Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Cosleeping

We all know my personal opinion on how I feel about cosleeping with an infant, but this post isn't about that (whew! I know! Not another nancy-on-her-soapbox-post!)

I have a totally different opinion about cosleeping with a toddler or older children. I love it!

When one of the girls has a nightmare or just wakes up scared of the dark, they come to us in bed and gets in. This period of cuddletime is one of my favorite things to do. We don't make it a habit though, as I still believe our bed is just that. ~Our bed~. As soon as they are sound asleep in my arms, I carry them back to their own bed. But those moments of having a child fall asleep and sleep soundly in my arms is beyond wonderful.

Karl just woke up crying and did not want to go back down. So I scooped him up and brought him in his big bed with me. (we have a full size bed in his room.) it took awhile, but he finally fell asleep in my arms.

To be honest, I wish cosleeping with an infant didn't have risks of death. I would have loved to sleep with my babies. It's just such a peaceful time. And nothing competes with that sort of bond with your baby. I'm perfectly content though that sleeping with an older child or toddler is no longer dangerous. So when I get to do it, I will gladly let one of my children in bed with me.

I do want to be careful though, especially with Karl. I don't want our bed to become a permanent family bed. I still believe our bed is our bed. And children, for the most part, should not disrupt our one personal sanctuary. But on the rare occasion one of my children feel the need to sleep with me, I'm happy as can be to share my space.


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7 comments:

jenn said...

I agree 100% with the cuddle time! I actually wish Caiden woke up a little more during the night needed a snuggle- is that weird! Of course- even when she does wake up she never falls asleep in bed with us- she thinks thats playtime. So I end up going into her room and just snuggling with her on her armchair in there until she falls asleep. Not quite the same- but those snuggles are delicious!

Larissa said...

My oldest Lilian (gonna be 2 in a week) sleeps with us almost every night, now she doesn't fall asleep with us, she goes in her own bed and eventually makes it to ours. I love cuddling with her so much, it makes my mornings. She has been sleeping with us since she was a couple of weeks old, because it was so much easier to do the midnight and early morning nursings with her in bed with me. I know it's considered dangerous, but I took a lot of precautions to ensure her saftey. As for my youngest, Haylen, she has not spent one night in the family bed, her crib is in our room, but I think she is more content having a whole crib to her self, I mean she is already sleeping through the night at 4 weeks! I love the idea of the family bed, being raised in an European household, it was considered the norm, the US is one of the only countries that considers it taboo. Now, my husband and I do find alone time, intimate time and don't really see the children in the way, plus the way I look at it, they grow so fast, I will enjoy the time they are small enough to want to sleep with "mommy" and "daddy". oops, sorry this turned out so long.

areyoukiddingme said...

I love cuddle time, but I hate sleeping with my girl. She is an active sleeper, and there is nothing she likes better than bracing her feet against something while she's sleeping. Like my ribs when I was pregnant. And my face, now that she's almost 4. So, if we're going to get up soon when she climbs into bed, she can stay. Otherwise, it's right back to her own bed. Also, if we let her stay once, she will grab her bears and head right for our bed at bedtime. She also assures me that when she's big, she's going to sleep in our bed...with us. Not a chance, little girl, not a chance.

Melody said...

Our bed is our bed. Its too important to my relationship with my partner to not have some private time at night with her, so I haven't coslept regularly with my daughter since she was about 6 months old. Still, my favorite time is weekend mornings when my daughter wakes up at her normal time but we all want a little extra sleep, so I bring her back to bed with us. Love cuddling her back to dreams and then laying in bed giggling and playing with her when she wakes again.

Kristin said...

Those moments become more and more precious as the kids get older.

Jamie said...

As grateful as I am that Skeeter sleeps so good in his bed, I REALLY wish he would cuddle with me. Just the thought of it makes me want to melt.

Sarah said...

LOL, Andrew sometimes sleeps through the night, but most nights, he comes in by me at 3 a.m. Honestly, I am so tired that I just let him because I'd rather he fall back asleep quickly than deal with him screaming while I am already up a few times a night with the baby and then up @ 6:00 to get ready for work.

I figure I'll deal with it someday when I have more energy. Sounds lazy, but it's the truth!