Chicco Next2Me Crib: Review

I am going to hold my hands up and admit that I am probably a neurotic Mum! I think I get this from my Mum though...

I vaguely recall one occasion, when I was little, where I had tripped and landed face down on my nose. Pale liquid came out of my nose afterwards, which I now realise was probably just runny snot (sorry for the description), but my Mum was worried and stated it was probably my brains coming out my nose and took me to A&E.

Anyway, back to me being a neurotic parent. One thing I have been neurotic about is my baby's sleeping arrangements. My baby has pretty much outgrown his Cocoonababy (which I did a full review on here). I love the Cocoonababy, it has been magic for my baby's sleep and I am really sad he has outgrown it. I can put him in it and he will always fall asleep and get a good rest. He doesnt like going onto his back, flat sadly.

In addition to him sleeping well in the Cocoonababy it has meant that he has been able to sleep in bed next to me, while in the Cocoonababy. As it is raised and he is "strapped in" he has been able to be right next to me as my partner has been sleeping in the spare room (my poor husband was starting to fall asleep at his work desk due to night time feeds interrupting our sleep, so being a good wife I let him sleep in the spare room).

I have loved having my baby right next to me, safely in his Cocoonababy. But now that he has outgrown it I don't want to just co-sleep with him. I would be worried about the dangers without the "safer" option the Cocoonababy offers. But I don't feel ready to have him move to his large cot, further away from me.

I blame Google. You Google good baby sleeping practices and suddenly you are reading statistics about SIDs (and if you are like me, panicking!). I once Googled babies hiccuping in the womb (as Archie did that a lot inside me) and suddenly I was reading about how it was a sign of a knotted umbilical cord and I should consult my midwife ASAP... needless to say this wasn't the case but the hiccup/Google incident made me very upset.

But because of this, I was a bit desperate to have a way of having Archie stay closer to me, for a little longer. Luckily, I have a fellow Mummy friend who has lent me the use of her Chicco Next2Me Crib. Firstly, just a big thank you to that fellow Mum... and secondly, I am now one happy Mum thanks to the Chicco Next2Me.

Admittedly I have been eyeing the Chicco Next2Me since before Archie was born but we already had the Chicco Lullaby Travel Cot for downstairs, the Cocoonbaby and a Alma Bloom Mini Crib... I couldn't justify another £100+ for the Chicco Next2Me.

But borrowing it has been amazing, and so much appreciated. For those of you that aren't aware the Chicco Next2Me is a crib that allows a safer form of co-sleeping (well it is technically called side-sleeping).

The side of the crib comes down and the crib secures to your bed so that you can have the baby right next to you. But you aren't able to roll onto the baby and the slight "lip" in height difference between the bed and the crib means that baby is unlikely to roll onto your bed.

Having my son right there, in plain sight is so comforting. I have literally fallen asleep holding his little hand. It offers me peace of mind until he is that little bit older.

http://www.chicco.co.uk

On a practical note it is so easy to assemble, it took us only a few minutes. It could also be used as a travel cot as it packs away to a decent, transportable size. The side does come down but it is also secure if placed up (as if it was a normal crib).

The mattress doesnt feel too hard, just right, whereas I have found the Chicco Lullaby Travel Cot mattress does feel too hard (to the extent I think my son is finding it harder to sleep in during the day, as it is his downstairs/daytime cot).

A lot of the fabric fixtures for the Chicco Next2Me seem to be removable so they can be washed, this is important when your baby seems to be performing a scene from the Exorcist in his nappy!

And although I don't breastfeed myself I have heard that it is very useful to have for that, as you are able to feed in a sleeping position with the Chicco Next2Me.

Overall, I am really impressed with the Chicco Next2Me and am so grateful to have something which means he is still close to me during the night. I would highly recommend it.

This is not a sponsored post.

Chicco Lullago Travel Cot Review

As I mentioned when I reviewed the Cocoonababy (click here to see this review) I did get drawn into buying a few baby items I either didn't need or could potentially buy cheaper versions of. I blame the pregnancy hormones!

