Somerville, Mass – Back in the pink house, we are settling back into our routine of being home. At least we are trying to. Unfortunately, the twins are on a nap strike; and I fear we could soon see the end of the nap as a daily occurrence.
In honor of the beloved nap – and sleep in general – let me show you where the twins slept while we were in Costa Rica.. This is the Travel Crib Lite by Baby Bjorn.
In the past while traveling, the twins have always slept in their Peapod Tents by Kidco. Despite the recent recall, our tents served us well and the boys were always comfy and cozy in there. Alas, I’m afraid we have outgrown them. Silly me, I bought the smaller size thinking that the boys would not be sleeping in cribs anymore by this age. I didn’t realize that I would want them to stay in their cribs for as long as possible.
Anyway, in the interest of avoiding claustrophobia and agrophobia, I invested in two new travel cribs by Baby Bjorn. They normally retail for about $200. I bought mine used for $75 each.
By comparison with the Peapod Tent, this travel crib is significantly more expensive. It is heavier (11 lbs to the Peapod’s 5 lbs). And it is bigger when packed up. But it is still small enough and light enough to fit in a big suitcase. I pulled out the biggest suitcase that we own, which I haven’t used since I lived overseas and I had to pack a year’s worth of clothing into one bag. I could fit both cribs in there, in addition to some blankets and other things stuffed into the sides. It’s sort of unwieldy, but even with two cribs in there it was still light enough to manage.
The Baby Bjorn tent is incredibly fast and easy to set up and to pack away. This cute video from Baby Bjorn shows how it’s done. It’s part of their propaganda, but it really is that easy.
The twins liked sleeping in their travel cribs, and they required little adjustment. The first night was a little traumatic, but that was mainly because they were overtired after a long day of travel and stressed out about being in a new place. The second night was a piece of cake.
I have only two complaints about the Baby Bjorn travel crib, and they both pertain to the ongoing nap strike (which sort of started when we were on the road).
- First, my toddler twins can move these cribs. Sure, “the sturdy mattress keeps the travel crib firmly on the floor”, just like Baby Bjorn claims. It doesn’t tip over or anything like that. But the twins were quick to discover that they could shake and shimmy these lightweight things right across the room. I would come in to find them looking out the window, pulling clothes off the shelves, giving each other high fives, etc etc.
- Second, my toddler twins can escape from these cribs. At first, they could get out only if the crib was situated near a bed or another piece of furniture. But by the end of the trip, they were climbing in and out with absolutely no help or hindrance.
Fortunately, at night, my boys go right to sleep and usually stay that way until morning. But naptime was another story. We soon realized that the only hope for a nap was for a grown-up to stay in the bedroom until the twins fell asleep. Otherwise, the Baby Bjorn travel crib was more like the Baby Bjorn party crib.
Overall, though, we were pretty pleased with this product. It would have been an even better investment if we bought them when the twins were infants. But I anticipate we’ll still get plenty of use out of them over the next year or so.
Score: 4/5 stars
Great Article! I have gone through the article, i think you should also include more baby accessories.
I am looking forward to see more information on related accessories.
Parents are always looking for the best accessories for their newborn.
Thanks in advance.
I found best travel cribs reviews here.
Hi! I’m looking for a bag big enough to hold both. We currently carry them separate and it’s a pain. Would you happen to have the name of the suitcase you use? Thank you