How to organize the first sleeping place for a child?

There had to be a room for a child. Although initially it was supposed to involve giving up the room to work. Both my husband and I work many hours a week from home, yet we were ready to condemn ourselves to the inconvenience of working with a laptop on our lap or on a modest desk in the corner of the kitchen. The room for the child was a dream come true for me, a goal in itself, a combination of interests and desires of a child, passion for creating and decorating interiors. There was also a sleeping plan - from birth in a separate cot, in a separate room.

A few months before giving birth, friends lent us wicker basket for the baby, so I immediately planned that it would stand in the living room and let the child be closer to us during the day. It never occurred to me to… put it in our bedroom.

 

Life, however, can perfectly verify our plans. When I came home with the newborn for the third day, I did not resemble Duchess Kate 8 hours after giving birth. I was exhausted with childbirth, caesarean section and I only dreamed of having a rest, of course having my son as close to me as possible. I wanted to look at Him, hear His breath and smell Him. His little room at the far end of the hall seemed way too far away to be apart most of the time and that far away. The wicker basket by our bed in the bedroom turned out to be the perfect place to sleep for our newborn son.

It wasn't until later that I learned that how we sleep is called cosleeping and this can be done in several different ways (including sleeping with your child). I instead, I focused on solutions ideal for parents who do not want to invite a child to their bed, while wanting to have them as close as possible. Such cosleeping can be done in several ways: the child can sleep on an extra bed - in a mini cot without one side, attached permanently to our bed, or in a separate basket next to the parents' bed or in a cot with a lowered side, which we used for up to 7 month of the baby's life.

 

 

Wicker basket it's beautiful, light and mobile. However, it won't last long, after 4-6 months, when the child starts to sit down or is too long or too active during sleep, you will have to replace it with a larger and more stable piece of furniture. So if you are looking for savings, it will not be a good purchase, but if you can afford it, you will probably be satisfied.

 

Standard sizes are also fantastic cot with drop down side. During the day, it is an independent piece of furniture, and at night it allows you to have a child at your fingertips, and when you leave the side, it allows you to comfortably reach for the child, stroke or cover it. It is very light, so glued felt does not require additional wheels to be very easy and slightly moved. After resigning from the basket, we slept the following months. Unfortunately, it takes up a lot of space and probably won't fit in the bedroom next to most of our beds, and the side despite leaving further separates parents from the child. It also lacks an adjustable height to be able to adjust it to the height of the Parents' bed.

 

When Santa finished 7 months, we decided to switch a cot at the other end of the room. Why? Nicholas repeatedly woke up during the night. We noticed that from the time we fell asleep to the time we went to sleep, he slept very peacefully for these few hours, but since we slept together, he would wake up many times. Mikołaj is a child sensitive to external factors and sleeping so close simply seemed to disturb him. Even our turning from side to side or whispering, the creaking of the bed, not to mention the morning alarm clock, could wake him up. Now, when the length of the room separates us, he sleeps longer and calmer, and at night he only wakes up for feeding. Thanks to that we're still close and we can smoothly respond to the needs of the child, watching them, hearing and supervising, and he can sleep peacefully without receiving too much stimulus on our part.

 

And how do you plan or sleep with your children? In separate rooms, with you but separately or in one bed?