My 16 month old daughter is a good sleeper and from the time she was about 5 months she has been in a sleep sack at night. We dress her in a short sleeved onesie and a long-sleeved sleeper and then put her in the sleep sack. Now I am wondering, at 16 months, is it bad to keep her in the sleep sack? I was wondering if it was bad for mobility and I asked our pediatrician at the 12 month appt. She said as long as it wasn't tripping her (it wasn't; in fact she is very good at walking around her crib in it!) it should be ok but she was also old enough to use a lightweight blanket in the crib instead. I tried the blanket last week instead of the sleep sack and of course it doesn't stay on her. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? My daughter is tiny (17 pounds) so she is still wearing the "medium" sized sleep sack. I know they make them in bigger sizes, too, so I'm assuming it's still ok to use them on even a lot older kids, but I just want to make sure I'm not stifling her development by keeping her in one. (My husband thinks that she feels all cozy in it and sleeps better because of it.) I'm just not sure. Thanks in advance for any thoughts.
Hi, C.,
I had my son in one until age 3. He would kick the blankets off, end up head at the bottom of the bed, you name it. Besides, he liked the sleep sack. My daughter is 20 months now and same thing. We use the "early walker" style from Halo. It has feet holes cut in the bottom. I let her feet out so she can run around before bed. Then after she is asleep, I pull her feet in for the night! Works great!
My daughter is almost 21 months and still in a sleep sack. Mainly I have kept her in it because she loves it and it keeps her warm. I tried to take her out of it, but she got pretty upset. I don't in any way feel like it is affecting her development, she is running and walking and trying to jump just like any normal kid her age. I just haven't taken her out of it because I want her to sleep. They sell big sleep sacks through One Step Ahead. You can order online. I will probably take her out of it when she outgrows the one she is in now because it is the biggest size. Hope that helps!!
My son is 24 months old and still in a sleep sack. He moves around so much in the crib that a blanket never stays on him either. The sleep sacks do come in bigger sizes, and there are also versions with holes for the feet if you want to give your daughter more mobility. A side benefit of having the sleep sack at this age is that he doesn't (and can't) try to crawl out of the crib!
Good luck!
We just switched our son out of a sleepsack at 26 months old. He has no developmental issues and is more coordinated and athletic than most of his peers (probably due to sleeping so well in the sleepsack :-)
She'll be fine!
I wouldn't worry about it. It isn't like she's wearing it all day, and she can obviously move around her crib ok in it anyway. If it helps her get a good night's sleep thats wonderful.
E.
If it's working well and she loves it, there is no harm in keeping her in a sleep sack in bed only. Especially since you said that she is able to get up and walk around the crib in it. The only way it would harm her development would be if she was allowed to wear it for extended time outside the bed and it doesn't sound like that is the case. I do know that they have new sleep sacks with feet holes, so if you're worried, you could buy some of those instead. Try not to sweat the small stuff...especially when your little one is happy. Take care!
Dear C.,
I liked those as well and used them on my daughter until she was in a 4T. I agree with your husband.
But I just asked my 14 year old if she remembered them and if she liked them. She said that she did recall that she did not like them.
Also, during most of her elementary school years, she was not cold. (I would remind her to wear a jacket and she said that she wasn't cold and didn't need a jacket.)
Hope that helps.
S.
Halo makes and "early walker" sleep sack with feet holes. My daughter wore hers so long it was threadbare by the time we just moved to footed jammies.
I think you can get them at Target. We got ours through our diaper service, Tiny Tots. They have an online store with a very nice boutique.
A.
I wouldn't worry about it. Keep doing what's working, I say. Heck, if they came in a size big enough for me, I might enjoy a sleep sack :-)
T.
Unfortunately I don't remember where I saw it...I think I googled sleep sacks for toddlers and they now actually make them with feet holes for the older kids. I am thinking of getting some for my son when he's older...
My son is 15 months old and still in a medium sleep sack and just like your daughter. He can move just fine in it. As long as its just for sleep time I wouldn't worry about it.....
Okay heres...the link I don't know might only be for older kids.....http://www.inventiveparent.com/cgi-bin/shopper.cgi?preadd...
I had my twins in them until they were 3.5 yrs old (we transistion them to big beds at that time). They loved them and have no developmental issues at all. They definitely kept them in their cribs because they were not able to spread their legs far enough apart to get a leg over the side to get out. So needless to say, I never had issues with kids getting out of bed in the middle of the night or early morning hours.
