1-bedroom with baby

[Iggipolka]

I don't know if I should ask this question here, or on the Family board. I need suggestions for bedtime in regards to staying in a 1-bedroom with a 9 month old. In March, my wife, the baby (Lillian) and I are going to be at AKV-Jambo house CL, a 7 day cruise on the Magic followed by BLT.

Lil won't co-sleep with us anymore, preferring to play with her favorite people all night long, resulting in everyone being a cranky mess in the morning. However, if she is in her own room,in her own crib, she sleeps for nearly 12 hours w/o a peep.

So, this brings up two worries about sleeping arrangements. 1. How to adjust her to the pack-n-play as she's never slept in one before. And 2, more importantly, where to put it so that she's got the darkness and privacy she needs to sleep.

If we put the pack-n-play in the bedroom, that's awesome for nap times and the first part of the night, but I'm worried that we'll wake her when we try and sneak into bed at night. Keeping it in the living room, means that we'll be confined to the bedroom from 6pm on. The cruise is a whole 'nother can of worms, since we're all together in one room (cat 4).

Arugh..I'm so stressing over this. My wife tells me to chill and it will all work out, but an overly tired baby is not a happy baby, resulting in really unhappy parents.

So, for those who have traveled with an infant before, what did you do?

Thanks!

 

[HotdogDncrs]

We took our son to WDW when he was 4 months and then again at 6 months, and 1 year. We stayed at WL each time in a normal hotel room (before becoming DVC members). Unlike you, we didn't have the luxury of a separate bedroom. Like your adorable daughter he wasn't used to sleeping in a PNP, but we were pleasantly surprised. He was so tired from all the sunshine and activities during the day, that when we got back to the room, and went through the bedtime ritual (i.e. bath etc.) he passed right out. A baby who was somewhat of a light sleeper, had no issues with us watching TV, or the noise from the hotel hallways.

We also made sure to take his IPOD with all of his lullabies, this helped to drown out some of the noise.

Good luck - it really is fun travelling with a little one!

 

[Greysword]

If you think it will be an issue, you could get a pack-n-play at home and try it out. Then, you could bring it with you for both the ship and the land portions. If the baby won't sleep with you in the room and you had a PnP in each room, you could move her in the middle of the night to the living room for the duration.

Also, even though it may sound silly, you could setup the PnP int he bathtub area, which could be isolated from the bedroom and living room. You would then have the toilet, sink, and washer/dryer available, but the little one would be in a fairly dark area by herself. You just would not be able to take a bath or use that sink.

Good luck!

- Chris

 

[CarolMN]

......(snip).....Also, even though it may sound silly, you could setup the PnP int he bathtub area, which could be isolated from the bedroom and living room. You would then have the toilet, sink, and washer/dryer available, but the little one would be in a fairly dark area by herself. You just would not be able to take a bath or use that sink.

Good luck!

- Chris

At BLT, this would work well. Put the PnP in the Master bathroom next to the tubi and close the door and the "shutters". You can use the bathroom off the kitchen. (The BLT 1 bedrooms have two bathroom). Baby would have privacy and you & your wife could enjoy the living room area. Shouldn't be a problem to get to the bed, either since the baby will be in her "own room".

Not familiar with the 1 bedroom villas at Jambo House so don't know how that would work there.

 

[ryanshana]

I went to Disney with a 10 mo old and we used a pack and play, which we wasnt' really used to....the first night we needed to let him CIO but the other nights he was so tired he just fell asleep. Pack and plays are kind of hard for an older baby. This little thing save me from meltdowns....

http://www.amazon.com/Unknown-Porta...ie=UTF8&s=baby-products&qid=1263255795&sr=1-3

It's about 3-4" thick, they also have them at babies r us. It fit folded in our large suitcase (if you are flying!)

Also we came across a similar problem of moving around, waking kids etc when we were in a one bedroom. After the first night we didn't like being restricted to the bedroom so we let the boys share the bedroom and we used the pullout, which was very comfy actually! GL

 

[Iggipolka]

At BLT, this would work well. Put the PnP in the Master bathroom next to the tubi and close the door and the "shutters". You can use the bathroom off the kitchen. (The BLT 1 bedrooms have two bathroom). Baby would have privacy and you & your wife could enjoy the living room area. Shouldn't be a problem to get to the bed, either since the baby will be in her "own room".

Not familiar with the 1 bedroom villas at Jambo House so don't know how that would work there.

Ooo...that is Perfect at BLT! Love it. Thanks!

It woudln't work at Jambo as there is only one bathroom in a 1-bedroom and you have to walk through the tub/sink area to get to the toilet.

 

[cvjw]

What about the closet area? The one at our 1 bedroom at BWV looked large enough to put a pack and play in. It was very close to the master bedroom, and seemed like it would be a quiet area.

 

[ercrbc]

We stayed in a 1br value at Jambo with my son who turned 1 during our trip. He also will NOT sleep in a PNP, so I rented a crib from A Baby's Best Friend. My 4yo was on the pullout couch.

I was really nervous about the rented crib and them sharing a space together. Nights turned out to be fairly easy, they were both so tired from busy days. Naps did not end up working in the room though. But he did surprise me and nap in the stroller which freed us up to stay at the parks longer or hang out by the pool.

