Conference moira::parenting_v3

    I'll take a stab at this.....hope I understood it all okay!
    I think that the pushchair/carrycot, would be called a stroller over
    here...the kind that you can lay down flat for the baby to sleep in.
    They are nice, but we rarely used it inside the house. If the bed part
    of it removes for separate carrying, then you could certainly use this
    in place of a cradle, until the baby outgrows it. I believe that what
    you call a crib is what we here call a cradle or bassinet, or that type
    of thing, and what you call a cot is what we call a crib! You were
    right....confusing! No, you needn't have a cradle for the baby, but you
    will need the bigger version, what you call a cot (our crib). You can't
    put a tiny baby in a big child's bed and expect it to not fall out. And
    they will outgrow that carrycot unbelievably quick (I'd estimate at 4-5
    months). A cot(crib) is important....babies are very active, restless
    sleepers, and have no concept of danger of falling off high places. A
    crawling child will just crawl or roll right off the edge! Invest the
    money in a cot to keep that precious one safe!
    Let me know how far off the mark I am with my interpretations!
    --dave--

    Ann,
    
    I'll try to answer using both the English and American "translations"
    of the words.
    
    The pushchair/carrycot would probably do just fine for the first few
    weeks of sleeping. What I am thinking of is the carrycot "rests" on the 
    pushchair part and is great for taking in while visiting people. The 
    ones I've  seen in the UK look sturdy and safe for sleeping and the 
    "carrycot"  acts as a "bassinette" in American terms. The only 
    disadvantage is that you have to place the "carrycot" portion on the 
    floor which could be  cold for a newborn. You will definitely need a 
    crib/cot soon. If the pushchair/carrycot combination can act as a good 
    pushchair for a year at minimum, then it is worth the investment. If 
    in the pushchair (stroller) position it won't handle a baby who can sit, 
    even propped up, (which will happen within about 3 months), it probably 
    isn't worth the investment UNLESS you will be doing alot of visiting
    and need a portable sleeping arrangement for the baby.
    
    If I had my vote, I'd get a nice sturdy push chair that can handle a 
    changing child for almost 2 years and get a crib/cot for right away.
    You can always borrow a travel crib/cot when needed.
    
    Hope I didn't confuse you more!! Unless I'm totally confused about the
    "carrycot" portion and you mean a carseat!!
    
    Andrea

    Ann,
    
    I'd recommend getting a crib/cot from the very start as you are
    definitely going to need one from age 6mo (at the oldest) to probably
    18 months at the least.  I have heard of three-year olds still in 
    cribs; so there's potential for a lot of use depending on the child.
    
    I bought a cradle which I used about a week in our bedroom; but that 
    didn't work out too well for us and he went right into his crib/cot 
    at age one week.  It was a poor investment (for us).   On the other
    hand, in a two-level house, it can be helpful sometimes to have the 
    crib/cot on the bedroom level and keep a cradle or something on the 
    main level for newborn daytime sleeping.  One thing to consider 
    about the cradle/bassinette is that after 6 months or so, you've 
    got to find some place to store the darn thing!
    
    Best wishes,
    Carol

Hi Anne!  I've been thinking of you since we're due so close together!

We bought Kathryne a crib before she was born and were going to have
it in her room and put her in it right from the start, but she looked
SO tiny in it!  Well, the darn thing was too wide to fit through her
door so we couldn't wheel it into our room.  What we ended up doing
was having her sleep in a laundry basket in our room.  (funny, she 
always smelled like dirty socks...)  When she outgrew that, we put
her in a long cardboard box.  We padded both quite well with the
many blankets we had.  At about 2 or 3 months we moved her into her 
crib in her room.

Whatever you decide, you don't really have to spend a lot of money.

Take care,

Liz

    Liz,
    
    With respect to looking so small in the crib, what we did with
    Jason was put him the "wrong" way (i.e. not lengthwise) in the
    crib for several months.   I then rolled up a blanket and laid
    it again the "wrong" way to create a smaller, cozy area for such
    a wee one!.
    
    cj/

    Dear all...
    
    	thanks for your replies - they certainly help.
    
    	Dave & Andrea - you were quite right in your assumptions ....
    		carrycot = basinette
    		cot = crib
    	... I told you it would be confusing!
    
