Sharing a room with my baby. What to do?

owlbits · October 2015

So I live in a small house with my mom and my little sister and I'm going to have to make my room into part nursery and part bedroom for me. My room is so small and I have no idea where i would even put a crib at. Any advice on saving space so it's not so clustered?

DougalMcG · October 2015

My daughter slept in the fisher price rock and play sleeper next to my bed for the first six months of her life. It was perfect.

cmjenkies · October 2015

Seriously, the rock n' play was a godsend for me. My son either slept in that, a pack n' play, or co-slept with us all through infancy anyway.

rayandbrit · October 2015

I agree. Not much space is needed for baby in at least the first 6 months. Whether you're breastfeeding or bottle feeding the baby is pretty much on you/with you nonstop (frequent feedings, frequent diaper changes, etc) and a lot of naps will probably be in your arms. As others suggested a pack n play or something similar should be just fine.

AmadorRose · October 2015

I agree with pp. DH and I have a bassinet for baby for the first 6 months because I plan to breastfeed, meaning all midnight feedings will be mine alone. I also want to keep LO with us to be sure the cats are shut out of the room and I don't let them in in a sleep-walking haze.

momofmanyinthemitten · October 2015

They have mini cribs. Not sure if that's any better for your space than a regular size one. We use a pack n play in our room for the first month or two. Some are bigger than others. You could always bedshare as well, but read up on it and learn how to do it safely if you want to go that route.

NachosAndPeaches · October 2015

You may want baby in your room but a lot of parents prefer their own space right away (there have actually been recent studies in Israel that at 3 and 6 months babies slept the same amount in either their room or parents room, but parents slept longer when separated from baby, even when breastfeeding). Anyway, if you're in the group that would prefer your own space, do you have a closet or bathroom you could put a portable crib in? Just make sure it's properly ventilated and temperature controlled. That's what we do when we're traveling, plus a sound machine, and it's a godsend.

TKaiser91 · October 2015

With our first we used my family bassinet for the first six months in our room. It stayed pushed up against my side of the bed the whole time since I was breast feeding and did all over night feelings. I had a little bag with her name on it that I kept diapers and wipes in and just hooked it on the side of the bassinet. I would refill it about every other day when it got low and would just change her on my bed during the night so we didn't need a changing table those first months. As far as her clothes go I would get a container and maybe slid it under your bed. We are currently doing this with our socks, underwear, etc because we got rid of our dresser and haven't bought a new one yet. They have some at walmart that were the perfect size for under our bed and all we have to do is pull out the drawer and grab what we need. Only other thing I can think of is maybe have your mom help you build shelves on one of your walls and that could help save some space. Good luck!

Ready4theParty · October 2015

We also live in a small two bedroom. We are going to have the baby sleep with us for the first six months (hopefully we'll sell the house and find a new one before then).

I wouldn't be afraid to have the baby sleep 8n a hallway if you don't want them too room in with you. For the first few months it's nice because you can hear them breathing nearby. My biggest fear was that Dd would stop breathing in the middle of the night.

brie_and_almonds · October 2015

With my DD, we took the doors off of the closet to make room for the pack n play in the closet (our clothes weren't hanging in there, so if yours are this may not be a great option). It definitely made the space work for us better since she was right by the bed and ready when it was time for nighttime feedings.

For this baby, I have bought an Arm's Reach co-sleeper (on Craigslist) to have him/her as close to the bed as possible without being in it with me.

I also second PP's suggestion for a mini crib. Some convert to twin size beds down the road, which seems more practical than a full imo.

eastdurian · October 2015

DD slept in a pack n play bassinet for 5 months and you can get a better mattress for the base and LO can sleep in it for over a year if you want.

NachosAndPeaches · October 2015

OT but @Ready4theParty you should get a snuza monitor!!!! They're little devices that clip on to their diapers and vibrate and sound an alarm if they don't sense movement (aka breathing). We used it for the first 5-6 months until he was too wiggly and it would come off and go off at night because it wasn't attached to him, lol!!! We used that paired with a cell phone camera (foscam, only $70!!!), and a cheap sound monitor. Slept SO SO SO much better without him in our room and still felt safe that he was breathing.

mojomama6 · October 2015

I also had to share a room in my parents' home with a newborn (twice, because of different circumstances), and it's tough. My second child had an arm's reach cosleeper, which was rarely used, as she ended up sleeping on me all the time. But my first baby quite literally slept in a laundry basket near me for her first couple of months, until my mom cleaned out the basement so we had a bedroom and I could set up her crib. I padded the bottom with a couple of folded receiving blankets and called it good. Dcfs did not care at all (a whole other story).