I swear by those things.
my son wore a sleep sack untill he was 2 years old. target sells them with feet, so you can choose if you want their feet tucked in or out. it was awesome. he used to walk around the house like that before bed. once he moved onto a toddler bed, i bought an oversized comforter. that way when he rolled around in bed he was always nice and covered.
My 2 year old still loves her "sack" she asks for it at night and at nap time. I have her in a large regular one now, but she will soon outgrow that and I found these with feet holes to move her to.
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss__1_11?url=search-alias%...+
C.,
Another alternative that comes in smaller sizes:
http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId...
If she's sleeping well in it, why try to fix what isn't broken? Especially these days when little ones aren't allowed to have anything nice and cuddly in their cribs anymore.
I think they are great - especially in winter. Safe until the kiddo starts trying to climb out of the crib.
It's nearly impossible to get a toddler to sleep with a blanket so the sleep sacks were a godsend when our wiggly son was that age.
i agree with the others. if she's sleeping well, don't change a thing!
As long as she is in an appropriate size sleep sack it's just fine! My son was in a sleep sack until two years old when he moved to a bed and no longer needed it. I found blankets do not stay on in a crib, they can't be tucked in and the child moves in his sleep too much for them to be effective at all. I think sleep sacks are a fabulous product. Just be sure they are used for sleep only, if you have put her in her crib to play for a few minutes while you do housework or something she shouldn't be in the sleep sack. I'm sure she gets plenty of exercise during the day in her clothes and a sleep sack at night won't hurt a thing. You could try blankets during naptime when it is not so crucial she stay toasty warm and when you can reposition the blanket on her periodically if you want to acclimatize her to blankets. No worries!
we segued from the sleep sack to the one-piece zip-up sleepers w/ feet. they work just great and since we keep the house at 67 degrees, the kids don't get too hot (our kids will be 2 and 3 in June).
My daughter is 2 and still LOVES her sleep sack. She even wants it on for naps and honestly she sleeps better when she has it on versus not. It also hasn't hindered her mobility in any way and I am amazed at how well she can walk in it in her crib. I wouldn't worry at all. A friend's son used the extra large sleep sacks and now uses one as his comfort blanket and he's almost 4. I would recommend not fixing it if it's still working for you. Oh, and apparently they make sleep sacks for the much older child, I guess they just have two openings on the bottom in case the child wants to walk around and you are worried about tripping.
We used them up until my daughter was over 2 years old. Actually, we have some that are size 3T. They were great because she couldn't lift her foot up to climb out of the crib. She was cozy and happy. I tried to do the same with my other daughter, but she figured out the zipper and stopped wearing them around 22 months. She also started climbing out of the crib as soon as she got it off. Both of my kids developed totally normally and can run, climb and kick as well or better than all the other kids. They are also really good sleepers.
My son is 26 months old and is still using a sleep sack at night. He moves around so much while he's sleeping, so blankets are useless, plus he really does love it. Even on warm nights, he insists on it - just not bedtime without it. I think it has also kept him from climbing out of the crib, but definitely has not slowed his development at all. We'll be moving to the Halo Big Kids sleeper soon.
My daughter is 3.5 years old and still sleeps in one. She sleeps well and hasn't asked to change it so I'm sticking with it! She has been in one since being a baby and she's developed completely fine! I say stick with what works. People in Europe sleep in them well beyond age 6! I order mine from a company called Castleware. They can custom make it so you'll never have to worry about finding on that fits.
Updated
My daughter is 3.5 years old and still sleeps in one. She sleeps well and hasn't asked to change it so I'm sticking with it! She has been in one since being a baby and she's developed completely fine! I say stick with what works. People in Europe sleep in them well beyond age 6! I order mine from a company called Castleware. They can custom make it so you'll never have to worry about finding one that fits.
Hi C.,
My little boy is 25 months and has slept in a sleep sac since we stopped swaddling him at 4 months. I've decided that I'm going to keep him in it until we move him into his 'big boy bed' this summer and then we're going to use the grobag first duvet set
http://www.babyplanetboutique.com/grobag-first-duvet-bedd...
which is specifically for kids transitioning from a sleep sac.
If you don't want to do that, then I think doing it during summer is a good idea because then at least if she does get out from under the covers she won't get cold and by the time the weather cools down she may have gotten used to it by then.
Hope that helps. Good luck, D.
