Ahhhhh, sleep. Remember that?

Remember when you could just fall into your bed at night, feeling the light fluffiness of your perfectly formed pillow, as you pulled your warm comforter up to your chin, knowing that you were about to settle into a blissful night of z’s?

Welp. Me neither.

I know sleep had to have been a part of my life at some point, though, because I see pictures of myself before I had kids. Bright eyes. Smooth skin. Clean hair. Of course those pictures are tucked waaaaaay back in my Facebook Photos and it takes at least 25 minutes to get to them. But, they’re there!

Anyway.

Sleep–or lack thereof–is such a huge part of parents’ lives (especially in the early stages), that we spend a serious amount of time talking about it. My family and I just moved to a new city about 6 months ago, and every time I meet a mom with a baby, we talk about sleep. We just can’t help ourselves. It’s the first bond that holds us together.

Hey, New Mom. Are you draggin through life right now? Cool, me too. Let’s be friends. 

So in honor of all you tired and tethered mamas out there, I dedicate my very first review to you.

Okay, so let’s talk DockATot.

When a friend of mine posted a picture of her sleeping baby on social media, positioned ever so sweetly in his DockATot, moms started asking questions. Within just a few hours there was a massive conversation about this thing. I was intrigued, so I bought one.

Here’s what I found:

It’s safe in your bed or in a crib/pack-n-play.

The padding that surrounds the DockATot is breathable. So it’s completely different than those positioners that aren’t supposed to be that safe. It also meets and exceeds all of the requirements for “safe sleeping” by the people who are in charge of establishing that, so that’s super awesome and reassuring.

The first night Bundle slept in his, I placed it in the pack-n-play next to our bed. He slept great. He woke about every four hours as compared to every two, so that was nice.

Side note: When he was three months old. he did end up sleeping up to 10 hours straight in the DockATot, but just based off of my baby, I can’t say if that’s the norm or not. But if you check out the website, this does seem to be the case for other parents.

What I really loved was that I could also put the DockATot in bed with us. It kept me from having to get out of bed for feedings, and when he stirred in the middle of the night, I could try to soothe him back to sleep by rocking him back and forth (again, still in bed). Bundle was still safe and it made night wakings so much easier.

It’s super easy to move around.

Another perk is that this little thing fits almost anywhere. And the bottom of it is soft enough that it’s still comfortable even on the floor. That helped with keeping things consistent with where Bundle slept. In those first few months, we spent a lot of time in the living room. Still recovering from childbirth, I only climbed the stairs to the bedrooms when I absolutely had to. So being able to bring the DockATot downstairs each morning made me feel like I was still helping him develop a nap routine while getting comfortable with his sleep space.

Its portability also means that it travels well. It comes with a great little travel bag and a reusable board that you slide in the bottom so that it keeps its shape.

I also can’t tell you how useful it was when my oldest broke his arm and had to have emergency surgery in the middle of the night. Normally, I may not have been able to stay in the hospital with him because it wouldn’t have been a feasible place for the baby to stay. Well, with the DockATot, my husband, the baby, and I were able to cram into the hospital room all together, and Bundle was still able to sleep soundly.

It has many uses.

The hardest thing about buying baby stuff is trying to predict what you’re actually going to need and use. Who wants to spend a bunch of money on something that they only use for a few short weeks? I mean, it’s damn expensive having a baby, even if you’re fortunate enough to have had, like, seven baby showers and received absolutely everything off your registry (no really, if that’s how it was for you, you need to get on your knees and thank the baby shower gods right now). So when you (or someone else) can spend money on something that will allow you to use it far beyond just a month or two, that’s a win!

The Deluxe is meant for babies 0-8 months. It grows well with the baby, and opens at the bottom so if he or she becomes longer, their cute little legs can still be relaxed. But! You can also use it for tummy time and for when baby is learning to sit. When we moved, I got rid of a lot of things I didn’t think I would need much longer. One of those things was our Boppy. I really ended up regretting that because I forgot about how useful it is when they are learning to sit. I didn’t want to buy another, soooo, I used the DockATot.  Problem solved.

So, why not the tot?

I would say that the best time to get a DockATot Deluxe would be at the very beginning of baby’s life. It retails around $175, so you may not see it as being valuable if your little one is already six months old. The company does sell other sizes that can be used by older babies and even toddlers (which could be great if you have an anxious sleeper!), but given that I haven’t tried those out yet, I can’t really speak to them.

That’s all I have for now. Just remember that no matter what you decide, taking care of yourself is key, and finding a way to get some good, restorative sleep is huge. Because, hey. 

Ur a Mom Now. 

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If you’ve found this post informative, and you’re interested in purchasing your own DockATot, you can find them here.