Arm's Reach Original Co-Sleeper

You know, I don't even think you really need to read the review that follows to know my opinion of the Arm's Reach Original Co-Sleeper. The title and rating should just about sum it up for everyone.

However, if you'd like to know the reasoning behind my opinion, by all means, read on.

In my opinion, this purchase was really a no-brainer. I wanted to nurse thus the baby would need to sleep in my room. Seeing as how our master bedroom wasn't big enough for me to drag the crib in there, I would need some kind of sleeper (be it a bassinet or a portacrib). I thought it was silly to purchase a bassinet seeing as how many infants outgrow them in a few months... then they proceed to collect spider webs in the garage because they're utterly useless. When I saw the Co-Sleeper and realized it was the only one of its kind, I knew it was the solution for me. It was a sleeper you could use for a bed, changing table and play yard... heck, I wouldn't have to buy an additional Pack and Play!!! What a great solution!!!!!!!

Not.

Product Specs

Ok, so what exactly is the Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper, anyway? The Co-Sleeper is basically a port-a-crib that connects to your bed (in between the mattress and the box spring). The mattress of the Co-Sleeper is level with your mattress, thus allowing you easy access to your sleeping angel. Once connected to the bed, the Co-Sleeper is extremely stable -- there is no worry of it tipping over if Fido accidently knocks into it during the night.

I couldn't find this product at any store in my general vicinity, so I had to purchase online. Thankfully BabyUniverse.com was offering free shipping, so I didn't worry about exhorbitant shipping costs. Trust me, avoid Target.com -- the shipping costs alone were in the $50 range.

Features:
*Converts from a bassinet to a play yard (can even use it as a changing table)
*Comes with a 1 inch mattress pad (which is the mattress), fitted sheet
*Fits into a nylon carrying case
*Attaches directly to your bed -- only fits beds up to 24" in height... if your bed is larger, you will need to buy leg extensions
*Bassinet holds up to 30 lbs (or until baby can roll from side to side... which is usually WAY before 30 lbs) and the play yard holds up to 50 lbs
*Weight: 35 lbs

You can also check out http://www.armsreach.com where you can purchase accessories for the Co-Sleeper and the actual Crib -- though you may end up paying more for the priviledge of purchasing through their site.

The road to Hades is paved with good intentions...

I really, really thought I'd love this Co-Sleeper. I had all these plans... Aidan would nurse... I'd roll over in the middle of the night and feed him without waking up... then we'd both drift off to sleep again without ever having gotten out of bed. Then, when he was sleeping through the night I'd use this as a play yard in my living room. So versatile, yet cheaper than a bassinet and play yard purchased separately.

Things don't always work out like we plan them to.

Aidan never nursed. I had to pump my milk during the day and feed him bottles at night... the picture of him and I nursing at night, in bed, never materialized. Actually, he never spent one night in his Co-Sleeper. He hated it. Loathed it. Screamed bloody murder whenever I put him in it. Now, to be fair, I have a feeling this had to do with his severe reflux... afterall, he would only sleep on me or in his car seat -- nowhere else. However, I don't want to discount the fact that the Co-Sleeper is uncomfortable as heck.

Then came time when I could use it as a play yard. Yeah, that worked out well. Again, he hated it... loathed it... screamed bloody murder. Now, again, whether he just hated the feeling of being penned in or if it just was uncomfortable... I'll never know... I'm not that good at reading Aidna's mind (unless it involves "I'm hungry," "I'm wet," or "I'm tired").

However, I will try hard to evaluate the Co-Sleeper fairly... because many of those things were out of our control. It may not have been the Co-Sleeper's fault that Aidan didn't want to sleep in it (though the uncomfortable factor definitely could have played a role).

Ok, first... Putting the darned thing together

Yeah... so that wasn't fun. It should just be as simple as locking a few bars into place, but it really wasn't. I've assembled and disassembled the Graco Pack and Play, so I wasn't a complete novice... but it took me over an hour of sweating, cursing and whacking the darned thing to get it all set up. The instructions were absolutely no help -- they were, perhaps, the most incomprehensible conglomeration of words and pictures I've ever seen put on a page (well... I did see an instruction manual for a fog machine that said "only strong man may use"). The bars wouldn't lock into place, nothing would do what it was supposed to do -- all in all, very VERY frustrating.

So, not only was it a pain in the rear end to put together... did I mention it weighs 35 lbs? Seriously. How is this portable? I had a heck of a time just dragging it up against my bed, and you want me to take it apart and move it from room to room? You have to be kidding me.

What? I need to spend more money?

So, you spend anywhere from $180 to $200 on this Original Co-Sleeper... that's a fair chunk of change that shouldn't be thrown around lightly. Then you receive the unfortunate news that your bed doesn't fit the 24" max height. What does that mean? That means you have to shell out more money. How much more? $18 plus shipping. It really doesn't sound like a lot... but come on... I just spent $200 for that friggin crib and you want me to shell out more money because you made it ridiculously low?

Oh, but wait... you don't stop there. You have pets? Worried about your blankets or pillows getting pushed into the crib at night? You need a canopy that'll set you back $55 plus shipping.

Did I also mention that you only get one sheet with this crib? You wanna know how much more Arm's Reach wants for extra sheets? Try $15 per sheet. Nice. Real nice.

So now... with leg extensions, a canopy and an extra sheet you have now spent $288 -- turning a slightly good deal into a royal stick up the rear-end money-taking scheme. Seriously, who needs to spend that much?

