The choice of a child's bed is an important and responsible business. And you need to approach it with all seriousness. Before you ask yourself how to choose a crib for your baby, we advise you to think about whether you need it at all. As practice shows, about 40% of babies sleep in their beds since birth, parents of all others prefer to practice joint sleep. We are not going to agitate you either for the first or the second variant of organizing your sleep, but just ask if you think your baby will sleep in the crib. If you decide that you need a crib and you will teach the child to sleep in it from birth, then we turn to the question of how to choose the right baby cot. And for making a decision you need to study such parameters of baby cots as size, type, functionality and material.
What type of crib is better to choose?
There are three main types of cribs: an ordinary crib, a crib-transformer and a cot-riding-hall.
An ordinary crib is a bed in which we all slept as a child. Rectangular construction with high walls, which are made in the form of thin rods or laths.
Cot-transformer - similar to a regular crib, but more often side-by-side to it are boxes for storing laundry, and on top of boxes there is a swaddler. The peculiarity of this crib is not only in the boxes and the pelenator, but also that when the child grows up a little, it will be transformed into an ordinary bed and a stand-alone small chest of drawers.
A cot is a cot that has a metal or plastic frame and is covered with a cloth or a special mesh (or a combination of fabric and mesh). This bed performs just two functions - a sleeping place and a place for games.
Each type of crib has its advantages and disadvantages, and your choice depends on what you want to get from your bed. If you only need a bed for a baby, then the optimal solution is to buy a regular bed. If you need an extra space for storing things or for games - then you are suitable for a cot-transformer or a cot-arena, respectively.
What kind of baby cot to choose for a child - consider their functional features
When choosing a crib for a child, you need to pay attention to such features:
- the number of positions of the bottom and wall of the crib. The best option is when there are 2 bottom positions and 2 wall positions. This is necessary primarily for the mother, since she can regulate the height of the bottom with respect to her height and the child's age. Just note that the 2 positions of the wall is only in ordinary cots and transformers. The cot-arena has 1 wall position, but 2 bottom positions (very rarely there are models with unregulated bottom);
- rounded corners. This is a must! And it is necessary that not only all the internal coal be round, but also preferably external, as the running child is very
often on his way meets a crib; - Stable feet or locking wheels. Do not buy a crib that is solely on runners. Sellers can assure you that this is convenient, because you can swing a baby in a crib. In fact, when the kid gets to his feet, he can turn it - it's very dangerous. Therefore, to the bed on the runners must necessarily go in a set of wheels with a lock.
How to choose the material of a cot?
Of course, the best solution is to purchase a bed made of natural materials, namely wood. Cot-transformers are always made of wood or chipboard, cots and arenas are made of metal and synthetic material, ordinary cribs are made of wood and metal. And the choice of material and color is left for the parents.