Since bringing home Aaryn, we have experienced everything that you could possibly experience with a newborn.
The first few nights were obviously pretty rough. Before she was born, our youngest was already 4 years of age; so we were past all of the rough stages for the early years. I will be honest when I say that I wasn’t fully prepared for the sleepless nights that I was about to have coming up.
While Aaryn, has turned out to be a great baby overall (she is just a newborn though, so she still sleeps about 17 hours a day), there are still a few things we struggle with.
For one, it’s impossible at certain points throughout the day to lay her down. I love holding new babies (well baby’s in general) just as much as the next person, but with four other kids plus working for home it’s not always practical. This means getting her used to laying down on her own was a must have for us.
The first few days home we tried a variety of things. Aaryn was born a few weeks early, and was on the tiny side (5 pounds), so we had to keep all of this in mind. Swaddling her of course was the best course of action, but even with swaddling, she always wanted to be in my arms-and like any new mom, I happily obliged. Until my husband went back to work and I was down a pair of hands that is.
The SNOO
A few months before Aaryn was born, my husband was watching a celebrity nursery show, and saw The SNOO in the background. At the time he didn’t know the name of it, but after some “Googling” he finally found it and became obsessed with it!
What made the SNOO appeal to us is that the SNOO is the world’s first smart sleeper that boosts a baby’s sleep by imitating the rhythmic sensations babies enjoy while in the womb.
After co-sleeping with our last two kids, we were determined not to do that again this time around. The two of us wanted to get baby used to sleeping in a bassinet from the moment we came home(even if the bassinet was right next to our bed). We researched everything we could about The SNOO Smart Sleeper, and decided that was going to be our one must have item.
So how does it work?
SNOO is the “safest baby bed ever made” featuring a new swaddle that securely attaches to the sleeper to prevent rolling over, guaranteeing baby stays on its back when used correctly.
Developed by Dr. Harvey Karp, Which if you have young kids or know someone who does, you may have read (or had it recommended to you to do so), The Happiest Baby on the Block. Dr. Karp details what he calls the five S’s to sooth fussy and crying babies: Shushing, swaddling, side/stomach position, swinging, and sucking.
The SNOO takes care of three of those “S’s” for you: shushing, swaddling and swinging.
Why we love it
Besides this being one of the most amazing products I’ve encountered in my 14 years of parenting, in my opinion it’s also the most practical.
No matter how much I try and calm and shush my baby, I know that I’m not always doing enough for her in that moment. And it’s okay. That’s where The SNOO comes in. It provides that extra that I just may not be able to always do (mostly being due to exhaustion on my part).
Does she sleep long stretches? Not quite. She is only two weeks old, so if I can get her to sleep at least four hours at night between her feedings, for me that’s a major win(I even settled for 3 hours). Every little bit helps so I am able to recharge!
What about the shushing? Are you worried about the dependency? Not at all. I use some type of white noise with all of my kids (14,10,5,4) and there are nights where they can go with out it and still sleep fine. My husband and I use a fan as white noise as well. To me the shushing sound on the SNOO is the equivalent. Plus there are moments throughout the day where I can lay her in it without it being turned on and she will sleep just fine.
Were you able to use it when she came home from the hospital? We tried. She was only 5 pounds, so the sleep sack was a little big, and kept covering her face. She we waited a week and a half before using it fully. However, we were able to use it just to lie her down in.
When will you transition: The SNOO can be used up to six months of age. More than likely we will use until then and begin to transition.
It has a neat weaning feature that can be enabled when you are ready to stop using, so whenever we make the decision that it’s time to move her full time to the crib we will start there.
I promise, the people at Happiest Baby thought of everything and this is such the perfect added item that many parents don’t consider when they are purchasing products for their baby!
It’s expensive, but it works
Okay, so I’m going to be honest, the $1160 price tag may have you a bit squeamish. But please trust me when I say it is 100% worth the price. I’m not going to tell you that you can’t put a price tag on, even if it’s your mental and physical well being involved. But As a veteran parent, I can tell you there is no other product on the market that allows your baby and you to get decent if not near the perfect amount of rest during the early months.
Sleep is imperative not only for baby, but mom and dad as well. SNOO’s goal is to solve the #1 complaint of new parents: sleep deprivation. 50% of parents sleep 6 hours or less which, studies show, causes the same mental impairment as being drunk.
If this item had been out with any of my previous kids, I without a doubt would have made it a staple in our nursery. Getting good rest has made my days go by bit more smoothly (I do have five kids, so it goes as well as expected!), and for me that means The SNOO is priceless.
SNOO Smart Sleeper Bassinet by Happiest Baby • Pottery Barn Kids • $28
SNOO Sleep Sack by Happiest Baby • Pottery Barn Kids • $1,160
Thank you to Happiest Baby for providing us with the Snoo Smart Bassinet to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.
Love of impromptu dance parties, 80’s cartoons, and horizontal life pauses (aka naps); Natasha Brown is a stay at home mom of 4 kids, and wife to one lucky guy! In her spare time, she is co-editor of Grits & Grace, as well as editor for The Mother Hustler Blog and Creative Director for the Mother Hustler podcast.
That is a pretty cool basinett. I like the rhythmic function that will help the baby sleep. You are right that the price tag may make it cost prohibitive. But I am sure it is well worth it.
Your babe is totally adorable and this looks like the best sleeper!
This is the dream bassinet, but it is so, so expensive. I am pregnant with my first, so I want to see how his sleep goes before purchasing something so expensive!