here's a question--we actually own a few of these, and I am trying to figure out which one would be the safest to introduce to a 6-7 month old:

--the A&A one with the dog head and satin trim. while this one seems the most breathable, the dog head is large and kind of hard. honestly, I wouldn't want to cuddle with that thing....

--an Angel Dear frog--I like this one a lot because the head is small and manageable and the whole thing is soft. I've let baby play with it while reading to her--she seems to be very interested in chewing on the fabric. would this be considered breathable enough to be safe?

--we also got a Vera Bradley bunny lovey. the fabric is fleece-like, similar to Angel Dear--and the ears and bunny's paws are lined with satin. this one is the smallest of all, and the softest. DD actually smiles so much when she sees it. but because it isn't muslin, I worry about the fabric.

my baby doesn't crawl yet, but she rolls side to side while falling asleep or when awake. she seems to pull everything to her face/mouth, so I know the lovey would end up on her face (she seems to only sleep on her back, with head to the side--but this may change once we stop using the Magic Sleep Suit). should we wait to introduce any of them?

we first gave our son a lovey when he was about 5-6 months old and he did not care about it at all/it didn't help him sleep at all at first so we decided to try again later. Around 8-9 months, though, we tried it again and that time, he became attached to the lovey and it definitely did help him to settle down and comfort himself to sleep. Now, at 15 months, he still loves the lovey and I think (although it could just be getting older/better at self soothing, whatever) that it does help him get himself to sleep and feel secure. We have used the angel dear lovies, as another poster recommended, and really like them. Get at least 2. We have already lost 1 and there are also times you need to wash them so you want to have extra(s) on hand. You can buy the angel dears in a set of 3.

We have like 6 of the little Aden and Anais blankies with the satiny edge. (Well, a few are A&A and the others are knockoffs that are equally awesome.) We just pull one out each day and toss the previous day's in the laundry. He mostly just sleeps with it, but it helps when he is cranky as well. He will rub the edge on his cheek and between his fingers when he is falling asleep.

We started him with it by putting in in his hands during our nighttime routine until we felt comfortable putting it in his crib around 8 months (they're very breathable). He's just past one now and snuggles it all night.

Anonymous wrote:When my daughter was just over a year, we gave her a soft bunny to keep in her crib. She loves it. She is now 15 months old and calls it "Bah." "Going to see Bah" has become synonymous with taking a nap/going to bed at night, and as soon as she gets into her crib, she grabs the bunny, hugs it, and says, "Oh, Bah!!" as if they have been separated for weeks rather than hours. It's definitely made it easier for her to settle down in her crib than it was before she had it. I expect Bah will go with her to college someday.

This made me smile. My DS is the same with his monkey (he actually calls his monkey "Bih"). I gave him the monkey lovey at around nine months and he became attached to it after a few weeks and started sleeping through the night around the same time. I'm not sure I can credit "Bih" with sleeping through the night, but it definitely helps. DS is 18 months now and always falls asleep clutching his monkey close.

Anonymous wrote:We introduced one of those stuffed bunny heads on a little blanket when my DS was 6 months. SIDS levels drop off dramatically at that age and at that point my DS had started crawling, so I personally felt like the odds that he would be unable to move his mouth away from a near-impossible suffocation position were low enough that I didn't worry.

This. Introducing lovey definitely helped, we have the same kind. And we probably did it around 6-7 months. She's 15 months now and snuggles with it when she's going to sleep. Having a lovey at daycare when she first started also was hugely helpful (we had two that were similar, one stays at daycare one stays in the crib). It was comforting for her, the first few days at daycare she carried it around all day.

We also did the lovey at a young age - we were transitioning DD out of the rock and play AND the swaddle and wanted something comforting knowing that she is very tactile. Like PPs I was concerned about anything in the crib at a young age so we got the Aden & Anais Issie security blankets, which are basically a small square of muslin edged in ribbon. Safe and snuggy. We have 4 - two to rotate at home and two to rotate at daycare. She definitely associates it with sleep.

We started a lovey when we decided to sleep train around 5 months. It was a GAME CHANGER! It helped him so much to not feel alone. He loves that little thing. He rubs it on his face and loves going to bed because that means he can hold it. I slept with it for a few days before we introduced it so that it would smell like me.

Oh yah! But be sure and buy at least 3 of them (after baby latches on to one) and rotate them regularly so all get equal wear. Both our kids LOVED having a lovey.

Angel Dear ones worked best for us. Only rule we had was that it did not leave the bed (in order to avoid the inevitable problem when they want to take it everywhere). They have lots of different animal options.
http://www.amazon.com/Angel-Dear-Cuddle-Twin-Pink/dp/B004U8X82U/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1455834672&sr=8-14&keywords=angel+dear

Also, get more than one in case you lose it and so you have a back up when one is in the wash. Then they also get equal wear.

Yes! Put two soft jellycat animals in his crib at 1 yr. we hear him talking to them every morning and I swear they help him put himself back to sleep when he wakes up too early (4:30/5)

A lovey did not do anything for my DD.

Yes! DC1 immediately slept better as soon as I desperately introduced one of those light Angel Dear lovies at 5 mo. Coincidence? Maybe or maybe not. It wasn't a miracle for DC2, but as time went on she was totally hooked. And now at 2yo will melt into bed at the mere sight of her Angel Dear lovey.

Anonymous wrote:Yes, my DD has a little stuffed bunny. I put it in with her once she started spending a little more awake time in her crib, both before falling asleep and after waking up. I think I started right around a year. Now she's 19 months and she LOVES that bunny. We can see her on our video monitor and when she rolls over, she almost always reaches and pulls the bunny with her. When she wakes up, she plays it a little. She likes to fiddle with it, meaning she rubs it's eyes and the ends of the arms/legs. It's a calming thing.

Anyhow, it's been great for us. Gives her comfort and helps her feel positive about being in the crib. Give it a try and see.

This is exactly how my dd (12 months) is with her bunny.