Enjoy AKV, hope you have a great week there!

 

[dis-happy]

You really, really, truly need to get a white noise machine. Start using it at home now, along with a PnP to get the baby used to it.

That way, when you move around the room, or the neighbors are noisy, or someone flushes a toilet, all the sound will be masked and the baby will sleep peacefully on. By using it consistently the baby will equate the sound with "sleep time". You'll be home free. But you have to get used to using it asap.

 

[WiggleWorm]

We will be staying in a one bedroom value villa in Jambo in August with our 2 year old. We were also wondering about the whole nap/nighttime sleep thing. I think he'll be fine in the PnP because he naps in one everyday at daycare, but we are wondering if we should put him in the bedroom or the living room and where we should sleep. Like your little one, he enjoys playing with us if he's in bed/in the same room as we are and sleeps much better alone. If you could please post again or send me a message to let me know what works, that'd be great. I'm really interested in what worked for you. Thanks, good luck, and have fun!!

 

[Iggipolka]

You really, really, truly need to get a white noise machine. Start using it at home now, along with a PnP to get the baby used to it.

That way, when you move around the room, or the neighbors are noisy, or someone flushes a toilet, all the sound will be masked and the baby will sleep peacefully on. By using it consistently the baby will equate the sound with "sleep time". You'll be home free. But you have to get used to using it asap.

Thanks! She's already sleeping with a white noise machine to block household noise. I will be bringing it with us on the trip as well. The only problem is my wife can't sleep with the noise of the white noise machine in the same room. I have a feeling we'll be sleeping on the pull out in the living room and let the baby have the bedroom with the super comphy king bed.
Ahhh..yet another parental sacrifice.
I have to get PnP and have her sleep in that at home.

 

[ToddyLu]

Maybe your wife will be so tired, she won't mind the white noise maker.

I know you guys will have a terrific time and Lil is a precious Princess.

 

[wdwnut]

No flames please- we have used the pack-n-play in the walk-in closets at BWV, VWL, BCV, and OKW to accomodate grandkids who needed the darker room with a bit more quiet. It works out well.

 

[lisareniff]

I have a feeling we'll be sleeping on the pull out in the living room and let the baby have the bedroom with the super comphy king bed.

Oh, no, don't do that! Then you will be tired with a energetic baby! I suggest tiring the baby out on the first day, which will probably happen anyway, then the little one will sleep which ever room you prefer, either the bedroom so you have the liv/kitchen to use in the evening and morning or the living room so you can not fear her waking with you in the room. The other nights will follow suit. AKL's theme is dark and the curtain are light blocking so that won't be a problem.

 

[dianeschlicht]

You've had some great suggestions, but I'd like to add another. The area of the 1 bedroom that is like a large hall between the master and the bathroom can be kept fairly dark. If you set the Pack N Play there, you should still be able to get around it, and you can leave that hall light off. Just make sure it isn't too close to the bathroom door. You could also hang the sheet that's intended for the pull out over the crib to make it a bit darker.

One of the problems at Jambo CL is that if you get a room on the lounge end of the hall, you can get noise from that. The good thing is that the studio is the closest, so any 1 bedroom is going to be at least a little down the hall.

 

[jennypenny]

No flames here about the closet--been there done that.

At AKL I would put the pack-n-play in the tub so you can close the curtain and give the illusion of being alone.

 

[Steamboat Girlie]

We too have let our son sleep in the closet at VWL. The pnp fit in there perfectly. When we stayed at Kidani, we put the pnp in the master bathroom.
It worked out great!

 

[movie77]

We were just at Kidani in a one bedroom in November with our DS 7 months at the time. We just put the pack n play on one side of the bed. We had our DD 2 on the other side of the bed in a little bed we rented. The master bath at Kidani is big enough to be an option as well, but we never had to do that... The rooms there are very dark in fact the only issue we had was us moving around at night when the lights were out

 

[ryanshana]

Oh, no, don't do that! Then you will be tired with a energetic baby! I suggest tiring the baby out on the first day, which will probably happen anyway, then the little one will sleep which ever room you prefer, either the bedroom so you have the liv/kitchen to use in the evening and morning or the living room so you can not fear her waking with you in the room. The other nights will follow suit. AKL's theme is dark and the curtain are light blocking so that won't be a problem.

We did this. It was not bad at all..the pull out was very comfortable and we weren't tired at all the next morning.

My youngest DS is such a light sleeper there would have been no way we could have walked into the room mid night w/o waking him up...regardless of how tired he was!

 

[El&Asmom]

We put the PnP in the closet as well at BWV and VWL. Unfortunately, it didn't quite fit in the closet area of BCV. It was darker in there and we could still walk into the bedroom without waking dd.

Does anyone know if a full sized crib will fit in the bathroom area in a 1bd at Kidani? Dd would probably sleep better in a full sized crib over a PnP at this point, but I didn't know if it would fit.

Have fun with your adorable dd. It sounds like a great trip. We are going next week with our girls, and I'm worried about the cruise portion of our trip more than the hotel room. Those small little rooms with a baby that needs quiet to sleep may be challenging. Oh well, it's only 3 nights for us, so we'll survive.