We had all 3 and bassinet was a total waste. Baby hated it with a passion. We didn't use pnp til she was older. Baby slept mostly in rnp til we moved her to the crib at 8-9 weeks.

Seriously considering the halo basinest. I'm a FTM and I know I will probably regret spending this much money on a temporary solution but I feel most comfortable with the basinest.

Cosleeper if you're breastfeeding - expecially if you go back to work. So much easier to feed at night and have everyone get back to sleep.

I had a rock n play, but baby didn't like it so just used the cosleeper.

Had a pack n play. Only used it for traveling.

Baby #1 was a preemie and had to try all these options. we originally intended to use the PNP, but it just didn't offer the coziness she seemed to need. We ended up using a Rock and Play for the earlier months when she wasn't STTN and really just napping every few hours. I did fret about safety initially but it was the only solution that offered her/us sleep and I got more comfortable with the idea as she grew. Around 4mo we used a sidesleeper attached to bed before fully transitioning to crib by 6mo. It was a process of trial and error. Hoping #2 will be less complicated - at least I have all the gear still!

Anonymous wrote:none. Rock n play!

Please do not have your baby sleep in a rock in play for long term especially if you're not watching 100%. It could be a fatal mistake. Why do you people keep suggesting this?

none. Rock n play!

For my son, we used the pack n' play and it worked well enough. He's on the small side, so could still sleep in it as a toddler when we were traveling (though probably would be getting cramped now at 17 months). You'll want some sort of playpen anyway for down the road, so it's nice to have one item that can serve two purposes when you're buying all the baby gear.

That being said, I'm expecting #2 and am strongly leaning toward trying the cosleeper. I'm not a fan of longterm cosleeping, but for the first few months when you're waking up constantly throughout the night, not having to get out of bed each time seems like a big plus...

* A tip for those of you worried about transitioning to the crib - after she outgrew the bassinet, we always put the baby for naps in her crib so that she got used to it. This made it a lot easier to put her in there at night around 4 months old since she was already familiar with it. I plan to do the same with #2.

We had an heirloom bassinet for daytime naps (lasted about 6 weeks before it was outgrown) and a mini pack and play with the bassinet feature for night time - I had it right next to the bed, it was super easy to nurse at night. We later bought a full sized pack and play for travel. I would have just bought the full sized pack and play with bassinet feature to begin but our room was tiny and it would not have fit in there.

I used a bassinet for my baby from Restoration Hardware for the first 6 or 7 months. He was a big baby so he didn't last in there as long as I would have liked but it was very pretty and he seemed very comfortable in it. We then moved him to a Restoration Hardware crib.

We use a pack and play at my inlaw's house but he is getting a bit small for it. He has more room in my parents' joovy version.

We had no interest in cosleeping (small bed, wasn't breastfeeding).

For what it is worth, we started our son off in his own room from the day he came home from the hospital and then we had no sleeping habits to break. At some point a child will have to sleep in their own room so cosleeping is a habit that will have to be broken at some point.

I am not a fan of the rock and play for the same reason. At some point your child won't be able to be rocked to sleep plus in my min is just meant for daytime use.

We used a PNP for baby #1 with the sleeping surface raised to bassinet level (no separate bassinet attachment). It worked fine and we easily transitioned to the crib in the nursery by 6 weeks.

The things I didn't like about it:
- much larger sleeping surface than what is needed for a newborn
- can be pulled up close to the bed but then makes it hard to get in/out of bed
- takes up a lot of space that could be used for a changing table (or alternately, get the PNP w/the changer)
Things I liked about it:
- same surface/size as crib and this *might* have made the transition easier
- can be used for travel through toddler age
- easy to store
- affordable!

All this being said, I'm very curious about the Halo bassinet. I'm due in March and our PNP is currently on loan to my brother's family. I would love something smaller that can truly sidecar to the bed and leave room to have a small changing table in the bedroom, but not sure if it's worth it for the short time we're planning to use it.

Anonymous wrote:Not sure why all the Rock and play suggestions. Those are bouncer like and not meant for long term sleeping. We loved our co-sleeper. There is no risk of rolling on baby (as pp alluded) unless parent is under 3 feet tall. It doubles as a smaller pack and play as well.

This is absolutely true, although I personally worried more about my blankets somehow getting into the co-sleeper or something like that. It's very unlikely, but it just made me sleep less well than I otherwise would have.

I don't like the PnP as a regular-use bassinet, but it's nice to have for travel and the times when you want to put your baby in a safe, enclosed place to play (especially once they can crawl).

We got a Halo Bassinest to go by the bedside for the early days. I like it better than a cosleeper because the baby is truly separate from the bed, but you can swivel it toward the bed and get the baby out relatively easily. With our first kid, we used a PnP next to the bed, and it wasn't the right height. Logistically, it was super irritating because I had to get out of bed to get the baby out, even though he was right next to me (and I couldn't see him while lying in bed, which was something I really wanted, since I had all the new-mom anxieties about him stopping breathing).

Not sure why all the Rock and play suggestions. Those are bouncer like and not meant for long term sleeping. We loved our co-sleeper. There is no risk of rolling on baby (as pp alluded) unless parent is under 3 feet tall. It doubles as a smaller pack and play as well.

Rock n Play