we had a rocking chair in the nursery but never EVER used it. feedings/burpings usually take about thirty mins or a bit longer. i found the couch to be comfy and fluffy. we have another rocker in our living room and our son has never pinched fingers. but i am old school and watched him like a hawk and he just recently moved from his crib. (2 and 1/2) i would have a plan b. it just dosent seem safe to have the baby bed on the floor. perhaps when they are a bit older but my five month old squirms and is all over the room when its play time. i could see her getting stuck or some sort of accident if she were left to sleep at night.

We've had the same rocking chair in both our nurseries. Neither of my kids have been drawn to it at all, as far as trying to climb into it or on it. I think it could only really crush fingers if someone was rocking in it and the baby was crawling around under the chair unwatched.

I have to admit, the rocking chair wasn't super-comfortable to nurse in. My kids were the nurse-quickly-and-go-right-back-to-sleep types so this worked ok for me. I didn't want to spend money on a nice glider either but most people I know who have them really love them. Something to consider. But I don't think a glider is safer per se.

A floor bed is a great idea--we're going to have one as well. Our baby won't be in it for a long time because she'll be with us until she's ready to sleep alone, but it will be there for naps and reading and playing until then.

I wouldn't worry about the rocker--but like others have said, it may not be a great place to nurse in for long periods of time. We're getting a rocking armchair, but it's going downstairs in the living room so I can spend all that feeding time being part of things instead of hidden away. At night we'll nurse in bed, so there's no need for a special nursery chair for a while.

Good luck!

We started using a floor bed when our daughter was about 7 months old and she stills sleeps in it (at 19 months). We love it. We took the glider out of the room, though. All that we have in her room is an IKEA expedit bookshelf/changing table with all her books, a dresser bolted to the wall, a soft bin with stuffed animals, and her crib (that she has never used). I was worried that a rocker or glider would result in pinched fingers or falls when she was pulling up and just learning to walk.

Good luck!

I'm going to start with a hearty second for the "stuff will happen that you never expected.

Our son, now two, has slept on a mattress on since he was about sixth months old, it was on the floor for a while but we later moved him into a regular bed. It wasn't what we had planned but it has worked out well. For about the first year we had both a rocker and glider in the room and never had problems, but he isn't a boundary pusher in that way. So, what I would say is this, for many kids a floor bed in a room with a rocker and glider will be safe. For some kids, not so much.

Try to keep an open mind about what will work best/be safest and then follow your little person's lead.

Have you considered something like the POÄNG rocker by IKEA? Because of the design there is no where for a kid to dangerously stick his fingers. (http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i114/nkovach/poang.jpg) I had a glider for my son and actually didn't like it. This bad boy, however, rocks like a dream and is really comfortable!

I have a large heavy rocker in our baby's room and have since day one. I never used it when she was itty bitty. I didn't nurse her in her room - she nursed a lot and all of the time and it was boring in there. But, I do use the rocker now, every night before bed and have for a year now... It's part of our night routine to rock and sing and is worth keeping it in the room for this.

My 2 year old climbs up into the rocker all of the time and rocks herself during the day. And while a fall could happen (it happens everywhere) so far it hasn't here. Also, the issue of pinched fingers has never come up, either.

Honestly, of all of the possible things to worry about as far as baby proofing a room goes, this is not anywhere on my radar. We're mid way through being approved to foster/adopt a baby and the house has to meet all kinds of crazy rules as far as baby proofing goes - it's not on their list either. So, my thought - relax. Put in the outlet covers, attach the dresser to the wall, put up the curtain stings and then go enjoy your baby. Your mommy intuition will guide you the rest of the way... Good luck.

I am really freaking out about the Montessori floor bed. Please talk to your pedi about this before using it. It totally does not seem safe. All I can see is the baby scooting just enough for his/her head to be off the mattress or some type of terrible accident. But this is the first I have heard of the bed. I know you will do what is safe for your baby. And I will stop pestering you about it now. Congrats on the new baby :)

I think there is more potential for danger with a babies head getting wedged between crib slats and climbing out and falling to the floor (my sister broke her leg at 7 months from scaling her crib and falling out) than a mattress on the floor. I don't know how tall you're assuming a mattress is, but if a baby scoots and their head is off the mattress, I don't see much danger there. Uncomfortable, but not dangerous.

Our daughter has been crawling/walking for about six months and has never injured herself on our rocker. We don't use a floor bed, but we do let her roam freely in the room outside of naptime. She loves playing with it, so there has been ample opportunity.

For nursing, I use a loveseat that is also in the nursery; I agree with previous posters that rockers/gliders are not comfortable for nursing. But we used the rocker a lot to rock her to sleep when she was little and still sit in it when she is playing in the room.

I never found a rocker comfortable for nursing. I liked a stable fluffy place (armchair, couch, or bed). One babe went to sleep from nursing. One baby liked to bounce. If you are concerned about the chair, get an excercise ball. Lots of babies prefer the bounce to the rock at an early age.

My kiddo pinched his fingers under a rocker at Grandma's house once...but he also used to whack himself in the face with both our glider and glider ottoman when he was starting to stand and walk--he'd push them away, and then they'd swing back at him. I'd recommend a locking feature if you get a glider (we don't have that option and it would also have made the ottoman a more useful nursing footrest). We do love our glider, though! I have always found wood rockers to be uncomfortable for nursing, too, especially during the phases when baby was eating for 45 minutes at a time. Ouch.

We have a rocking chair in our daughter's nursery and I have used it since about 5 months for nursing. It's not really big or heavy - it's the same one my mom used with me.

My daughter is now 19 months and climbs up in it herself. I worried about her smashing her feet or hands and took two of those linkable plastic rings that you can buy at Babies R Us (toy) and put one around the front side of each of the rockers so it couldn't completely rock forward, but could still rock back (which rocks into a corner and not as easy to pinch and smash back there). It was a random thought using what was available and works quite well and is cheaper than a new chair.

I find the chair comfy for nursing an older baby or toddler, but awkward when she was small and I was new to nursing. I also invested in a nursing stool from Medela which gives me a better angle for nursing, especially since I am petite.