Is Renting The SNOO Worth It?
If you know me, you know I love a good sale. For Memorial Day, SNOO was having a deal on their rentals. Essentially, committing to a 6-month rental was the same cost as renting 4 months month-to-month. However, we were torn. Did we really need the SNOO if we had the Nestig mini crib we were going to use as a bassinet? And if we did need it, would we need it for 6 months?
We did some research (including this article), and it seems with all things babies, they either love it or hate it, and it ultimately depends on your baby. It would either be the best thing ever or a stationary bassinet. So in May, we opted to forego it.
Fast forward to late July, a few days after Margot was born. On our first night home, Kevin stayed up all night holding her. She would only sleep for extended periods of time if she was contact-sleeping or being rocked. If we wanted to sleep independently, we decided it would be worth it to rent the SNOO.
Let me just say, it was a game-changer. The first night we had it, she slept 2 hours and 45 minutes straight on her own. We were sold. Since she’s been two months old, she’s increased her average longest sleep by 30 minutes every week. Now at 13 weeks old, we’re consistently getting 6-7 hour stretches, with the longest being 7 hours and 50 minutes! And based on what we experienced in Ojai, she’s not dependent on it like we feared she might be. In my opinion, it’s worth the monthly investment for the amount of sleep we (and she) are able to get.
As we approach month three, we’ve been discussing when we want to wean Margot off the SNOO and transition her to her room and her big crib. We’ve started letting her sleep with her arms out of the SNOO sack (she doesn’t startle herself awake and likes to sleep this way anyway). Personally, I want to see how much we can maximize her longest stretch of sleep before we make the switch. Oh ya, and not to mention, get through the four-month sleep regression first.
Note: The rental comes with one complimentary sheet, one size Small (5-12 lbs) and one Medium (12-18 lbs) SNOO sacks to keep.
What we have…
SNOO Leg Lifters - these risers very slightly elevate the top of the SNOO to help with reflux
SNOO Sleep Sack - One extra in size Small for when the other is in the wash
Bassinet Sheets - Recommend getting at least one, if not three more, especially if your baby suffers from reflux
Caddy - I keep this with all of our SNOO supplies and a few burp cloths right next to our SNOO to help with middle-of-the-night changes