Sleep – we all want it, need it, and have to have it (even the littlest ones of us!). But sometimes, sleep is elusive. Many of our Smart Mama, Happy Baby Q&A calls revolve around helping babies and toddler sleep better. I'm a big fan of the family bed when you've go a young nursing baby – here's a round-up of the best articles on how to do make it work for your family… and how to make sure it's safe, too.
Reasons to Co-sleep
Another great summary of the benefits of the family bed! Via The Alpha Parent
Co-sleeping has a bad rap these days. Although it's hard to see why when you consider the advantages.
Original president of SIDS Foundation says co-sleeping is not dangerous
SIDS is always a big worry – here's how it relates to the family bed – Via examiner.com
The doctor responsible for spearheading Sudden Infant Death Syndrome funding and education since the 1970's is calling for doctors to stop saying that co-sleeping is dangerous.
The Safe Co-Sleeping Checklist
Is the family bed really dangerous? Mommypotamus does a great job sorting through the hype and helping you to create a safe family bed. Via mommypotamus
News Stories Often Talk about “another co-sleeping death” as if co-sleeping is inherently dangerous. The Milwaukee Health Department has gone so far as to compare it with putting baby to bed with butcher knives.
9 Benefits of the Breastfeeding and Co-sleeping Relationship
Family bed and breastfeeding = great combination for sleep (at least in the early months) Via Intoxicated on Life
I only recently discovered that the term “co-sleeping” in general means “sleeping in close proximity to your baby.” This can mean sharing a bed or simply sharing a room.
To me, however, when I say “co-sleeping” I mean exactly what it sounds like—sleeping in the same bed as your child.
Transitioning baby from co-sleeping to crib: It was easier than we thought!
Yes you CAN transition out of the family bed – and without a lot of trouble. We have always moved our young tots out because that's what works for our family. Here's a great post sharing another family's experience with making this transition! Via I Think We Could Be Friends
Like many first time parents, when my husband and I were pregnant with our first, we SWORE that no baby, toddler or child would ever enter our bed. We equated good parenting with a kid-less bed and knew all too well the horror stories of nights of sleep ruined by flailing arms and legs.
How we “sidecarred” our crib, making cosleeping and night time parenting work for us!
This is an old but great resource on how to side-car a crib. This is my favorite how-to 🙂 Via How We Sidecarred Our Crib (Note: This site is no more since this post, you can see most of the article still via the internet archive here .)
There are many benefits of cosleeping Babies sleep better, Mothers sleep better, Breastfeeding is easier, It's contemporary parenting, Babies thrive better, Parents and infants become more connected, Reduces the risk of SIDS
Why Bedsharing and Breastfeeding Go Together, and What Could Happen When You Ignore Biology
Getting into the science of why we're meant to share sleep! Via Attachment Matters
And I quote: “To achieve maximal security for the baby and optimal availability of breastfeeding, mothers are advised to take the baby of less than four months of age into their bed for feeding during the night, but afterwards to place the baby on its back into his own crib…”
This is the recommendation of the latest anti-bedsharing study to make headlines, by Carpenter et al. Clearly the primary investigator is a man, because as anyone who has ever breastfed a newborn in their bed knows, it is nearly impossible to get through the feeding and put the baby back to his own bed before passing out.
Turn Your Crib into a CoSleeper
If you've decided the that family bed is the way to go… but still want a little space you can repurpose the crib into a DIY cosleeper. Here are some great ideas! Via Peaceful Parenting
Photos and a video on how to convert your crib to a cosleeper.
Benefits of Cosleeping for Fathers
Sharing sleep isn't just for mamas and babies – it has big benefits for dads too 🙂 Via Natural Motherhood
By now we know the benefits of cosleeping for moms and babes. What about the benefits of cosleeping for fathers? Do daddies who sleep with their children rip some benefits as well?
