Using my old cradle

sweetdreamz6700 · October 2014

So I just found out from my mom that she kept my old bassinet/cradle and would like to send it to me for the baby. I had no idea she had kept it this long! I love the idea of using it especially since my deceased grandparents got it for my mom. But safety is huge as well so I don't want to put my kid in harms way.

Here comes the FTM questions: are bassinets and cribs under the same safety recs? Other than looking for the obvious stuff like instability or super wide rails what else should I look for safety wise? Am I crazy for considering this?

If I decide to use it it would be in our room until she was old enough to move to her room and crib.

PeanettyGoodness · October 2014

I'm honestly having the same dilemma, so I don't have any advice. The cradle my mother wants to give me was used by my sister who is ten years older than me, my brother who will be twenty, and then I will be twenty four. So, not too sure. Like you, it would be used in our room for a good while.

dreemkin84 · October 2014

I used a cradle for Norah that has been passed around the family for more than 40 years. It's a tradition. We only used the cradle in infancy in our room. The second her arms started sticking out we moved on to bigger and "better" things. This one seems safe though (small slats, wood finish).

That being said, it's a good idea to think about the safety things like slat size, paint, tightening up any loose bolts, getting new bedding, etc.

mommaa1615 · October 2014

Im in same position..ughh I feel bad not using it but I want new! Im too paranoid to use something 28+ years old that was stored in the garage

jmcgra06 · October 2014

I wound up using mine, and put a Moses basket inside of it as a compromise. The slats were so not up to code but I felt good using it with the basket inside.

Nvywife · October 2014

My father built a cradle for DS. I plan to use it again for this baby. We had it placed in the living room, until DS was to big for it then we brought out the pack and play to replace the cradle. You shouldn't have baby in a cradle or bassinet if they can roll over or sit up. I plan to pass this cradle down to my kids for their babies. My mother didn't save anything for me, DH mom saved two outfits I used one for DS and the other for this baby. I'm a sucker for family handy me downs!

krispy83 · October 2014

My grandfather built a cradle before I was born that my parents used for me and one of my brothers (they're twins so he made a second one). My dad held on to it (at my request) and we used it for DS, but only for the first few weeks before moving him to a RNP. He wasn't moving around in it at all, but he just slept sooooo much better in the RNP (he had reflux). He was swaddled so I didn't really worry about the slats or other stuff much. I'd definitely make sure it's still stable and get new bedding and maybe a new mattress for it, but it was important to me to use it.

We'll use it again for DD for the first couple of weeks and then graduate to the RNP. We have so few cool family hand-me-downs that I loved being able to use this.

vpeazy · October 2014

My cradle has been used for my last 2 boys, and will also for this baby! I did replace some screws, and reinforce the bottom again just to make sure it was ok, although it didn't look needed. My cradle is over 30 years old!

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