Ok, so it's a pain to put together and it's expensive as heck... but is it comfy?

Well... let me try to describe this... Not only is the sheet scratchy and rough, the mattress is a piece of board with a 1" piece of crappy foam on it. Trust me, I washed the bedding before use (in Dreft). Then I washed it again and again, it was still scratchy. It's simply a low-thread-count, low-quality sheet and no amount of fabric softener or quality detergents is going to improve upon that fact.

Do you really think it's comfortable? That premium mattress with 3000 springs (kidding) I just bought is more comfortable than the Co-Sleeper. You couldn't pay me to sleep on something that hard. The Britax Companion car seat had more padding and comfort than this crib does.

So the short answer is no, no it is not comfortable in the slightest. This needs to have a better mattress (not only for the comfort factor but also because of posture issues) for the price, because I've seen Pack-and-Plays with better mattresses than this one.

Well... what about taking it apart?

Man, if I thought that putting it together was hard... I wasn't prepared at all for taking it apart. Remember how I said the bars refused to lock when I was putting it together?

Well, now the bars refused to unlock. I broke several nails and reverted to tears numerous times during the "taking apart breakdown." My fingers were red and swollen and I had bruises from where I was pressing the unlocking buttons. There were quite a few times I wanted to simply take a hammer to the darn thing and call it a day. Nothing would unlock, the slipcover wouldn't come apart at the correct spots... it was literal hades on earth.

Finally I got it all unlocked... which, because I'm an idiot, I had to ruin when I put it together as a play yard.

Trust me, putting it together as a play yard isn't ANY easier than the initial set up... and when I finally broke it down for the last time... it still stunk.

Size and Weight

Have I mentioned it weighs 35 lbs? I really can't mention that enough, ladies and gents. Can you imagine lugging a 35 lb weight from room to room? I can't, so I didn't. That meant it sat in my living room, gathering dust and cat hair, because I rarely used it.

In addition to the weight, it's also fairly large. Many people will have a tough time fitting it next to their beds -- the dimensions are 40 X 28. Some people have solved this problem by buying the Mini-Co-Sleeper, but then it'll be too small to use as a play yard... so what's the point in buying an overglorified bassinet? Once it's set up as a play yard, it really has to stay where it is... it has a real tough time fitting through doorways. If it was easier to put together and take down, that would be a different story... but you couldn't PAY ME to do that on a daily basis.

So what's the only real plus? Convenience?

Ok, for nursing mothers... this has to be the only selling point. It is convenient. It gives you the conveninece of co-sleeping without worrying about the hazards (like a fat, hairy husband rolling over on the poor thing). Like I said earlier, the Co-Sleeper connects right to the bed so that the mattress is level with your own. This makes it super-easy to nurse your little one during the night. You don't have to pick them up, carry them anywhere, or even wake them up at all.

However, are you willing to spend anywhere from $200 to $290 simply for a smidge more convenience?

Oh, and did I mention it doesn't rock? Yeah, so if your little one needs a little rocking to get back to sleep... you have to pick them up and carrying them to the rocking chair. If you had just bought a regular old bassinet, you could rock the baby back to sleep without traveling outside your bedroom.

Quick Summary

So, let's see... Redeeming qualities? Very few. Actually, none in my opinion. Like the title said, the Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper is yet another overpriced, useless piece of crap that exists solely to part poor hormone-driven, sleep-deprived, emotionally-unstable women from their hard-earned money. They market this like every mom HAS TO HAVE IT, and if you don't... you're one of "those" moms who will probably drop your kid on its head (ie: Britany Spears). Do you really need to spend $200 on something like this? What is the difference between this and a bassinet (or even worse... a $120 Pack and Play)? Well, the bassinet rocks and costs about $100 less while the Co-Sleeper attaches to the bed. Ooooohhhhhhhhhh... that's worth the extra $100. Let's look at Pack-and-Plays now... Some PAPs come with castors (for easy moving), mattresses that can rock, a real changing area instead of having to use the mattress, and mobiles that help to lull a child to sleep and most cost far less than this cosleeper does. The only thing that the cosleeper has that a pack and play doesn't is the bed attachment. Oookkk... So I can put my PAP up to the side of the bed and viola! Same thing for roughly $80 cheaper!

I can't believe the number of awards this overglorified, overpriced poor excuse for a bassinet has won -- it's enough to make me lose faith in the JPMA and Parents Magazine. It stinks with a capital S. Do yourself a favor and cross this product from your "purchase" list and go get yourself a pedicure with the money you saved.

Pros:
*Attaches directly to bed, allowing easy access to infant during the night
*Converts to a play yard
*It's portable (yeah right)

Cons:
*It weighs 35 frikkin pounds, people
*Mattress is very uncomfortable
*Only fits mattresses up to 24" -- you get to spend $18 if you're lucky enough to have a mattress higher than that
*Only gives you one fitted sheet, extras cost $15
*The fabrics are very rough -- not soft at all
*Instructions are useless
*Almost impossible to put together and take apart without usage of a hammer and many expletives
*Doesn't rock like a bassinet (or heck, many Pack and Plays have rocking bassinets now)
*Only stable when attached to bed, very unstable when left separate
*Though the bassinet will hold 30 lbs, your child will outgrow the bassinet well before then... this is just a gimicky marketing tactic... your child will outgrow the Co-Sleeper at the exact same time they'll outgrow any other regular bassinet
*Ugly variety of fabrics and colors
*Expensive and the accessories are even more expensive