Sniglar – Crib co sleeper
Ikea hacks are always fun! Here's a customer cosleeper using an Ikea crib! Via Ikea Hackers
After 2 years of living with our son Ivan who is a candidate to win the prize for the child on the planet with least sleep, it was clear that with the new one is coming to us, we are not to play, and although Mr. Estivil criticize us, we wanted a co-sleeping crib to avoid those early months in which the baby eats were every 2 hours, with consequent little walks in pajamas and disoriented, we took from our bed to his crib, in darkness and stumbling over anything (shoes, teddy, our moral) that was lying on the ground.
Designing a Baby Nursery (When You’re Sharing a Room)
It's a lot of fun to get ready for baby, and sometimes I think us family bed mamas are a little sad we don't get to set up a nursery. Great ideas for that “getting ready” fun when everyone is in the same bedroom! Via Joyful Abode
Before we had our first baby, Anneliese, I carefully arranged a special room just for her, even though we knew we would have her in our bedroom with us most of the time. With a 3-bedroom house, it was easy for her to have her own spot. Of course we had the master bedroom, and the second bedroom was our “office” and craft area. The third room was going to be a playroom for my in-home childcare, until we found out I was pregnant and we scrapped that plan.
DIY Co-Sleeper Review {One Year Later}
Wondering how the DIY co-sleeper works out in the long run? Here's a update from one of the most popular tutorials! Via Always Amanda
A little over a year ago, I blogged about the DIY Co-Sleeper we made and it became pretty popular on Pinterest with over 152,000 pins to date.
How Co-Sleeping Can Help
This is a really extensive infographic covering the benefits of cosleeping! Great for sharing 🙂 Via AfterSchool.ae (Note: 01/09/2017 Site is down)
Whenever co-sleeping is discussed, people always talk on the negative things and the dangers of co-sleeping, these discussions often overlook the benefits of co-sleeping resulting to misconception on how co-sleeping can be beneficial for both the parent and the baby. There are resources and studies that discussed on the risks of co-sleeping and for many times, discourage co sleeping.
Co-Sleeping: The Risks and Benefits
Mark really puts things in perspective for us when it comes to “what's natural” with baby sleep! Via Marks Daily Apple
Co-sleeping, bed sharing, or whatever else you want to call it – is an abomination of a behavior that no self-respecting mammal engages in. If you don’t believe me, consider how other mammals handle their kids. You know the old can and string phones we used to make as kids?
DIY Co-Sleeper (Baby boy’s new bed!)
Excellent tutorial on how to do a small cosleeper for baby! Via Ordinary Happily Ever After
My fifth child is getting evicted in about six weeks. We’ve always kept our babies close at night during the first six months or so. I can’t decide if the reason is because I’m paranoid about SIDS and babies stopping breathing in the middle of the night (I read that mom’s heart beat etc. can jumpstart a baby who is having a hard time breathing or if his heart starts to act up) or just maybe I’m too lazy to get up every couple hours for six months.
Co-Sleeping & The Family Bed
How to co-sleep and keep up couple time, too 🙂 Via A Virtuous Woman
Perhaps this idea seems counter productive considering, yesterday we talked about how to keep the romance alive, but it needn’t be so. If you are creative, nothing will keep you and your husband from sharing special time together!
Is It Time To Rethink Co-Sleeping?
More great information cosleeping safely – and how to help educate others. Via WBUR's Common Health
Pediatricians and public health officials have long warned that “co-sleeping,” or sharing a bed with an infant, is unsafe.
But let’s face it: almost everybody does it. So perhaps the time has come for the public health message to focus less on advising against it and more on advising how to do it more safely.
12 Tips To Help Make Co-Sleeping Work
Nervous about sharing sleep? These great tips help you get things working for your family! Via Powerful Mothering
If you’re thinking of starting to co-sleep, or if you already do, these tips may work for you. They’ve helped me co-sleep with all three of my babies at one time or another.
Co-Sleeping while on vacation
You may have the perfect family bed setup at home – but how do you handle things when you're on the road or on vacation? Via Courtney's Sweets
We were away last week, not on a vacation but this method definitely applies for sleeping away somewhere else while on vacation or just not at home. We spent the night over Sweet Pea’s house who is Sweet Baby’s BFF and slept there for 6 nights. Since we co-sleep I must say I was kind of nervous how she’d sleep and how to do it safely.
