom, but wasn't sure it is was good for a couple months use. I just don't want to buy a bassinet if I am already getting this PnP since we are in an apt. and want to save room.

Mrs_MBed · October 2011

reneenearl:
I don't have experience with this yet, but we have a two story house so our plan is to have a bassinet in our bedroom, and a pack n' play downstairs. The crib will be in the babies room, which we won't be using for the first few months. If I didn't have a two story house, I would probably just use a bassinet. My SIL has a one story house and just moves the bassinet to the Living Room during the day when the baby naps, or the baby naps in their bedroom which is right next to the Living Room.

This is what we did for DD1 and it worked beautifully - highly recommend if you have 2 story house. This is also our plan this time around as we are currently in a 2 story house (were in an apt for DD2, so it wasn't really needed, but did it anyways).

We're going to get the Arms Reach Co-Sleeper Original since its large enough to fit both babies in it and then a PnP for downstairs - one that has the changing table attachment so we can use it as a changing station as well. We are moving in June, so we will probably hold off on getting the cribs until after that.

Khecht · October 2011

With DS#1 we used a PNP in our room for the first month and then put him in his room/crib after that. We'll probably do the same thing with DS#2..

punkymama · October 2011

As a first time mom, the plan is to put the baby in their crib in their room. Their room will be right next ours, if that doesn't work; I am open to getting either a PNP or a bassint but I won't buy both.

raceyrae · October 2011

I just used a PNP for both girls (although DD#2 wouldn't really sleep in and slept mostly in my arms or in a bouncer) for the first 3 months. Then they slept in their own room in a crib.

greengirl0909 · October 2011

I suggest the arms reach co-sleeper. It allows baby to be attached to your bed. I always worried with having a pack n play sitting next to the bed I would knock a pillow into the pack n play. The co-sleeper is nice because it's on the same level.

adam+katie · October 2011

Ds slept in his play n pack in our room for about two weeks, then he was in his crib. We liked the PnP because we could take it places or use it to contain ds for a moment if we were in the washroom.

lulling · October 2011

We, per the recommendation of our friends with kids, are getting a pack and play to put in the bedroom for the first few months and a crib for the baby's actual room. As we will visit my family three hours away we thought it would be better to get a pack and play and then we could bring it with us instead of a bassinet, which you can't really cart around in the car with you.

aquababy320 · October 2011

I'm planning on getting all three, for pretty much the same reasons as PP. I want to keep the bassinet in our room, keep the crib in the baby's room, and use the pack n' play on our first floor and bring it along when we visit relatives.

vwatson83 · October 2011

Gosh. I feel like I'm the only one who plans to put baby in the crib right away. We live in a small townhouse with stairs so I'll probably have a small sleeper downstairs.

jerseygirl77 · October 2011

reneenearl:

I don't have experience with this yet, but we have a two story house so our plan is to have a bassinet in our bedroom, and a pack n' play downstairs. The crib will be in the babies room, which we won't be using for the first few months.

This is my plan too.

kiarstin · October 2011

I will be using an arms reach bassinet in my room until he/she grows out of it(or for the first 6 months) then transition to own room in crib. At least that is the plan

cinamoniz · October 2011

We're doing a co-sleeper that will "convert" to a pack-in-play either after the baby has grown out of it and is in the crib or when we travel. My sister did this with both of her boys and when I told her I was thinking of doing the same thing she raved about how wonderful it was to have them right next to her so she didn't necessarily have to fully wake up for feedings in the middle of the night. I think it totally saved her sanity, so I'm willing to try it!

She also told me that a lot of people use the 3-in-1 pack in play (it has a bassinet insert and a changing table "insert") and that we could think about that route too. I think my brother and SIL did that with their twins - one slept in the pack in play bassinet and the other slept in an old family cradle/bassinet.

Hope that helps. I'm looking forward to going out and looking at our different options then I'm sure I'll know better what we want to do.

MrsJetSet · October 2011

Our master and nursery are on different floors. We will have a crib in the nursery, arms reach cosleeper in the master and are getting a hand me down basinet which will probably stay in the living room for naps. I might hold off on the pnp until necessary. None of our family is close enough to drive to and we can borrow pnps (as opposed to checking one on a plane) when we go home so I'm not sure we will get one at all.

diana.filipi · October 2011

I end up using all 3!

At the very first DD slept in a bassinet in our room and napped on me or wherever I happened to lay her. After a week or two I put the PnP in the living room downstairs and she would sleep at night in the bassinet in our room but nap or have awake time (sometimes) in the PnP. Around 2 months she started napping in her crib in her room but still slept in the bassinet in our room at night. I still used the PnP a lot as we have a dog.

mustanglo · October 2011

we're going to have the Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper for in our room and a crib in his/her nursery for naps. We'll also have a pack n' play for when the baby is a bit older.

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