We bought this...

Say hello to the Arm's Reach Infant Co-sleeper. We both knew that we would be a little on the over-protective side after losing our last baby. This left us in search of the perfect bed that wouldn't have us getting up every 10 seconds looking over the side to check on baby... So we found this product (http://www.armsreach.com/). Here's what both of us mommas thought about it..

Country Mom says...

I love it. Absolutely love it! Jude is my third baby - with both of my daughters we used a play pen, a moses basket, a bassinet, a crib, a cradle- nothing ever made both Mommy and Baby happy. With this bed, Jude was (and still is) in my room, right next to me, but not in my bed. It makes baby happy because he can fall asleep right next to mommy. He's close enough for comfort, but not in our bed! It made nursing him so much easier. There's no high side to lift him over, just enough of a lip to keep him in his bed. (Plus for a worrywart like me you don't have to get up and go look at him, all you have to do is open your eyes because he's right there.) Now that he's bigger we have to put the side up and let him sleep in it as a play pen. We got a lot of use out of it, and will continue to until we're into the toddler phase. I have to admit when we first bought it, I was skeptical- it didn't look like it was worth the $200 we spent on it, but the proof was obvious when we had a happy sleepy newborn snuggled up in his co-sleeper. I highly recommend it! (Note- mine is the full size co-sleeper, the mini didn't look like it was quite as tough for the long haul- the mini takes up less space, but is probably best for those who will transition quickly to a crib.)



City Mom says...


This is seriously one of the best purchases I have ever made! I also purchased this in the full size because I definitely wanted something my son could sleep in for a long time. It is literally as if my son is sleeping with me in bed, but safely! It diminished the worries associated with in-bed co-sleeping, all while providing the same amount of closeness.


BONUS: It works perfectly with the HiSense Babysense Monitor we reviewed below! All you have to do is insert a board beneath the mattress to rest the sensors on (since they require a firm surface to function). So, consider using these two products together as we did.

Please note, the reviews expressed here are merely our opinion and based upon our own personal experiences with the product. We have not been paid for this review, nor are we affiliated with the company responsible for manufacturing this product.

Got a question for us about this product? Leave a comment! We will be certain to respond. :)

We bought this...

HiSense BabySense V Baby Safe Infant Movement Monitor

Let's face it... when you have gone through the heartbreak of finding your little one unresponsive- it's hard to decide what to do about your next baby's sleeping arrangements. It's a difficult choice. We know that ultimately it's up to God, but he has given us things to help protect our children. Can we watch them 24/7 ? No, but a simple monitor can help you sleep while your little one is sleeping. Read on to see what we think the pros and cons of this product are...




Country Mom says...

Though I do like the monitor, I knew it was going to take a lot of faith in God to sleep at night. I had to come to the decision in my own mind that I had to trust that he most likely wouldn't allow me to go through the exact same situation again.

This monitor seemed better to me than the ones the hospital provides with all the cords and wires because I didn't want to go that far- I didn't want to have to hook baby up before each bedtime and nap time-etc. It worked well, but - our fan did give us a false positive (false positive=a green light and silence as if baby is in bed and sleeping with no trouble- when in fact baby is not even in bed). As long as we didn't have "interference" it worked fine. We didn't have any false alarms except for when a sleepy mommy took baby out to nurse him and forgot to turn it off! Then everyone in the house woke up! (oops, my bad!) But- we did have one night when Jude was sleeping so soundly and breathing so slowly that he set the monitor off. It scared me, but I was thankful it went off because our little bean had rolled over and was sleeping directly on his face. So, all in all, for about $100 in was a good buy - but we SIDS moms know that nothing is really going to make us 100% comfortable right after going through the things we have- that takes time, faith and tlc for the heart. Also- be realistic on the monitor situation- all it does is alert you that the baby is not breathing - if you find yourself in that situation with the monitor going off- it's up to you to do some quick thinking. My husband and I took CPR and first aid classes after Lila passed away. We wanted to be prepared in the future to help not only our own children, but others as well. We highly recommend training-- it costs less than this monitor!


City Mom says...

When we first brought Quinn home, our anxiety and fears lead us to also bring home a *hospital grade* apnea monitor. We used it a total of two nights, and after several false alarms (literally watching him breath while it would alarm), we were absolutely done with it. With all of the cords and wires, and with how utterly terrifying the alarm sound was, we found that it not only added to our anxiety, it multiplied it to an infinite number. We know that some parents choose to go this route, but it just wasn't going to work for us. If you are considering a hospital grade monitor, please don't let this deter you. Every family is different, so no harm in trying to see if it brings you the comfort you desire.

For us, we returned it to the hospital and moved on to plan B: We purchased this Hisense Infant Monitor. While we weren't ready to give up on using some sort of monitor for the baby, we definitely did not want something quite as invasive and "serious" as the hospital monitor felt. The Hisense monitor was the perfect solution for us. After testing it vigorously, (we had to have some trust in this thing if we were going to use it with any sort of peace of mind) we found that it worked just as it described.

Before each use, we would "test" it to be certain there were no interferences (fans, etc.) that would cause any false positives, and once we got the hang of it, it was as simple as just pushing a button to turn it on when placing our son to sleep.

PROS:
-- Flashing Green Light shows baby's movements. For restless parents, this could help provide some peace of mind (it definitely did for us).
-- Easy to use once installed, and non-invasive. Nothing attaches to the baby.
-- It comes with two sensor pads, not just one. This helps for when your baby gets older and begins moving more... the 2nd sensor pad covers more surface area.
-- It alerts you if there is no movement after 20 seconds, or if it detects less than 10 micro-movements in a minute.

CONS:
-- Not portable for nap time.
-- While the alarm is loud, it may still not be loud enough to hear if you have a large home. If such is the case, I would recommend placing a baby monitor in your child's room to help carry the sound to wherever in the home you may be.
-- Price ($130-$150 range), but truthfully, it is worth every penny. If you're considering a home monitor for your child, let this be the one.

so --- YES! I would definitely recommend this product! Not just to SIDS parents, but to any and all parents out there.

Please note, the reviews expressed here are merely our opinion and based upon our own personal experiences with the product. We have not been paid for this review, nor are we affiliated with the company responsible for manufacturing this product.

Interested in checking out this monitor for yourself? You can find it here on Amazon.

Got a question for us about this product? Leave a comment! We will be certain to respond. :)