One item was the Chicco Lullago Travel Cot. I decided at 8 months pregnant that I wanted a cot for downstairs so my baby was always sleeping with me in the room, until he was 6 months old (as is advised). Instead of always placing him in his cot upstairs. Realistically I could have just bought a Moses basket to last the first few months and then started placing my son in his nursery. This would have been cheaper than buying the Chicco Lullago Travel Cot which is around £100.

However, pregnancy hormones took over and I bought it anyway. I am glad I did buy it. It has been invaluable! Sorry to be a broken record, but my C section really limited my movement after birth and having the Chicco Lullago downstairs was so useful. I couldn't really master stairs when I came home from hospital, especially not while carrying a baby. So having my baby sleeping downstairs meant I was free to put him down to sleep without moving around too much.

It also fits his Cocoonababy in it, which a Moses basket wouldn't.

It is really easy to assemble and disassemble. It becomes much smaller and has a handy bag with handles to carry it around. It has been really useful to take with us when visiting (and staying with) relatives to show off our new little bundle. It doesn't take up too much space in the car, and you need all the space you can save because taking a baby somewhere overnight requires a lot of stuff!

We can also use it longer than a Moses basket. The instructions say it can be used until the baby is kneeling and/or standing. I would guess this would be around 6 months.

The negatives are that it is more expensive (than a Moses basket) and I haven't been able to find fitted sheets for it, which I would have preferred.

However, I would still buy this item in hindsight and not just because the blue one matches my living room colour scheme (yes, that was a factor in my decision making process before I have birth!)

This is not a sponsored post.

Cocoonababy: Review

One item that I fell in love with during my pregnancy was the Cocoonababy. I will be completely honest, I saw it and just loved it. I read all the sales information and decided I wanted it. It looked good and claims to help babies sleep and reduce reflux (which can be common in babies). I do feel like the reason behind me wanting it was because of the good sales pitch and the high price (it looked like a luxury item), it wasn't necessarily a logical want. My pregnancy hormones may have been influencing me.

However, I am so glad we got it! My son has been sleeping in it since birth, so for 2 months now, and he loves it! He sleeps so soundly in it. Of course, this could be down to many other factors as well (he may just be a good sleeper). But I can not deny that since birth he falls asleep quickly when he is put in his Cocoonababy. He is also very settled at night, and apart from the odd spit up he doesn't posset anywhere near as much as when he is lying flat on a normal mattress.

Although Red Castle (who make the Cocoonababy) would be unlikely to encourage co-sleeping I have found that this can be done with the Cocoonababy (of course, always be careful when doing this and I am in no way promoting co-sleeping, this is just my experience).

My husband has been sleeping in the spare room during weekdays, as he works long days, so I have been putting the Cocoonababy next to me in bed during these nights (without any pillows or duvet under or close to it). This was really handy at night as I had a C Section and getting around was hard at first. Being able to be next to my baby and soothe him without getting out of bed was so useful. I felt that he was safe in the Cocoonababy, while next to me in bed, as I was much less likely to roll on top of him (one of the dangers of co-sleeping).

From what I have read the Cocoonababy was designed in France for Neonatal babies and is even used in French hospitals. Some of the benefits can be found on the Cocoonabay website here, and include:

• improve the quality and the length of the child’s sleep.
• reduce the involuntary jerky movements which wake baby with a start and make him cry (startle or Moro reflex).
• limit gastric reflux (thanks to the slope of the Cocoonababy®).
• limit the risk of flat head syndrome (plagiocephaly).

I believe in complete honesty so I will say that I haven’t noticed it really reduce the startle reflex (my baby does that often even in the Cocoonababy) and he does have some flat head syndrome (but not much). The best benefits, that I believe are down to the Cocoonababy, are him sleeping longer (he is 8 weeks old now and almost sleeping 6 hours at night) and less gastric reflux.

The Cocoonababy is expensive and it can only be used for a few months, John Lewis sell it for £129.95 (Link), but it does have its advantages and I would get it again in a heartbeat. I guess in terms of value for me it has paid for itself in better sleep for me and my son, and it being so useful for co-sleeping in those first weeks (when I struggled due to my C Section scar and recovery).

If you have any questions about my experience with the Cocoonababy please feel free to ask in the comments below.
 
This is not a sponsored post.