JadaBlue · October 2015

Just a note about the minicrib--my daughter grew out of it by 5-6 months (she could lay straight but she couldn't move around like she does in a regular crib). Depending on your budget I would skip it. If you're not in a twin already maybe you could downsize?

Goldsgirl9 · October 2015

Definitely get a rock n play! Total life saver, he wouldn't sleep in anything else!!! DD slept in it for 4-5 months before we transitioned to the pack n play and then to his crib.

clkendrick · October 2015

With both my babies I owned a two bedroom house but the other room was on the other end of the house so I felt better having them in my room. My first daughter spelt in her swing or one of those rocker things or in bed with me until she could sit up on her own then I moved her into a crib in her room. My second daughter slept in a bassinet or the rocker thing until she could sit up on her own then I moved her into the crib and my older daughter into a toddler bed (they were a year and a day apart). Having them in there I think made me sleep better because they were right there and I knew they were ok. And it didn't effect them at all to be in a room with me. They are a month from being 4 and 5 now and they never went through begging to sleep with me or anything.

rebelone · October 2015

We also used a rock n play for the first 4 months until she started sitting up and actually rocking in it. Then we were able to make the closet space an area to put the crib and it fit nicely. We plan on doing the same thing again this time.

Ready4theParty · October 2015

@NachosAndPeaches I will have to look into the diaper clip. We did one of those Angel pads that is supposed to do the same thing but it was constantly going off.

I want to do a video monitor but they creep me out. I used to do overnight stays for a family and their toddler would stand up at night and just stare into the monitor. It was the creepiest thing ever. Especially at 2 am.

AmadorRose · October 2015

@Ready4theParty a friend of mine has a video monitor set up in her living room and her youngest is almost 2. It's hilarious to see what all the kids get up to while the adults are watching football - way more entertaining than watching any of their Texas teams!

Jules08 · October 2015

DS slept in his crib from night 1 after we brought him home from the hospital. However, there were plenty of nights that he slept in a bassinet next to our bed - it wasn't anything fancy. This is one that I had always kept my eye on though: https://www.target.com/p/halo-bassinest-swivel-sleeper-essentia-series-honeycomb/-/A-17296499#prodSlot=medium_1_1&term=HALO+Bassinest+Swivel+Sleeper-+Essentia+Series-+Honeycomb

Knottie95545976 · October 2015

Loving this thread! My fiancé and I live in an apartment and I've been stressing out about where we'll have space for a crib and changing table. The pack and play is such a great recommendation!

kimey1 · October 2015

@AmadorRose I saw this video of the mom talking into the speaker when the babied weren't sleeping. Made me smile how they lied down and acted like they were sleeping XD

https://youtu.be/7wxoZJzi3Cg

mrstrax · October 2015

Knottie95545976 said:
Loving this thread! My fiancé and I live in an apartment and I've been stressing out about where we'll have space for a crib and changing table. The pack and play is such a great recommendation!

We have a low dresser with a changing pad as a "changing table" and even that we only use for her first diaper of the day. I would keep the space and get whatever baby storage you want and a diaper caddy to keep in the living room and then just change your LO on a blanket on the floor/couch.

Knottie95545976 · October 2015

mrstrax said:

Loving this thread! My fiancé and I live in an apartment and I've been stressing out about where we'll have space for a crib and changing table. The pack and play is such a great recommendation!
We have a low dresser with a changing pad as a "changing table" and even that we only use for her first diaper of the day. I would keep the space and get whatever baby storage you want and a diaper caddy to keep in the living room and then just change your LO on a blanket on the floor/couch.

Definitely what I was thinking. I've seen so many parents just change baby wherever they have a flat surface, just laying down a blanket beforehand. We have our bed low to the floor but there's space for shallow drawers or bins to slide underneath.

LynnJess29 · October 2015

I would definitely recommend the rock n play. My DD slept in it until she moved to her crib at 5 months.

gingercatNJ · October 2015

I don't have any experience here, just my attempt at reassurance. In NYC it is very common for a "nursery" to be in the parent ' bedroom. It takes some creativity and being ruthless about what you do and don't really need, but it can work!

Try searching the Apartment Therapy site. Lots if tips and inspiration for working with a small space

amaniupendo · October 2015

Babies really don't need a lot--A safe place to sleep, some clothes and diapers for the most part--the rest is convenience. My advice to you is to be very careful not to overbuy then the baby will take up less room.

JadaBlue · October 2015

Just wanted to add that we use a long, skinny card table pushed against a wall and on risers for a changing table. We have plastic drawers underneath for storing DD's stuff and supplies. Inexpensive, functional, and space efficient! I know a lot of people skip a changing surface, but I'm tall and bending over a bed or the floor hurts my back.

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