HELP!!! Sleeping at Nana’s
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Topic: HELP!!! Sleeping at Nana’s
Posted By: MrsH
Subject: HELP!!! Sleeping at Nana’s
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 2:22pm
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I need some help reasonably urgently please.
I'm going back to work on Monday and my MIL has offered to take care of DS. We bought a portacot for him to sleep in when he's there. He has had a couple of sleeps in it (all with me putting him down) so far. Today I took him over there and he didn't want a bar of it. It took me an hour and a half before I decided "Bugger this - I'll just take him home". MILs not much help - she's not the 'take charge' type of person. Yesterday when she had him, he wouldn't go down so she ended up pushing him up and down the hallway in the pram until he dropped off. Today she said that she'll just have to bring him back home (they live a few minutes drive away) for his naps. Regardless, I don't feel very confident that she's going to persist with trying to get DS to sleep in his portacot. Now we're thinking we may have to buy a cot just for Nana's (hindsight says we should have bought one instead of a portacot). BUT before we do that, does anyone have any tips/suggestions/reassurance that they can offer?? What do daycare centres do? Note: the portacot is pretty crappy and I wish we hadn't bought it. The mattress is pretty flimsy and you can't really tuck anything underneath it (like our safety sleep for example). ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Replies:
Posted By: mummyofprinces
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 3:32pm
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Daycares have cots first off.
You could get a cot or you could just let MIL get on with it and see how it works. You may find she feels like you are watching her and she doesnt want to step on her DIL toes so just keeps quite while you are around but will be perfectly fine when you are not there. DS could probably pick up on a little of your aprehension too... If pushing him in the pram is what she needs to do for the first wee while until the establish their routine is that a bad thing???? As long as he is getting sleep and is happy I am sure they will work it out between the two of them. Oh can you buy a better mattress for the portacot? We got a foam one that was a couple of inches thick (for our dog LOL) which would be more comfy than the standard ones.... -------------   
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Posted By: MissAngel
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 3:32pm
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Thomas wouldnt sleep anywhere except his own cot in the beginning, pre-school had to push him round in the pram until he felt comfortable with them and the environment and then he must have felt safe and happy enough to go into the cages they had.
We dont sleep at nanna's house, my MIL has an unsafe house and doesnt supervise him properly! ------------- Alex, Thomas and Lily http://lilypie.com" rel="nofollow"> 
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Posted By: gmunster
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 3:49pm
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Mrs H - we bought a new mattress to go in the porta cot - our porta cot itself is pretty blah but with the new mattress tis ok. That way could put the safety sleep around the portacot mattress and the foam mattress on top. I also made sure that Amelie had her toys etc that she sees in her own cot in the porta cot too - and she was eventually ok. But I DID have to preservere with MIL to make sure she did things the way we wanted her to on the sleeping front! works fine now though - just took a little bit of trial and error. -------------  
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Posted By: ElfsMum
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 3:57pm
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E wouldnt sleep anywhere(including gran's till recently...not sure why it's changed but there was no hope before the last few months for us:( you would prefer she doesnt come to your house instead? ------------- Mum to two amazing boys! |
Posted By: kiwisj
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 5:50pm
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C slept in a portacot when we came home to NZ for 4 weeks. I found that the first day or two in a new place (we stayed with family ALL over the country lol) he wouldn't settle as well, even though it was the same blimmin portacot!
By the end of the trip we worked out that if he had a chance to play in the room and feel comfortable BEFORE nap/sleep time then he would settle easier for his sleeps. We also used all the same bedding from C's cot but that's just sheet, muslin and sleeping bag (plus extra blankets as it was freezing in NZ in October!) I would also be inclined to let your MIL work it out for herself IYGWIM and do what she has to to get him to sleep. BUT if it were me I would still stress about it all the same, we're only human after all 
PS you mention you have a safety sleep, do you have the one that extends to go all the way round a single bed? perhaps you could try the bed rather than the cot if you're not happy with the cot? ------------- SJ Callum - Dec 2008 Daniel - Oct 2010 |
Posted By: flakesitchyfeet
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 8:16pm
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Leave your MIL to it, she'll do what she needs to do
Do you have a mobile on your cot? We figure Hollie missed settling to music and got her a glowworm. We used a thick foam matteress protector to boost the portacot mat, and rugs hung over the mesh sides so she feels more secure and can't see the different surroundings. Oh and we pin the the safe t sleep 
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Posted By: MummyFreckle
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 8:54pm
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I agree with the mattress comments, we have a foam one on top of the thin one in our portacot, and its a lot more comfy for the wee man. I would suggest giving him a "special" sleep friend for Nana's house that lives in the portacot? Maybe also try to put something in the cot that smells like you, a t shirt or maybe sleep with his sheet wrapped on your pillow so it ends up smelling like you. |
Posted By: Febgirl
Date Posted: 12 February 2010 at 8:54pm
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If it will make you feel happier and he will be spending lots of time at his nanas, then I'd buy a cheap cot from Trade Me or Mocka. Does she have somewhere for it to go? A normal cot will last your bubba longer than a portacot as they are generally larger. ------------- Two little girls under 2! 
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