    	Going by your comments I think I'll stick with the carrycot and
    just make sure it's off the ground in a draught-free place for the
    first few months... that way I can move it around quite easily, and 
    then invest in a cot.... sorry crib :-)
    
    	Just need to persevere with stripping the wallpaper off the
    nursery-to-be walls .... it's impossible!!!! I think they stuck it on
    with super-glue!@!!
    
    	Thanks again for the advice...
    
    		Ann
    

    In re: stripping stubborn wallpaper....
    Are you steaming it off? You can (at least in US) rent steamers, and
    they make it musch easier! If that still doesn't work awfully well, try
    slashing the paper while its still on the wall, with a razor blade or
    an exacto knife. Then steam it. this usually works even on stubborn
    paper.
    Hope I've helped!
    --dave--

    More on the wallpaper problem..
    I've successfully used a plant sprayer and just sprayed water on the
    recalcitrant paper, let it sit and it just comes tumbling off, using a
    putty knife to get under it.  No worry about heating things up and
    steam is basically water unless I screwed up my chemistry again.  

    Steam is definitely just *very* hot water. Water sprayed on can work,
    but takes much longer than steam, which penetrates pretty quickly. The
    only time we had trouble with steam penetrating (and the same would
    have held true for sprayed-on water) was when the wallpaper had been
    painted over with an oil-based paint.....therefore basically
    waterproof. That's when we took out the exacto knife and slashed it, so
    the steam could get under it/through it where it was cut. Very slow
    tedious work, but worth it in the end (the oil paint was a hideous,
    dark avocado-ish green!).
    
    --dave--

    Hello Ann - hope everything is going OK.
    
    I had a carrycot for Alison when she was tiny.  I solved the problem of
    keeping it off the floor by either putting it on two chairs, or keeping 
    it on its wheels, or putting it on a Mothercare carrycot/babybath
    stand.  I think that babies can sleep in carrycots until they can roll
    over (ie from their backs or tummies on to their sides).  It's possible
    they might be able to roll themselves out of the carrycot.  I'm not
    sure when babies start being able to roll over - Alison couldn't until
    she was 7 months old, but I'm sure most babies roll a lot earlier - 5
    months?  
    
    The carrycot I had went on wheels to turn it into a pram, but didn't
    have the pushchair attachment bit.  It was given to me (second hand)
    otherwise I would have got one of those pushchair/carrycot things -
    they look really good.  I don't know if you've already bought it, but
    if you haven't, do shop around - there seems to be a lot of variety
    between the different brands in how easy it is to convert them between 
    a pram and a pushchair, and in the size of the carrycot bit. 
    
    Good luck
    
    - Janet
    
    
    
      

    Hello Ann
    
    Remember me, Barbara Hough (nee Lloyd) used to be Mervyn Cz's
    secretary, now working at Snams and married to Richard Hough, CSC.
    Congratualtions!  I am expecting in January.  About your question of
    beds, here's what I recommend (and have read in Pregnancy manual). 
    From 0 to 2-3 months I recommend a moses basket (second hand is best,
    thats what I've bought) and stand.  This should be immediately replaced
    with a cot as soon as the baby starts to try and pull himself/herself
    up the side of the moses basket. A moses basket is recommended because
    it keeps the baby warmer than a cot.  Because of the short time they
    are in it though, I totally recommend a second hand one, but obviously
    by your own bedding sheets for it.  Try putting in a wanted ad in VTX,
    or keeping on eye on the for sales in VTX.  I've seen quite a few come
    up.
    
    Good luck and take care of yourself.
    Barbara
    

    Thanks again...
    
    	the combined pushchair/carrycot is now ordered.... and even the
    wallpaper has given up its battle and we've started redecorating (...
    you were right... we hired a steam-stripper and it was marvellous!).
    
    
    	It's funny... I'm sure someone else mentioned dark green paint
    earlier in this note... we also had dark green gloss paint on every
    conceivable piece of wood in the room... that took days and days to get
    rid off... yuk! 
    
    	I'm beginning to feel as if all of this is finally getting
    somewhere!
    
    	Ann
    
    P.S. yes, of course I remember you Barbara.... and the ski-ing in Aviemore!
         ... congratulations!