Community› The Bump Month Clubs› February 2015 Moms
February 2015 Moms
New Discussion

2nd+ time moms. Opinions on crib mattresses and pack and plays?

crispywheatscrispywheats member
in February 2015 Moms
Hey ladies! We've made some choices on most of the large purchases, but are still feeling a little stuck on a few. I've read about 87 bizillion reviews and searched the boards. (If either these came up and I missed it, my apologies, please point me in the right direction.) I'm looking for some advice from others who've been here before.

Crib mattresses and pack and plays you love? We plan on having a second LO, so we'd like something that will last, but don't want to unnecessarily overspend.

The pack and play doesn't have to be super portable, family is all a flight away and we'll have something there if needed. We are potentially considering using it as a a bassinet/crib in our room in the beginning. We're house hunting and probably won't set up the crib if we're still in our current place. We'd love something that will grow with LO. We're flexible on bells and whistles like mobiles/vibration/sound/etc.

Ideally, we'd like a dual-firmness mattress as the crib is convertible and we'll probably try to use it through the toddler stage. However, if based on your experience, you think toddlers can do just fine on the firmer mattress, we're open to that too. 

If this is at all too vague and you'd like more details about preferences, just let me know. 

Thanks in advance!
Pregnancy Ticker
Report Reply to Post

Re: 2nd+ time moms. Opinions on crib mattresses and pack and plays?

  • winterbabe2015winterbabe2015 member
    I have an Eddie Bauer pnp that has made it through 2 kids and still in great shape, we will use it for this one as well. It has a removable bassinet and changing station. I didn't find that I used the changing station past the first week, it was so narrow that it became a PITA.

    You will probably want a firm mattress for the crib. I used the firm mattress even when the bed became a toddler bed, just added a softer mattress pad to make it more comfy.
    Report Reply
  • Loading the player...
  • umbcptumbcpt member
    I'm embarrassed to say that our crib mattress was a hand-me-down from a close friend.  It is a Serta perfect sleeper, and lasted both of my kids through toddler stage.

    Pack in play…  we have fairly simple model Graco that has a bassinet and a changing table insert.  We used ours extensively throughout both kids early stages, and will use it again in the early days in our room before baby transitions to its own crib.  



    BabyFetus Ticker
    Our family is growing by two feet and we couldn't be happier!  
    BFP 6/12/14, EDD 2/20/15


    Image and video hosting by TinyPic
    Kylee Elizabeth 11/19/09
    Shane Edward 8/18/06

    Married the love of my life 1/7/06




    Report Reply
  • dreemkin84dreemkin84 member
    Pnp is a graco here too with the bassinet. I like it. Its sturdy and a good size. Has lasted well!

    I don't know about the mattress. We have a serta given to us by my cousin. My DD is going straight to a bed though as we are using the crib for "this one". No converting to a toddler bed for us.
    PitaPata Dog tickers Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker

    BFP #2 11/6/13 - EDD 7/14/14 - blighted ovum discovered @ 7w - natural m/c @ 10w3d

    BFP #3 5/25/14 - EDD 2/1/15 - Hoping this is our 2nd little owl Lilypie Maternity tickers

    A/S findings: Baby is a girl! EIF found on heart :( but maternit21 came back neg for chromosome disorders!!


    Report Reply
  • mishka29mishka29 member
    Keep in mind that pnps come in different sizes. The newer ones these days have all the fancy stuff on top - spot for changing, bassinet, etc. it's all very handy if that's what you are looking for but its not the large pnp that you might want/need to use later. I have one of each size but they were both hand me downs.
    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker
    Report Reply
  • krispy83krispy83 member
    We have a Graco PNP (similar to this model:  https://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=41425316&cp=&parentPage=search) that has the bassinet level, but not the diaper changing spot, newborn napper, etc.  It never bothered me that it didn't have those.  Used it daily for probably over a year and it's still in fantastic condition so we'll be able to use it for DD as well.  If you're a member of Costco, check there - they carry them from time to time.

    We didn't spend a ton on a crib mattress - we have the Safety 1st Heavenly Dreams one and it seemed to be just fine for DS.  We didn't convert our crib, he moved to a twin at 26 months and we'll use this mattress again for DD.
    image Image and video hosting by TinyPic Kristina's book recommendations, liked quotes, book clubs, book trivia, book lists (read shelf) 
    We go together like a wink and a smile. June 27, 2009 
    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker
    52 books in 2015?           
    image  Image and video hosting by TinyPic   
    Report Reply
  • t8keepr03t8keepr03 member
    We have a very basic graco PNP here too. It has the bassinet level but nothing else. We paid like $25 bucks for it at Kohls using coupons and sales. It did the job just fine and when we travel my now 15 month old will sleep in it just fine. We plan on using the bassinet level for the first few weeks for this LO too.

    As far as mattress goes we have Simons Slumber Time Elite convertible crib which is slightly larger than other cribs. Therefore you have to get their mattress for it to fit snugly. It has 2 sides so I can turn it over for the toddler stage. I tried just a firm mattress not as expensive and it was loose in the crib. After reading reviews on it others said the same thing. I wasn't wanting to just keep buying and trying mattress so I just went with that one and it seems to be comfy.
    Report Reply
  • mali3mali3 member
    As a third time mom, my kids have slept on a mattress I got at target, no idea if it's firm or whatever, their tiny people and I don't think it really matters if it's plush or soft lol. None have complained about back problems...yet ;)

    As for pack and play I rarely use mine so I purchased it off craigslist! Save your money :)

     

     BabyFruit Ticker

     

     

    Report Reply
  • mali3mali3 member
    umbcpt said:

    I'm embarrassed to say that our crib mattress was a hand-me-down from a close friend.  It is a Serta perfect sleeper, and lasted both of my kids through toddler stage.


    Pack in play…  we have fairly simple model Graco that has a bassinet and a changing table insert.  We used ours extensively throughout both kids early stages, and will use it again in the early days in our room before baby transitions to its own crib.  
    Don't be embarrassed! I think your smart :)

     

     BabyFruit Ticker

     

     

    Report Reply
  • crispywheatscrispywheats member
    Thanks for the replies! I was pretty sure we were leaning toward a Graco PnP but wasn't sure if it was worth the extra 50-130 dollars for a fancier one.
    Pregnancy Ticker
    Report Reply
  • pdxrulzpdxrulz member
    crispywheats said:

    Thanks for the replies! I was pretty sure we were leaning toward a Graco PnP but wasn't sure if it was worth the extra 50-130 dollars for a fancier one.

    Third time mom here. We use a pack and play in our room for the first few months after bringing babe home. The changing station/bassinet has been sitting in my basement gathering dust for years. We won't use it for this one either. I recommend something basic like the pack n play on the go play yard by graco (apx $80).

    We have a crib mattress with a flipable baby/toddler side from Target (about $80). It has held up great. In my experience, a $200 crib mattress is unnecessary. Make sure you get a nice mattress pad.

    In fact, I like to layer my crib with a pad, sheet, pad, sheet. It makes those middle of the night puke, pee, poop everywhere cleanups soooo much easier as you just pull off the top sheet and pad and have a clean layer underneath.

    Good luck in your search. :)
    Report Reply
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"