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Expectant and Postpartum Moms
Where to put the baby?
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Anonymous
| I am due in late June and we have been looking for a house for a year now. Needless to say, we are still searching for a house without any luck. We currently are renting a very nice one bedroom with a "den" in Tenleytown/AU Park. We love the area and don't want to find another rental b/c we don't want to move again until we find a house. The "den" is good size, however it doesn't have any windows. It's currently our storage room. I was very much against putting the baby in there b/c there aren't any windows. Now as the time is getting closer I'm realizing that there really isn't any room for a changing table, crib, and baby "stuff" in general unless we either go without it or put it in that room. Also, we were planning on having the baby sleep in our room in a bassinett for maybe the first two months, but not after that. Do you think it's strange to set up a room w/o windows as a baby's room? (all the current stuff in the room we would have to put in a storage unit). Just curious what others have done who are in tight spaces. |
Anonymous
| You should be fine with that as a baby's room. At this age they'll only be in there to sleep, so darkness will be a good thing. If it were a toddler that would be a different story, but for a baby, not a big deal. |
Anonymous
| It's just fine especially since summer is coming and it stays light past many babies bed times. When the baby is awake, however, I would make sure that s/he gets sun to help set the circadian rythmns. |
Anonymous
| Sorry - realized you are due in late June. The baby may stay up late for most of the summer. (sorry). Regardless, it's not weird at all. |
Anonymous
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That is exactly what we did. Baby slept in our room in the bassinet of a pack and play for the first six months and then moved to his crib. His room was also formerly the "den" with no windows. Small but fit his crib, a changing table and a Billy bookcase from Ikea.
I also didn't love the fact that there was no window but actually it was a blessing because the room was always nice and dark for sleeping. When he wasn't sleeping we always kept the door open to recycle the air and also used a humidifier. Babies really don't need much room. I was born in NYC in a one bedroom and shared a room with my parents for over a year so don't stress. Good luck. |
Anonymous
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Honestly, it sooooooo doesn't matter in the long run. It might even be better if you have a windowless room for the first year or two since many people rely on black-out curtains to try to adjust their dc's sleep schedule.
When dc gets to preschool age, you'll want to have some kind of a nicer room set up. But it's really not important during the first 2 years. All that matters to db is proximity to you 
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Anonymous
| You could never count the amount of families who do that in this city...I think it's almost as common as having a baby in a 2 bedroom. Like many said, the darkness will be a blessing for a while. I would suggest an air purifier if you can find a quiet one. In the meantime, good luck finding a house! |
Anonymous
| Can a room without a window legally be used as a bedroom? I thought there had to be a window in case of fire... |
Anonymous
Any space can be used as a bedroom. It just can't be legally sold or rented as a bedroom without a window however. |
Anonymous
I think it's fine. In fact, in some ways I'm jealous! My 6 month old naps terribly and I realized it's because his room is too bright during the day. This past sunday when it rained all day long, he napped great. We ran out that afternoon to buy black-out shades!  So if you have a room where brightness won't be an issue, then you're all set. Newborns can sleep anywhere and not be bothered by sunlight, and in fact it's good to have them nap in bright rooms so they get their internal clock adjusted. But once they get older and more alert, the darker the room the better.
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Anonymous
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I think it's totally fine too.
Regarding the fire, uhm, how would a baby do anything alone anyway? |
Anonymous
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Apartment dweller due in 2 weeks. We don't have a baby's room set up - going with a co-sleeper, changing pad on top of a dresser setup.
It sounds like your house hunting's been frustrating, but it may be good that you haven't found anything yet. A friend w/2 kids repeatedly says she wishes they'd waited to buy until after they had their first, because they didn't really know what their needs would be and house #1 didn't fit the bill after a few months. |
Anonymous
| Well, gee, it would be so that an adult could get the baby out, duh. |
Anonymous
| Sounds perfect to me! Our baby slept in our room for the first two months and then transitioned to the crib in her room after that. She's only in there to sleep, so the lack of windows would actually be an asset. (We had to get blackout shades to keep our room dark enough.) |
Anonymous
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My brother and his wife took the sliding doors off a large closet, and their four-year-old STILL sleeps in there. It's a reality of apartment life that many people have survived.
I'm yet another one who loves the idea of the darkness... I currently have several bedsheets over each window to get the nursery dark enough for naps. And to think, one of "advantages" of the room was its brightness! |